View source for Ofuda

{{Short description|Shinto and Buddhist talismans}}
{{Italic title}}
[[File:Ofuda.jpg|thumb|The {{nihongo||神宮大麻|[[Jingū taima]]}}, an {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} ({{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}}) issued by the [[Ise Grand Shrine|Grand Shrines of Ise]] (center) flanked by the ''ofuda'' of [[Yasaka Shrine]] (right) and [[Fushimi Inari-taisha]] (left)]]
{{Shinto Talismans}}

In [[Shinto]] and [[Buddhism in Japan|Buddhism]] in [[Japan]], an {{nihongo||[[wikt:お札|お札]]/[[wikt:御札|御札]]|'''ofuda'''|[[honorific speech in Japanese#Honorific prefixes|honorific]] form of {{transliteration|ja|fuda}}, {{gloss|slip [of paper], card, plate}}}} or {{nihongo||護符|'''gofu'''}} is a [[talisman]] made out of various materials such as paper, wood, cloth or metal. {{transliteration|ja|Ofuda}} are commonly found in both [[Shinto shrine]]s and [[Japanese Buddhism|Buddhist]] temples and are considered to be imbued with the power of the deities ({{transliteration|ja|[[kami]]}}) or Buddhist figures revered therein.

Certain kinds of {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} are intended for a specific purpose (such as protection against calamity or misfortune, safety within the home, or finding love) and may be kept on one's person or placed on other areas of the home (such as gates, doorways, kitchens, or ceilings). Paper {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} may also be referred to as {{nihongo||紙札|kamifuda}}, while those made of wood may be called {{nihongo||木札|kifuda}}. {{transliteration|ja|[[Omamori]]}}, another kind of Japanese talisman, shares the same origin as and may be considered as a smaller and portable version of {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}}.

A specific type of {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} is a talisman issued by a Shinto shrine on which is written the name of the shrine or its enshrined {{transliteration|ja|kami}} and stamped with the shrine's [[Seal (East Asia)|seal]]. Such {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}}, also called {{nihongo||神札|shinsatsu}}, {{nihongo||御神札|go-shinsatsu}} or {{nihongo||神符|shinpu}}, are often placed on household Shinto altars ({{transliteration|ja|[[kamidana]]}}) and revered both as a symbol of the shrine and its deity (or deities) – containing the {{transliteration|ja|kami}}'s essence or power by virtue of its consecration – and a medium through which the {{transliteration|ja|kami}} in question can be accessed by the worshiper. In this regard they are somewhat similar to (but not the same as) {{transliteration|ja|[[goshintai]]}}, physical objects which serve as repositories for {{transliteration|ja|kami}} in Shinto shrines.

In a similar vein, Buddhist {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} are regarded as imbued with the spirit and the virtue of [[Buddhahood|buddhas]], [[bodhisattvas]], or other revered figures of the Buddhist pantheon, essentially functioning in many cases as a more economic alternative to Buddhist icons and statuary.

==History==
[[File:Omamori Kinkaku-ji Ginkaku-ji.JPG|thumb|left|{{transliteration|ja|Ofuda}} ({{transliteration|ja|gofu}}) distributed in [[Kinkakuji]] (left) and [[Ginkakuji]] (right) in [[Kyoto]]. These also serve as admission tickets to the temples.]]
[[File:GOOUHONGUU.JPG|thumb|upright=1.3|A {{nihongo||牛王符|goōfu}} from [[Kumano Hongū Taisha]] in [[Wakayama Prefecture]]]]

