Bell Ringing
At midnight on December 31, Buddhist temples all over Japan ring their bells a total of 108 times (じょやの鐘 joyanokane) to symbolize the 108 human sins in Buddhist belief, and to get rid of the 108 worldly desires regarding sense and feeling in every Japanese citizen. A major attraction is The Watched Night bell, in Tokyo. Japanese believe that the ringing of bells can rid off their sins during the previous year. After they are done ringing the bells, they celebrate and feast on soba noodles.
Read more about this topic: Japanese New Year
Famous quotes containing the words bell and/or ringing:
“By day thy warning ringing bell to sound its notes,
By night thy silent signal lamps to swing.”
—Walt Whitman (1819–1892)
“Much have I seen and known—cities of men
And manners, climates, councils, governments,
Myself not least, but honored of them all—
And drunk delight of battle with my peers,
Far on the ringing plains of windy Troy.
I am a part of all that I have met;”
—Alfred Tennyson (1809–1892)