Hatsumōde: the first prayer of the year

One origin of hatsumōde is said to be toshigomori: from New Year's Eve until the morning of New Year's Day, the head of a household would stay at the shrine of the local tutelary deity, praying through the night for a good harvest and the safety of the family. Ehō-mairi — visiting a shrine or temple in the year's auspicious direction — is also cited as an origin. The custom is said to have spread widely around the middle of the Meiji era.

The Association of Shinto Shrines describes 'two bows, two claps, one bow' as the basic form of worship at shrines, while asking visitors to follow a shrine's own form where it differs. Izumo Taisha, for example, observes two bows, four claps and one bow as its formal manner.

At temples, no single form like this is prescribed; most people put their palms together in gasshō. Practice differs by school and by temple. Following the guidance of each shrine or temple is always the surest etiquette.

Purifying hands and mouth at the water basin, the offering, talismans and amulets, the omikuji fortune — each is part of preparing the heart for a new year.