One of the most striking symbols of Shinto is the rice rope used to denote sacred space, called shimenawa. The earliest rites of Shinto are generally held to be associated with the introduction of rice culture in the Yayoi Age (300 BC – 250 AD), and as the staple food rice was treasured as a gift from the gods. Consequently it plays a central part in the religion, from offerings of rice to rice wine as well as planting and harvesting festivals.
The word shimenawa breaks down into two parts: shime mean ‘to indicate or mark’; nawa is a rope. It is usually made with a left-hand twist, but the thick end is normally hung to the right. White paper strips, known as shide, are often attached which probably originated as offerings of cloth.
According to Gunter Nitschke in From Shinto to Ando, knots were a means of denoting land occupancy since ancient times. It provided ‘a binding agreement’ and a sense of being tied to the land. Over time it came too to signify a connection with the spirit world. ‘It is well documented that some of the earliest deities, not only of Japanese, but of many other mythologies are deities of binding,’ he writes.
Shimenawa can be found at shrines, house altars and other sacred sites. They’re also found on a sumo Grand Champion (yokozuna), who wears one during the ceremonial ring-entrance ceremony. They come in a variety of styles, such as Ise, Shirakawa and Yoshida, though the best-known and most spectacular are undoubtedly those of Izumo. They don’t come bigger than that!
Big is best: Izumo-style rope at Iya Jinja in Shimane prefecture
Hi , how can I get one ? pls help me I am looking outside Japan to buy one .
Any idea who is salling the Shimenawa on line ?
thx
Good day, Kate…
There are several companies in Japan that supply Shinto materials, so if you have a Japanese friend who can help you it would be possible to obtain one that way.
You don’t say where you are living, so it’s difficult to offer any advice other than simply searching the internet. If you live in a country with a Shinto shrine, you could also approach them. For a list of shrines outside Japan, please see this posting…
http://www.greenshinto.com/2011/07/18/list-of-shrines-outside-japan/
G’day John,
thx 4 replay , I am in Australia ( land down under) unfortunatly don’t know anybody curently leaving in Japan. But I keep trying to buy one on line.
cheers have a good day
I’m in the UK and don’t want to buy one but would love to try making Shimenawa. Anyone offering tutorials around?
Good day, Paul… I’ve seen shimenawa being made, which involves a lot of rice straw being strewn around. There’s a demonstration of how to make one on this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFor8MPeQfk
where can i get one in Narita Japan? Shimenawa?
The main religous site in Narita, known as Narita san, is a Shingon temple which is syncretic and hosts the Gion Festival there. It may be worth checking out if they have any small samples of shimenawa on sale amongst their religious items. Otherwise you’d have to check out a large Shinto shrine such as Katori Jingu: http://planetyze.com/en/japan/narita/katori-shrine. It would be best to ask someone who speaks Japanese to telephone them before going there.