goma
a fire ritual performed by esoteric Buddhist priests
護摩（ごま）
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The shortest answer that works
Goma is a fire ritual in esoteric Buddhism where wooden sticks inscribed with wishes are burned as an offering.
護摩とは密教の火の儀式で、願い事を書いた護摩木を燃やして供える行事です。
In 30 seconds
The standard explanation
Goma is a fire ritual performed by priests of Japan's esoteric Buddhist schools, mainly Shingon and Tendai, in which small wooden sticks called goma-gi, each inscribed with a worshipper's wish or name, are burned in a special hearth while the priest chants and makes precise hand gestures. The fire is often linked to the deity Fudo Myoo, and burning the wood is understood as offering up worldly desires and impurities to be purified by the flames rather than simply making a wish. Narita-san Shinshoji, near Tokyo, is one of the most famous temples for large public goma ceremonies, drawing crowds especially around New Year.
護摩とは、日本の密教、主に真言宗と天台宗の僧侶が行う火の儀式で、参拝者の願い事や名前を書いた「護摩木」と呼ばれる小さな木の棒を、僧侶が読経し精密な印を結びながら特別な炉で焼きます。炎は不動明王と結びつけて考えられることが多く、木を焼くことは、単に願い事をするというより、世俗の欲望や汚れを炎で浄化してもらうために差し出すことだと理解されています。東京近郊の成田山新勝寺は、大規模な護摩の公開儀式でもっとも有名な寺の一つで、特に正月には多くの参拝者を集めます。
As a short speech
A full paragraph you can read aloud
Walk into certain temples in Japan, especially around New Year, and you might find yourself in front of a roaring hearth fire with a priest chanting and moving his hands through precise gestures while an assistant feeds it wooden sticks one after another; that ceremony is goma, one of the signature rituals of esoteric Buddhism. Before the ceremony, worshippers write a wish, or sometimes their name and address, on a small wooden stick called goma-gi, which the priest then burns as an offering.
The fire isn't just a practical way to burn the sticks; within Shingon and Tendai teaching, the flame is often linked to Fudo Myoo, a fierce-looking guardian deity to whom many goma rituals are dedicated, and burning the goma-gi is meant to symbolically consume the worshipper's worldly cravings and impurities along with the wood, purifying rather than simply requesting. Narita-san Shinshoji, a major temple outside Tokyo, holds some of the best-known large-scale public goma ceremonies in the country, packing in crowds especially for New Year's prayers, though smaller versions are performed regularly at esoteric temples across Japan.
日本のある寺、特に正月の頃に足を踏み入れると、僧侶が読経しながら精密な印を結び、助手が木の棒を次々とくべる、勢いよく燃える炉の前に立つことになるかもしれません。その儀式が護摩で、密教を代表する儀式の一つです。儀式の前に、参拝者は願い事や、時には名前と住所を「護摩木」と呼ばれる小さな木の棒に書き、僧侶がそれを供物として焼きます。
この炎は単に木の棒を燃やす実用的な手段ではありません。真言宗や天台宗の教えでは、その炎は、多くの護摩で本尊とされる、恐ろしい姿をした守護尊・不動明王と結びつけて考えられることが多く、護摩木を焼くことは、その木とともに参拝者の世俗の欲望や汚れを象徴的に焼き尽くすことを意味し、単に願うというより浄めることを目的としています。
東京郊外にある成田山新勝寺は、国内でもっともよく知られた大規模な公開の護摩儀式を行う寺の一つで、特に正月の祈願には多くの参拝者を集めますが、規模の小さな護摩は日本各地の密教の寺で日常的に行われています。
Questions people actually ask
And how to answer them.
Can anyone write a wish on a goma-gi and have it burned?
Yes, temples that perform goma generally sell goma-gi to any visitor who wants one; you write your wish, sometimes your name and address, hand it in, and it's burned during the next ceremony.
はい、護摩を行う寺ではたいてい、希望する参拝者に護摩木を授与しています。願い事を書き、時には名前と住所も添えて納めると、次の儀式で焼いてもらえます。
Is goma the same as just praying with incense?
No, it's a more elaborate, formal ritual specific to esoteric Buddhism, involving fire, chanting and precise hand gestures performed by a trained priest, rather than something an individual worshipper does alone with incense at an altar.
いいえ、これは密教特有の、より手の込んだ正式な儀式で、火と読経、そして修行を積んだ僧侶による精密な印を伴います。個々の参拝者が仏壇で一人で線香をたくのとは違います。
What does the deity Fudo Myoo have to do with the fire?
Fudo Myoo, a guardian deity usually shown surrounded by flames, is the main deity of many goma rituals, and his fire is said to burn away the worshipper's delusions. Some goma ceremonies are dedicated to other deities, though.
不動明王はたいてい炎に囲まれた姿で表される守護尊で、多くの護摩の本尊です。その炎は参拝者の煩悩を焼き払うとされます。ただし、ほかの仏を本尊とする護摩もあります。
Phrases you can use
- I wrote my wish on this goma-gi.この護摩木に願い事を書きました。
- The priest chants while the fire burns.炎が燃える間、僧侶が読経します。
- We're going to Narita-san for the New Year's goma.正月の護摩祈願のために成田山へ行きます。
- The main deity here is Fudo Myoo.ここの本尊は不動明王です。
- This temple performs goma every month.この寺は毎月護摩を行っています。
Words you need
- fire ritual護摩
- inscribed wooden stick護摩木
- esoteric Buddhist priest密教僧
- Fudo Myoo (a fierce guardian deity)不動明王
- purification浄化
Watch
From YouTubeBackground (Japanese)
護摩は密教の代表的な儀式で、インドの護摩（ホーマ）に由来し、中国を経て空海や最澄によって日本の真言宗・天台宗に伝えられたとされる。願い事や名前を書いた護摩木を炉で焼き、僧侶が読経しながら印を結ぶ。炎は本尊の不動明王と結びつけられることが多く、木を焼くことは単なる祈願ではなく、世俗の欲望や煩悩を焼き尽くす浄化の意味を持つとされる。千葉県の成田山新勝寺は大規模な公開護摩で知られ、正月には多くの参拝者が訪れる。