Japan shrine protecting souls of children and unborn babies

Kawakura Sainokawara Jizoson Reidaisai

The temple is well-known for not only its hall of dolls, but also its annual festival in which guests can come and speak with the spirits of these children. During the Kawakura Sainokawara Jizoson Reidaisai Festival, which is held every summer, shamans called Itako come to the temple in order to act as spiritual mediums between visitors and the deceased. The Itako typically do this by going into a trance, during which time the spirit of the deceased will often jump into the shaman’s body and speak directly through them, called Kuchi Yose. The festival is very popular, bringing in people from all over Japan to speak to the dead among the statues wearing the clothes of dead children. 

Walking along a quaint path to the temple grounds, one can see numerous stone statues lining the trail, which are said to enshrine the guardian spirit called Jizō, and are already both creepy and beautiful at the same time. Yet, it is when one enters the temple itself, which enshrines around 2,000 Jizō statues, and enters the Guardian Deity hall that things get interesting. In the center of the hall is the shrine for the guardian spirit, who is tasked with protecting the souls of deceased children and unborn babies, and around it is an array of countless Jizō dolls dedicated to these dead children, complete with pictures of the deceased, toys, and dressed in clothes and shoes which the kids were using when they were alive, all donated by the families.