Osame no Kannon: the Year's Last Kannon Fair Day
Seasonal EventsWhat Is Osame no Kannon?
The 18th of every month is the fair day of Kannon, the bodhisattva of compassion, and December 18th -- the last of the year -- is called Osame no Kannon. At temples enshrining Kannon across Japan, worshippers come to give thanks for the year, and the crowds are larger than on an ordinary fair day. At Sensoji in Asakusa, Tokyo, the year-end market known as the Hagoita-ichi is held around this time.
How a Fair-Day Market Became a Battledore Market
In the Edo period, stalls selling New Year goods and lucky charms gathered in the Sensoji grounds to catch the crowds on the Kannon fair days of December 17th and 18th. This was the toshi-no-ichi, or year-end market -- the largest in Edo, with stalls said to stretch from Asakusabashi to Ueno.
- The fair day: the 18th of each month belongs to Kannon; December 18th is the final one of the year
- The name: osame means "closing," marking the last fair day of the year
- Toshi-no-ichi: Edo-period stalls selling New Year goods and lucky charms, drawn by the fair-day crowds
- Becoming Hagoita-ichi: from the late Edo period, battledore sellers grew in number until they became the market's main attraction
- Today: Sensoji hosts battledore stalls in its grounds from December 17th to 19th
The Other "Closing" Fair Days of December
The last fair day of the year takes the prefix osame. Alongside Osame no Kannon there is Osame no Fudo, Osame no Daishi and others, each tied to a particular deity or founder -- a surviving habit of counting the year's end by the temple calendar.
Tips for Marking This Day
- Stop by a nearby temple or shrine and report a safe year
- Check whether a battledore or year-end market is running near you
- Start arranging your New Year decorations and shimenawa rope
- Look up the other year-end fair days, such as Osame no Fudo and Osame no Daishi
A Closing Marker on the Temple Calendar
December 18th is the day to thank Kannon for the year. Sorting out the New Year preparations while quietly reviewing the past twelve months makes it a fitting marker for the close of the year.