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Japanese New Year’s Eve is celebrated with much pomp and grandeur in Kyoto as the three-day New Year holiday is a special time in Japan. Japanese New Year’s Eve in Kyoto is a time for solemn prayers and joyous greetings. New Year’s Day is a holiday in most parts of the world but to the Japanese, the occasion has a unique significance.
On Japanese New Year’s Eve in Kyoto, most people try and spend their time with their families. The sons and daughters who have moved out of the city return to their parents’ homes in the country, if possible, to celebrate the special occasion. Many families spend the evening watching special television programs.
Most Japanese homes are well cleaned and beautifully decorated on the occasion of the New Year. There are others who ring in the New Year with a visit to the nightclubs and dancing away to the wee hours of the morning. Some people also indulge in nightlong revelry to welcome the New Year.
It is a custom among most Japanese to visit shrines and temples during the Japanese New Year’s Eve in Kyoto where they pray by the light of bonfire. “Joya no kane” is the name of the Japanese bell-ringing ritual which brings the old year to an end and ushers in the new. Giant temple bells known as ‘bonsho’ made of copper are struck with a large swinging beam at a spot that is decorated with lotus petals. The bell is struck 108 times on the New Year’s Eve in Kyoto to free people from the 108 Buddhist sins.
If you desire to ring a bell, then you need to stand in a queue from 11 p.m. onwards. Some temples may also ask you to make a reservation or purchase a ticket. It must be remembered that ‘Joya no kane’ is a religious occasion and drunken behavior or shouts of ‘Happy New Year’ on the Japanese New Year’s Eve in Kyoto are not tolerated. One of the temples where visitors can ring ‘Joya no kane’ is Choraku-ji Temple where Seiriken is sold for 500yen. After ringing the bell, devotees receive charms and amulets. The ringing starts at midnight. Eikan-do Temple is one of the most private places to experience Japanese New Year’s Eve in Kyoto. The ringing here starts at 11:30 p.m. At the Kurodani Temple, the scene is more local and quiet and ringing starts at 11:40 p.m. Seiriken will be handed from 11:00 p.m. onwards.
Many Temples serves amazakea ginger-flavored drink made from sake lees, which is served free but limited to about 300 people. The ringing of the bell starts at about 11:40 p.m. Enryaku-ji Temple is a highly recommended place to visit during Japanese New Year’s Eve in Kyoto since it often snows here. You can buy an amulet arrow worth 1000yen to ring a bell. At the Seigan-ji Temple, Seiriken will be served from 11 p.m. onwards and then amazakea will be served. The ringing of the bell starts at about 11:40 p.m.
Amazake
Amazake is a traditional sweet, low-alcoholic Japanese drink made from fermented rice. Amazake dates from the Kofun period, and it is mentioned in the Nihon Shoki. It is part of the family of traditional Japanese foods made using Aspergillus oryzae that includes miso, soy sauce, and sake.
The basic recipe for amazake has been used for hundreds of years. Kōji is added to cooled whole grain rice causing enzymes to break down the carbohydrates into simpler unrefined sugars. As the mixture incubates, sweetness develops naturally. From Wikipedia
http://www.asiarooms.com/en/travel-guide/japan/kyoto/kyoto-festivals-and-events/
