When in Japan: Shinjuku's lure of the lanterns on Tori no Ichi, the Rooster's Festival

Walk here, take this path, been here, left, right. It has been hours of wandering in the ward, not knowing if I had strayed off Shinjuku. I didn’t really care; the aim was to get lost. I found myself in dimly lit alleys with nary a soul and neon-light-bathed streets teeming with blond, out-of-bed-coiffed club barkers in fitted suits enticing the locals garbed in “only the Japanese can get away with” ensembles. Was I in a Japanese music video?

If I were, then my comical chicken episode in the ramen house I dined in made for a good scene. If posted on YouTube, I could easily have a million hits and be Oprah’s next discovery. Let me say, that wasn’t a coincidence; I never believed in coincidences. The act came as a prologue to a bigger chicken event.

It all started with an intriguing bustle at some street—smoke in the air, rows of stalls vending grilled fare, and diners on makeshift restaurants along the path flowing with people. I moved with the walking crowd, followed their lead, went up a flight of stairs, and at the landing, I was met with a striking sight—hundreds of lanterns!

Clearly, there was an ongoing festival. Throngs of Japanese people were lining up to ring a giant bell, more stalls selling food or embellished bamboo decors that everyone had to have. The Japanese held it with both hands, raised it high, and bowed before the wall of lanterns. I tried asking a few locals what festival was happening, but the language barrier made acquiring any information futile. Web time when I get back.

Apparently, the night led me to the chicken’s second coming. 

The festival I walked into was in the Hanazono-jinja Shrine off the bustling Kabukichu district in Shinjuku. Established in the Edo Period, this Shinto shrine is regarded as the protector of the ward and a place of worship for the businessmen appealing for prosperity.

This venerable place is a popular spot to relax and rejuvenate amidst the bustling city life. But what attracts most of the Japanese to come and visit is when it turns bright and lively during the open-air celebration of the Tori no Ichi Fair.

"Tori" is "bird" in Japanese.

Or in this case, a rooster. "Tori no Ichi" is "Rooster's Fair." Lucky me, I walked in the Hanazono-jinja Shrine on the Day of the Rooster and this famous festival, Tori no Ichi, an event held every November since the Edo Period. It explained the numerous numbers of Japanese present—the young and old, all praying for good health, good fortune, and good business.

The bamboo implements were the event’s specials—the kumade, the elaborately decorated ornamental bamboo rakes, to gather good luck and prosperity. I heard they had to change to a bigger bamboo rake every year thereafter. I wonder how big the kumade of the oldest frequent festival attendee of the Tori no Ichi Festival is.

Two Tori encounters in a single night. Is there a third bird coming my way?