The origins of Shinto and Buddhist {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} may be traced from both the [[Taoism|Taoist]] {{transliteration|zh|[[Fulu|lingfu]]}}, introduced to Japan via [[Onmyōdō]] (which adopted elements of Taoism), and [[Woodblock printing in Japan|woodblock prints]] of Buddhist texts and images produced by temples since the [[Nara period|Nara]] and [[Heian period|Heian]] periods.<ref name="EncShinto">{{cite web |last1=Okada |first1=Yoshiyuki |title=Shinsatsu, Mamorifuda |url=http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=291 |website=Encyclopedia of Shinto |publisher=Kokugakuin University |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-10-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025231753/http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=291 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Wen |first1=Benebell |title=The Tao of Craft: Fu Talismans and Casting Sigils in the Eastern Esoteric Tradition |date=2016 |publisher=North Atlantic Books |isbn=978-1-62317-067-7 |page=55}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Hida, Hirofumi (火田博文) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bLlODwAAQBAJ&pg=PT22 |title=日本人が知らない神社の秘密 (Nihonjin ga shiranai jinja no himitsu) |date=2017 |publisher=Saizusha |page=22 |language=Japanese |trans-title=The secret of the shrine that the Japanese do not know |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407160718/https://books.google.com/books?id=bLlODwAAQBAJ&pg=PT22 |archive-date=2022-04-07 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Mitsuhashi, Takeshi (三橋健) |title=神社の由来がわかる小事典 (Jinja no yurai ga wakaru kojiten) |date=2007 |publisher=PHP Kenkyūsho |page=115 |isbn=978-4-569-69396-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=486cBj1YNnYC&pg=PT115 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073707/https://books.google.com/books?id=486cBj1YNnYC&pg=PT115 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author1=Chijiwa, Itaru (千々和到) |title=日本の護符文化 (Nihon no gofu bunka) |date=2010 |publisher=Kōbundō |pages=33–34}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Machida City Museum of Graphic Arts |title=大和路の仏教版画―中世・勧進・結縁・供養 (Yamatoji no bukkyō hanga: chūsei, kanjin, kechien, kuyō) |date=1994 |publisher=Tokyo Bijutsu|isbn=4-8087-0608-3|pages=4–9, 94}}</ref> During the medieval period, the [[Kumano Shrine|three shrines of Kumano]] in [[Wakayama Prefecture]] stamped their paper talismans on one side with intricate designs of stylized crows and were called {{Nihongo3|'Kumano Ox King Talismans'|[[:ja:|熊野牛王符]]|Kumano Goōfu}} or the {{nihongo||牛王宝印|Goōhōin}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=熊野牛王神符 (Kumano Goō Shinpu) |url=http://www.hongutaisha.jp/%E7%86%8A%E9%87%8E%E7%89%9B%E7%8E%8B%E7%A5%9E%E7%AC%A6/ |website=Kumano Hongū Taisha Official Website |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-11-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201106090308/http://www.hongutaisha.jp/%E7%86%8A%E9%87%8E%E7%89%9B%E7%8E%8B%E7%A5%9E%E7%AC%A6/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Kaminishi |first1=Ikumi |title=Explaining Pictures: Buddhist Propaganda And Etoki Storytelling in Japan |date=2006 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |pages=138–139 |isbn=978-0-8248-2697-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QAAuOkCJxHQC&pg=PA138 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073705/https://books.google.com/books?id=QAAuOkCJxHQC&pg=PA138 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Davis |first1=Kat |title=Japan's Kumano Kodo Pilgrimage: The UNESCO World Heritage trek |date=2019 |publisher=Cicerone Press Limited |isbn=978-1-78362-748-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KHeaDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT20 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073716/https://books.google.com/books?id=KHeaDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT20 |url-status=live }}</ref> At the time, these and similar {{transliteration|ja|gofu}} were often employed in oath taking and contract drafting, with the terms of the oath or agreement being written on the blank side of the sheet.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hardacre |first1=Helen |title=Shinto: A History |date=2017 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-062171-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_Q81DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA155 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073711/https://books.google.com/books?id=_Q81DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA155 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Shimazu |first1=Norifumi |title=Kishōmon |url=http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=797 |website=Encyclopedia of Shinto |publisher=Kokugakuin University |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-08-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805224853/http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=797 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Oyler |first1=Elizabeth |title=Swords, Oaths, And Prophetic Visions: Authoring Warrior Rule in Medieval Japan |date=2006 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |pages=69–70 |isbn=978-0-8248-2922-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TdcFH1Wn7GEC&pg=PA69 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073709/https://books.google.com/books?id=TdcFH1Wn7GEC&pg=PA69 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Grapard |first1=Allan G. |title=Mountain Mandalas: Shugendo in Kyushu |date=2016 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |pages=171–172 |isbn=978-1-4742-4901-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8DI0CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA171 |access-date=2020-10-03 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073705/https://books.google.com/books?id=8DI0CwAAQBAJ&pg=PA171 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Jingu taima gaku.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Different types of {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} (upper row) and other talismans distributed in the Inner Shrine ({{transliteration|ja|[[Ise Grand Shrine#Naikū – the inner shrine|Naikū]]}}) of Ise. From left: {{nihongo||海幸大麻|Kaikō taima}} (a kind of {{transliteration|ja|kifuda}} for luck in fishing), {{nihongo||剣祓|kenharai}}, {{nihongo||角祓|kakuharai}}, and {{nihongo||大角祓|daikakuharai}} (a larger version of {{transliteration|ja|kakuharai}}).]]

