They say people turn to the gods in times of trouble, and right now the thing making life hard for all of us is COVID….
I heard that Hirota Shrine is handing out protective talismans featuring “Amabie,” a yokai said to help ward off epidemics (if it can keep COVID away, maybe it’s more of a god than a yokai at this point…), so I went to check it out.
This is what I received ↑
It looks a bit like a mermaid, with a scaly body, long hair, and a beak…
The free talismans are placed to the right of the offering box at the main shrine building.
Each visitor who comes to pray can take one!
At the shrine office on the right side when facing the main shrine, paid talismans are also available for a first offering of 500 yen.
About Amabie
Amabie is said to have appeared in the sea off Kumamoto during the Edo period, saying, “When an illness spreads, show people a picture of me,” before disappearing back into the ocean.
Apparently, an illustration of Amabie remains in a kawaraban newspaper from Edo, far from Kumamoto. In an era without today’s conveniences, it’s amazing that the story made it all the way from Kumamoto to Edo.
Here is the location of Hirota Shrine↓
★There is a visitor parking lot next to the entrance.
