Ema (Shinto)

Ema (Japanese絵 马, dt "horse picture" ) are small, single -painted wooden tablets with pre-printed images that can be bought from almost every Shinto shrine or Buddhist temple and on which the request is written to the deities., The blank page with described personal wishes and hung from a designated location. It may be, for example, the desire to pass an exam, act. therefore It is hoped that gene- riyaku, this worldly boons. Other objects, which are sold in religious institutions in Japan and related to the gene- riyaku - system and the general Japanese religion, for example, O- Mikuji, O- Mamori, O- Fuda, Daruma and engimono.

The custom goes back to the tradition of Buddhism, to buy wild caught animals and release them, so as to acquire good karma. This custom was adopted by the Shinto shrines. The " sacrificed " animals were not killed, however, but kept on the premises of the shrine. A special victims were white horses. Later statues and images (絵, e) of horses (马ma ) were sacrificed instead of living horses. In many shrines and temples there are the halls of horses pictures ( ema ema - dō or den) with paintings today. Although the name of horse image was retained completely different motifs are depicted as horses.

At the Meiji Shrine

Ox as a horse image

Hijikata Toshizo in Tōkyō