The {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}} currently found in most Shinto shrines meanwhile are modeled after the talisman issued by the [[Grand Shrines of Ise]] (Ise Jingū) called {{nihongo||神宮大麻|Jingū [[Ōnusa|Taima]]}}. {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} were originally {{nihongo|[[Harae|purification]] wands|祓串|haraegushi}} that wandering preachers associated with the shrines of {{nihongo|Ise|御師|oshi or onshi}}{{clarify|date=August 2024}} handed out to devotees across the country as a sign and guarantee that prayers were conducted on their behalf. These wands, called {{nihongo||御祓大麻|Oharai Taima}}, were contained either in packets of folded paper – in which case they are called {{nihongo||剣祓|kenharai}} (also {{transliteration|ja|kenbarai}}),<ref name="Breen"/> due to the packet's shape resembling a {{nihongo|sword blade|剣|ken}} – or in boxes called {{nihongo||御祓箱|oharaibako}}. The widespread distribution of {{transliteration|ja|Oharai Taima}} first began in the [[Muromachi period]] and reached its peak in the [[Edo period]]: a document dating from 1777 ([[An'ei]] 6) indicates that eighty-nine to ninety percent of all households in the country at the time owned an Ise talisman.<ref name="Breen"/><ref name="nakanishi">{{cite web |last1=Nakanishi |first1=Masayuki |title=Jingū taima |url=http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=283 |website=Encyclopedia of Shinto |publisher=Kokugakuin University |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-09-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200922032801/http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/entry.php?entryID=283 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=神宮大麻と神宮暦 (''Jingū taima to Jingu-reki'') |url=https://www.isejingu.or.jp/about/jingutaima/index.html |website=Ise Jingu Official Website |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-10-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010065512/https://www.isejingu.or.jp/about/jingutaima/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=第１４章 神宮大麻・暦 |url=https://fukushima-jinjacho.or.jp/monoshiri/pc/section14.html |website=Fukushima Jinjachō Official Website |publisher=Fukushima Jinjachō |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2018-06-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615124127/http://fukushima-jinjacho.or.jp/monoshiri/pc/section14.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:EeJaNaiKaScene.jpg|thumb|The end of the [[Edo period]] witnessed the rise of public festivities and protests known as {{transliteration|ja|[[ee ja nai ka]]}} triggered by reports of talismans raining from the sky.]]

In 1871, an imperial decree abolished the {{transliteration|ja|oshi}} and allotted the production and distribution of the amulets, now renamed {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}}, to the shrine's administrative offices.<ref name="nakanishi"/> It was around this time that the talisman's most widely known form – a wooden tablet containing a sliver of [[Cryptomeria|cedar]] wood known as {{nihongo3|"sacred core"|御真|gyoshin}}<ref name="Breen">{{cite journal |last1=Breen |first1=John |title=Resurrecting the Sacred Land of Japan: The State of Shinto in the Twenty-First Century |journal=Japanese Journal of Religious Studies |date=2010 |volume=37 |issue=2 |pages=295–315 |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/view/download/digidepo_9592058_po_849.pdf?contentNo=1&alternativeNo= |publisher=Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073705/https://dl.ndl.go.jp/view/download/digidepo_9592058_po_849.pdf?contentNo=1&alternativeNo= |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=三重）伊勢神宮で「大麻用材伐始祭」 |url=https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASN4H6SBMN4HONFB002.html |website=Asahi Shimbun Digital |date=15 April 2020 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-04-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200427222631/https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASN4H6SBMN4HONFB002.html |url-status=live }}</ref> wrapped in [[Ise washi|paper]] on which is printed the shrine's name ({{nihongo||天照皇大神宮|[[Amaterasu|Tenshō]] Kōtai Jingū}}) and stamped with the seals of the shrine ({{nihongo||皇大神宮御璽|Kōtai Jingū Gyoji}}) and its high priest ({{nihongo||大神宮司之印|Daijingūji no In}}) – developed. In 1900, a new department, the {{nihongo3|Department of Priests|神部署|Kanbesho}}, took over production and distribution duties. The distribution of {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} was eventually delegated to the {{nihongo|National Association of Shinto Priests|[[:ja:全国神職会|全国神職会]]|Zenkoku Shinshokukai}} in 1927 and finally to its successor, the [[Association of Shinto Shrines]], after [[World War II]].<ref name="nakanishi"/> The Association nowadays continues to disseminate {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} to affiliated shrines throughout Japan, where they are made available alongside the shrines' own amulets.

