Art's old Air Force buddy, Ed asked if we would like to go to an early morning Mochitsuki Festival with him yesterday. He said that it was free though a donation would be appreciated from the first 100 families who arrived to pound New Years mochi. We decided to ask my brother, Dennis to come also because he's one of the few people we know who would be willing to wake up early to pick up some cultural heritage on Saturday.
On the way to Wahiawa, we were passed on the road by a whole bunch of VERY old looking cars in mint condition. We wondered where they were going.
It was surprising to find the International Hobushin Center grounds up a high hill.
This isn't an important photo, but I got such a chuckle over it that I had to post it. Although it says walkway, it leads you through a bit of a muddy grassy path.
We got to the mochi pounding area about 30 minutes before the 9:00 opening time.
We were family #7 in the waiting line.
Here they are steaming 2.5 pounds of sweet rice on each of the trays.
A priest then gave a blessing to everybody who gathered to make mochi.
I got this information about the Honbushin religion.
"The Honbushin faith is an offshoot of Shinto and is only about 50 years old, Yuhi says. The Hawaii congregation is small, just 20 or so members, although the faith has grown quickly in Japan."
The helpers first demonstrated how rice is mashed together first into a ball.
You then take turns pounding rhythmically as someone calls out the cadence.
The first ten families were then gathered for a blessing by the priest. He wished all of us a safe and happy new year.
There are no photos of me because I was too busy taking photos. Besides I saw a sign explaining that:
"The entire family works together to give thanks. The grandfather and father pound the mochi with the kine (wooden mallet). The grandmother and mother turn and mix the mochi in the usu (stone mortar). Then the whole family cut and shape the mochi. This symbolizes the family bond."
Helpers then came and collected the freshly pounded mochi.
We saw mallets of different sizes so that mallets were chosen to fit the size and strength of the person who would be wielding it. Even little children were able to get a few poundings in.
There were really nice daikon (Japanese radish) there. Mom loves the leaves so we bought one that still had the leave on it. It cost a dollar. No, Art didn't eat that, we bought a broken one.
On the way to Wahiawa, we were passed on the road by a whole bunch of VERY old looking cars in mint condition. We wondered where they were going.
It was surprising to find the International Hobushin Center grounds up a high hill.
This isn't an important photo, but I got such a chuckle over it that I had to post it. Although it says walkway, it leads you through a bit of a muddy grassy path.
We got to the mochi pounding area about 30 minutes before the 9:00 opening time.
We were family #7 in the waiting line.
Here they are steaming 2.5 pounds of sweet rice on each of the trays.
A priest then gave a blessing to everybody who gathered to make mochi.
I got this information about the Honbushin religion.
"The Honbushin faith is an offshoot of Shinto and is only about 50 years old, Yuhi says. The Hawaii congregation is small, just 20 or so members, although the faith has grown quickly in Japan."
The helpers first demonstrated how rice is mashed together first into a ball.
You then take turns pounding rhythmically as someone calls out the cadence.
The first ten families were then gathered for a blessing by the priest. He wished all of us a safe and happy new year.
There are no photos of me because I was too busy taking photos. Besides I saw a sign explaining that:
"The entire family works together to give thanks. The grandfather and father pound the mochi with the kine (wooden mallet). The grandmother and mother turn and mix the mochi in the usu (stone mortar). Then the whole family cut and shape the mochi. This symbolizes the family bond."
Helpers then came and collected the freshly pounded mochi.
The mochi was then brought to a tented area where Art, Ed and Dennis shaped the mochi into little paddies. You all remember how mom said each little paddy is the equivalent of a bowl of rice?
We saw mallets of different sizes so that mallets were chosen to fit the size and strength of the person who would be wielding it. Even little children were able to get a few poundings in.
There was a little farmer's market like stand there.
There were really nice daikon (Japanese radish) there. Mom loves the leaves so we bought one that still had the leave on it. It cost a dollar. No, Art didn't eat that, we bought a broken one.
It was fun to watch a taiko drumming exhibition...
and a hula halau (school) presentation.
As we were driving home out of the parking lot, we noticed all these antique cars we'd seen earlier.
We may live on a small island, but there seems to always be something going on somewhere. You just need friends like Ed to point us in that happy direction.
Now all we have to do is to find another time before 2014 to eat the mochi with some kinako (soy bean powder) and sugar!
