On Saturday, May 2, 2026, we held our "May Tsuitachi-mochi Gathering" at Nishi-Kanda Cosmos Hall (small hall) in Chiyoda, Tokyo. Because this month fell on a Saturday, we began at 10 a.m. It is Tokiwakai's monthly gathering sharing Ise's Tsuitachi-mairi custom in Tokyo.

May's Mochi: "Kashiwa-mochi"

May's tsuitachi-mochi is "kashiwa-mochi," associated with Tango no Sekku, the Boys' Festival. The oak (kashiwa) does not shed its old leaves until new ones appear. Taking after this, the mochi has long carried a wish for children's growth and the prosperity of one's descendants. The way the oak leaf is folded around it is even said to resemble the kashiwade — the ritual clapping of hands before the gods.

Tsuitachi-mochi is sold only on the first of each month by Akafuku, along the approach to Ise Jingu in Okage Yokocho. Volunteers in Ise buy it at dawn and deliver it to our Tokyo venue.

After the Gathering: A Formal Visit to Yasukuni Shrine

Yasukuni Shrine stands in Chiyoda, the same ward as our venue. After the gathering that day, we walked to Yasukuni Shrine and, by special arrangement, were granted a formal visit (seishiki sanpai). Holding our gathering in this neighborhood each month, it became an occasion to visit anew.

On the Okihiki

Along with May's mochi and talks on Ise Jingu, we shared news of the Okihiki toward the 63rd Shikinen Sengu (scheduled for 2033). In April, the Okihiki-zome-shiki (also called yakugi-biki) was held at the Naiku and the Geku, and the path toward the renewal moves steadily forward.

Tokiwakai is a community based in Ise dedicated to passing on Japanese traditional culture and nurturing younger generations. Please feel free to join us at our monthly Tsuitachi-kai.