==Varieties and usage==
{{transliteration|ja|Ofuda}} come in a variety of forms. Some are slips or sheets of paper, others like the {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} are thin rectangular plaques ({{nihongo||角祓|kakubarai/kakuharai}}) enclosed in an envelope-like casing (which may further be covered in translucent wrapping paper), while still others are wooden tablets ({{transliteration|ja|kifuda}}) which may be smaller or larger than regular {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}}. Some shrines distribute {{transliteration|ja|kenharai}}, which consists of a sliver of wood placed inside a fold of paper. The {{transliteration|ja|Oharai Taima}} issued by the shrines of Ise before the [[Meiji period]] were usually in the form of {{transliteration|ja|kenharai}}; while the {{transliteration|ja|kakuharai}} variety is currently more widespread, {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} of the {{transliteration|ja|kenharai}} type are still distributed in Ise Shrine.<ref>{{cite web |title=お神札 |url=https://www.isejingu.or.jp/visit/amulet/naiku.html |website=Ise Jingū Official Website |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-10-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031225908/https://www.isejingu.or.jp/visit/amulet/naiku.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{transliteration|ja|Ofuda}} and {{transliteration|ja|omamori}} are available year round in many shrines and temples, especially in larger ones with a permanent staff. As these items are sacred, they are technically not 'bought' but rather {{nihongo|'received'|授かる|sazukaru}} or {{nihongo||受ける|ukeru}}, with the money paid in exchange for them being considered to be a donation or {{nihongo|offering|初穂料|hatsuhoryō|literally '[[First Fruits|first fruit]] fee'}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=教えてお伊勢さん (Oshiete O-Isesan) |url=https://www.isejingu.or.jp/oisesan/amulet.html |website=Ise Jingū Official Website |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-01-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200103202159/https://www.isejingu.or.jp/oisesan/amulet.html }}</ref><ref name="HonchoOfuda">{{cite web |title=お神札、お守りについて (Ofuda, omamori ni tsuite) |url=https://www.jinjahoncho.or.jp/omairi/osahou/omamori |website=Association of Shinto Shrines (Jinja Honchō) |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-05-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200520171422/https://www.jinjahoncho.or.jp/omairi/osahou/omamori |url-status=live }}</ref> One may also receive a wooden talisman called a {{nihongo||祈祷札|kitōfuda}} after having formal prayers or rituals ({{nihongo||祈祷|kitō}}) performed on one's behalf in these places of worship.

<gallery widths="180" heights="200">
File:Jingu taima cover.jpg|A {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} still in its translucent paper wrapper. This cover may be removed when setting up the talisman in a {{transliteration|ja|kamidana}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=「天照皇大神宮」のお札の薄紙は取るの？それとも剥がさない？薄紙は包装紙って本当？ |date=28 January 2021 |url=https://inunekobros.com/kamidana/}}</ref>
File:Koujin yama.png|An example of a {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}} (from [[:ja:荒神山神社|Kōjinyama Shrine]] in [[Shiga Prefecture]]): a plaque with the names of the shrine's {{transliteration|ja|kami}} – [[Kagutsuchi|Homusubi]], [[Toshigami|Okitsuhiko and Okitsuhime]] – written in {{transliteration|ja|[[Jindai moji]]}} and its paper casing on which is written the name of the shrine or the epithet of its deity – in this case, {{nihongo|Kōjinyama-no-Ōkami|荒神山大神||'Great Deity of Kōjinyama (Shrine)'}} – and stamped with the seals of the shrine (middle) and its priest (bottom).
</gallery>

=== Shinto ===
{{transliteration|ja|Shinsatsu}} such as {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} are enshrined in a household altar ({{transliteration|ja|kamidana}}) or a special stand ({{transliteration|ja|ofudatate}}); in the absence of one, they may be placed upright in a clean and tidy space above eye level or attached to a wall. {{transliteration|ja|Shinsatsu}} and the {{transliteration|ja|kamidana}} that house them are set up facing east (where the sun rises), south (the principal direction of sunshine), or southeast.<ref name="jinjanohiroba">{{cite web |title=神棚のまつり方 |url=http://www.jinja.ne.jp/faq/faq_09.html |website=Jinja no Hiroba |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-04-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200428095730/http://www.jinja.ne.jp/faq/faq_09.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="wagokoro">{{cite web |title=Household-shrine |url=https://en.wa-gokoro.jp/traditional-culture/kamidana/ |website=Wagokoro |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-07-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715152747/https://en.wa-gokoro.jp/traditional-culture/kamidana/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="shiroyama">{{cite web |title=御神札・御守・撤饌等の扱い方について |url=http://www.shiroyama.or.jp/jinseigirei/tessen.html |website=城山八幡宮 (Shiroyama Hachiman-gū) |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2019-04-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407033335/http://www.shiroyama.or.jp/jinseigirei/tessen.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=お守りやお札の取り扱い |url=http://www.hyogomirai.com/life/column/content.php?cid=000017 |website=ja兵庫みらい (JA Hyōgo Mirai) |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2022-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729220115/https://www.hyogomirai.com/life/column/content.php?cid=000017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Association of Shinto Shrines recommends that a household own at least three kinds of {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}}:

