Rites of life: Hatsumiyamairi

Hatsumiyamairi - first shrine visit

This is when a newborn baby is taken to a shrine (usually the local one), to be placed under the protection of the kami. The child then becomes a parishioner of the shrine.

The ritual takes place on the thirty-second day after birth for a boy and the thirty-third day for a girl.

Traditionally the baby was taken to the shrine by its grandmother because the mother was thought to be impure from childbirth, but nowadays the child is often taken by the mother.

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• Shrines