# {{transliteration|ja|[[Jingū Taima]]}}
# The {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} of the tutelary deity of one's place of residence ({{transliteration|ja|[[ujigami]]}})
# The {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} of a shrine one is personally devoted to {{nihongo||崇敬神社|sūkei jinja}}

In a {{nihongo|'three-door' style|三社造|sansha-zukuri}} altar, the {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} is placed in the middle, with the {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} of one's local {{transliteration|ja|ujigami}} on its left (observer's right) and the {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} of one's favourite shrine on its right (observer's left). Alternatively, in a {{nihongo|'one-door' style|一社造|issha-zukuri}} {{transliteration|ja|kamidana}}, the three talismans are laid on top of one another, with the {{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} on the front. One may own more {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}}; these are placed on either side of or behind the aforementioned three.<ref name="jinjanohiroba"/><ref name="wagokoro"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Ofuda (talisman) |url=https://www.greenshinto.com/wp/2011/07/30/ofuda/ |website=Green Shinto |date=30 July 2011 |access-date=2020-05-24 |archive-date=2020-05-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200529111307/http://www.greenshinto.com/wp/2011/07/30/ofuda/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=お神札（ふだ）のまつり方 (Ofuda no matsurikata)|url=https://www.jinjahoncho.or.jp/omatsuri/katei/ofuda|website=Association of Shinto Shrines (Jinja Honchō)|access-date=2020-05-23|archive-date=2020-05-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200521134835/https://www.jinjahoncho.or.jp/omatsuri/katei/ofuda|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=お神札・神棚について |url=http://www.tokyo-jinjacho.or.jp/ofuda_kamidana/ |website=Tokyo Jinjachō |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-04-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200427141103/http://www.tokyo-jinjacho.or.jp/ofuda_kamidana/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Regular (preferably daily) worship before the {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}} or {{transliteration|ja|kamidana}} and offerings of rice, salt, water, and/or {{transliteration|ja|[[sake]]}} to the {{transliteration|ja|kami}} (with additional foodstuffs being offered on special occasions) are recommended.<ref name="wagokoro"/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Toyozaki |first1=Yōko |title=「日本の衣食住」まるごと事典 (Who Invented Natto?) |date=2007 |publisher=IBC Publishing |pages=59–61 |isbn=978-4-89684-640-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SsmN4jxwnfUC&pg=PA61 |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2022-05-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220505073704/https://books.google.com/books?id=SsmN4jxwnfUC&pg=PA61 |url-status=live }}</ref> The manner of worship is similar to those performed in shrines: two bows, two claps, and a final bow, though a prayer ({{transliteration|ja|[[norito]]}}) – also preceded by two bows – may be recited before this.<ref>{{cite web |title=神棚と神拝作法について教えて下さい。 |url=http://musashimitakejinja.jp/2017/12/09/question5/ |website=武蔵御嶽神社 (Musashi Mitake Jinja) |access-date=2020-05-24 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-09-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926000101/http://musashimitakejinja.jp/2017/12/09/question5/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=神棚の祀り方と参拝方法 |url=http://www.kumanosakaki.com/sanpai.html |website=熊野ワールド【神々の宿る熊野の榊】 |access-date=2020-05-24 |language=ja |archive-date=2019-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029123810/http://www.kumanosakaki.com/sanpai.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Other {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} are placed in other parts of the house. For instance, {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} of patron deities of the hearth – [[Kōjin|Sanbō-Kōjin]] in Buddhism, [[:ja:かまど神|Kamado-Mihashira-no-Kami]] (the 'Three Deities of the Hearth': [[Kagutsuchi]], [[Toshigami|Okitsuhiko and Okitsuhime]]) in Shinto<ref>{{cite web |title=奥津彦命・奥津姫命のご利益や特徴 |url=https://xn--u9ju32nb2az79btea.asia/shinto15/shrine105.html |website=日本の神様と神社 |access-date=2020-05-24 |language=ja |archive-date=2021-04-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415224219/https://xn--u9ju32nb2az79btea.asia/shinto15/shrine105.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=奥津日子神 |url=http://myth.maji.asia/amp/item_okituhiko.html |website=神魔精妖名辞典 |access-date=2020-05-24 |archive-date=2020-12-01 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201001320/http://myth.maji.asia/amp/item_okituhiko.html }}</ref> – are placed in the kitchen. In toilets, a talisman of the Buddhist wrathful deity [[Ucchusma|Ucchuṣma]] (Ususama Myōō), who is believed to purify the unclean, may be installed.<ref>{{cite web |title=烏枢沙摩明王とは |url=http://www.ususama.net/ususama.html |website=うすさま.net |access-date=2020-05-24 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-02-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219212048/http://www.ususama.net/ususama.html |url-status=usurped }}</ref> Protective {{transliteration|ja|gofu}} such as {{nihongo3|'Horned Great Master'|角大師|Tsuno Daishi}}, a depiction of the [[Tendai]] monk [[Ryōgen]] in the form of a [[yaksha]] or an {{transliteration|ja|[[oni]]}}<ref>{{cite web |last1=Matsuura |first1=Thersa |title=The Great Horned Master (Tsuno Daishi) (Ep. 43) |url=https://www.uncannyjapan.com/episode-43-the-great-horned-master-tsuno-daishi/ |website=Uncanny Japan |access-date=2020-05-24 |date=2019-11-24 |archive-date=2022-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729220350/https://uncannyjapan.com/podcast/great-horned-master-tsuno-daishi/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Groner |first1=Paul |title=Ryōgen and Mount Hiei: Japanese Tendai in the Tenth Century |date=2002 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |pages=297–298 |isbn=978-0-8248-2260-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B1eVBPvvFMgC&pg=PA298 |access-date=2020-05-24 |archive-date=2022-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729220348/https://books.google.com/books?id=B1eVBPvvFMgC&pg=PA298 |url-status=live }}</ref> are placed on doorways or entrances.

Japanese spirituality lays great importance on purity and pristineness ({{nihongo3|{{lit|eternal youth}}|常若|tokowaka}}), especially of things related to the divine. It is for this reason that periodic (usually annual) replacement of {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} and {{transliteration|ja|omamori}} are encouraged. It is customary to obtain new {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} before the end of the year at the earliest or during the [[Japanese New Year|New Year]] season, though (as with {{transliteration|ja|omamori}}) one may purchase one at other times of the year as well. While ideally, old {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} and {{transliteration|ja|omamori}} are to be returned to the shrine or temple where they were obtained as a form of thanksgiving, most Shinto shrines in practice accept talismans from other shrines.<ref name="shiroyama"/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Reader |first1=Ian |last2=Tanabe |first2=George J. |title=Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan |date=1998 |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |page=196 |isbn=978-0-8248-2090-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-8zmlaQSEIwC&pg=PA196 |access-date=2020-10-03 |archive-date=2022-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729220421/https://books.google.com/books?id=-8zmlaQSEIwC&pg=PA196 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=御神札について教えてください。 |url=http://musashimitakejinja.jp/2017/12/09/question6/ |website=武蔵御嶽神社 (Musashi Mitake Jinja) |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-12-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201132401/http://musashimitakejinja.jp/2017/12/09/question6/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=お守りの扱い方 |url=http://yugasan.jp/column04/ |website=由加山蓮台寺 (Yugasan Rendai-ji) |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2018-08-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180830083820/http://yugasan.jp/column04/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=知っているようで知らない 神社トリビア② |url=http://www.jinjya.com/sp/170415.php?PHPSESSID=ed0850d8baa7654c9f098fc175ea2761 |website=Jinjya.com |access-date=2020-05-23 |archive-date=2020-09-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919225332/http://jinjya.com/sp/170415.php |url-status=live }}</ref> (Buddhist {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} are however not accepted in many shrines and vice versa.) Old {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} and {{transliteration|ja|omamori}} are burned in a ceremony known either as {{nihongo||[[:ja:左義長|左義長]]|Sagichō}} or {{nihongo||どんど焼き|Dondoyaki}}, also {{transliteration|ja|Dontoyaki}} or {{transliteration|ja|Tondoyaki}}) held during the [[Japanese New Year#Little New Year|Little New Year]] (January 14 or 15th), the end of the Japanese New Year season.<ref name="HonchoOfuda"/><ref>{{cite web |title=どんど焼き |url=http://www.kikunajinja.jp/gyouji/dondoyaki.html |website=菊名神社 (Kikuna Jinja) |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2021-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303053729/http://www.kikunajinja.jp/gyouji/dondoyaki.html }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=どんど焼き【どんと祭り】古いお札やお守りの処理の仕方 |url=https://sk-imedia.com/dondoyaki-4401.html |website=豆知識PRESS |date=22 December 2019 |access-date=2020-05-23 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-09-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930040012/https://sk-imedia.com/dondoyaki-4401.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

<gallery widths="150" heights="200">
File:Ofuda Arrangement.png|Various possible ways of arranging {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} ({{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}}) in a Shinto altar
File:門前仲町 shrine secondary building 古いお札納め所.jpg|A place for returning old talismans at {{Ill|Fukagawa Fudō-dō Temple|ja|成田山東京別院深川不動堂}} in [[Tokyo]]
</gallery>

==Gallery==
<gallery widths="200" heights="200">
File:KUMANOGOOUHU.JPG|{{transliteration|ja|Goōfu}} from [[Kumano Hayatama Taisha]]
File:Kajikimen_(鹿食免).png|{{nihongo3|"permit to eat deer"|鹿食免|Kajikimen}}, a talisman issued by [[Suwa-taisha|Suwa Shrine]] in [[Nagano Prefecture]]. At a time when meat eating was mostly frowned upon due to Buddhist influence, these were held to allow the bearer to eat venison and other meat without incurring impurity or negative karma.
File:西野神社竈神鎮火札.jpg|An {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} of the tutelary deities of the hearth ({{transliteration|ja|kamadogami}}), for use in kitchens (from [[:ja:西野神社|Nishino Shrine]] in [[Sapporo]])
File:Talisman Against Disease.png|Diagram of two talismans invoking the [[Deva (Buddhism)|goddess]] {{nihongo|[[Hārītī]]|鬼子母神|Kishimojin'}}, the {{nihongo|[[Ten Rākṣasīs]]|十羅刹女|Jū-Rasetsunyo}}, and the "Thirty Deities" ({{lang|ja|三十番神}}, [[:ja:三十番神|{{Transliteration|ja|Sanjūbanshin}}]]), a [[Shinbutsu shūgō|Shinto-Buddhist]] grouping of thirty Japanese {{transliteration|ja|kami}} presiding over the thirty days of a lunar month against disease, from a [[Nichiren-shū]] ritual manual
File:Chintaku Reifu (鎮宅霊符).png|Part of a series of {{nihongo|seventy-two talismans|霊符|reifu}} (from the Chinese {{transliteration|zh|[[Fulu|lingfu]]}}) known as {{nihongo3|"Talismans of the Most High [[Chinese gods and immortals|Gods and Immortals]] for Home Protection"|太上神仙鎮宅霊符|Taijō Shinsen Chintaku Reifu}} or simply as {{nihongo3|"Talismans for Home Protection"|鎮宅霊符|Chintaku Reifu}}. Originally of Daoist origin, these were introduced to Japan during the Middle Ages.<ref>{{cite web |title=霊験無比なる「太上秘法鎮宅霊符」 |url=https://www.hoshida-myoken.com/%E5%A4%AA%E4%B8%8A%E7%A7%98%E6%B3%95%E9%8E%AE%E5%AE%85%E9%9C%8A%E7%AC%A6/ |website=星田妙見宮 (Hoshida Myōken-gū) |language=ja |access-date=2020-05-26 |archive-date=2020-03-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200325123048/https://www.hoshida-myoken.com/%E5%A4%AA%E4%B8%8A%E7%A7%98%E6%B3%95%E9%8E%AE%E5%AE%85%E9%9C%8A%E7%AC%A6/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=国書刊行会 (Kokusho Hankōkai) |title=信仰叢書 (Shinkō-sōsho) |date=1915 |publisher=国書刊行会 (Kokusho Hankōkai) |pages=354–363 |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1920305/194 |language=ja |access-date=2020-05-26 |archive-date=2022-07-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729220350/https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1920305/194 |url-status=live }}</ref>
File:神札 - Ofuda.jpg|{{transliteration|ja|Jingū Taima}} and other {{transliteration|ja|shinsatsu}}
File:Ōharaeshiki Shugo-fuda - 大祓式守護札.jpg|{{transliteration|ja|Ofuda}} posted beside a doorway
File:Ofuda jyuni gatsu nijyugo nichi.JPG|A {{nihongo3|reverse {{transliteration|ja|fuda}}|逆札|sakasafuda}}, a handmade talisman against theft displayed upside-down. This {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} is inscribed with the date the legendary outlaw [[Ishikawa Goemon]] supposedly died: "the 25th day of the [[Japanese calendar#Months|12th month]]" ({{lang|ja|十二月廿五日}}).{{efn|The diary of contemporary aristocrat [[:ja:山科言経|Yamashina Tokitsune]] seemingly indicates that the historical Goemon was executed on the 24th day of the 8th month (October 8th in the [[Gregorian calendar]]).<ref name="WebLeaf"/>}}<ref>{{cite web |date=2017-12-26 |title=「十二月廿五日」五右衛門札貼り替え 嘉穂劇場 |trans-title="December 25th" Goemon Satoru Tei E Kaho Theater |url=https://mainichi.jp/articles/20171226/k00/00e/040/218000c |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220729220350/https://mainichi.jp/articles/20171226/k00/00e/040/218000c |archive-date=2022-07-29 |access-date=2020-05-25 |website=Mainichi Shimbun |language=ja}}</ref> Other dates are written in other areas, such as "the 12th day of the 12th month" ({{lang|ja|十二月十二日}}), which is claimed to be Goemon's birthdate.<ref name="WebLeaf">{{cite web |title=京のおまじない「逆さ札」と天下の大泥棒・石川五右衛門 |url=https://www.leafkyoto.net/blog/makai/2019/12/sakasafuda/ |website=WebLeaf |date=2 December 2019 |access-date=2020-05-25 |language=ja |archive-date=2020-08-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200804231836/https://www.leafkyoto.net/blog/makai/2019/12/sakasafuda/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
File:Ryogen1.JPG|According to legend, the [[Tendai]] monk [[Ryōgen]] (left) defeated evil spirits by assuming the terrifying form of a horned [[yaksha]] or {{transliteration|ja|[[oni]]}} (right). {{transliteration|ja|Ofuda}} and {{transliteration|ja|omamori}} bearing this likeness, known as {{nihongo3|"Horned Great Master"|角大師|Tsuno Daishi}}, are available in some Buddhist temples.
File:お守り (2895042886).jpg|Different types of {{transliteration|ja|[[omamori]]}} and {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} at [[Tsurugaoka Hachimangū]] in [[Kamakura]]
File:だるま、お札、お守り等集積所.jpg|Place for returning old talismans (Hokoji Shrine, [[Takatō, Nagano|Takatō]], [[Ina, Nagano|Ina City]], [[Nagano Prefecture]])
File:Shintoshrine-battleshipmikasa-may3-2010.jpg|A {{nihongo|'ship shrine'|[[:ja:艦内神社|艦内神社]]|kannai jinja}} inside [[Pre-dreadnought battleship|battleship]] {{transliteration|ja|[[Japanese battleship Mikasa|Mikasa]]}} (currently in [[Mikasa Park]] in [[Yokosuka]], [[Kanagawa Prefecture]]). Beside the altar is a wooden {{transliteration|ja|ofuda}} ({{transliteration|ja|kifuda}}) from [[Tōgō Shrine]] (dedicated to the deified naval leader [[Tōgō Heihachirō]], who used {{transliteration|ja|Mikasa}} as his flagship) in [[Harajuku]], [[Tokyo]].
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Div col|colwidth=10em}}
* {{Transliteration|ko|[[Bujeok]]}}
* {{Transliteration|ja|[[Ema (Shinto)|Ema]]}}
* {{transliteration|zh|[[Fulu]]}}
* {{lang|de|[[Himmelsbrief]]}}
* [[Holy card]]
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Jingū taima]]}}
* {{transliteration|sa|[[Murti]]}}
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Omamori]]}}
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Omikuji]]}}
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Onmyōdō]]}}
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Onmyōji]]}}
* [[Netsuke]]
* {{transliteration|ja|[[Senjafuda]]}}
* [[Shikigami]]
* [[Thai Buddha amulet]]
{{Div col end}}

== Explanatory notes ==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* Nelson, Andrew N., ''Japanese-English Character Dictionary'', Charles E. Tuttle Company: Publishers, Tokyo, 1999, {{ISBN|4-8053-0574-6}}
* Masuda Koh, ''Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary'', Kenkyusha Limited, Tokyo, 1991, {{ISBN|4-7674-2015-6}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}

{{Shinto2}}
{{Shinto shrine}}
{{Amulets and Talismans}}

[[Category:Amulets]]
[[Category:Exorcism in Shinto]]
[[Category:Exorcism in Buddhism]]
[[Category:Japanese words and phrases]]
[[Category:Shinto religious objects]]
[[Category:Talismans]]