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By SHINO YUASA
Friday, 9 January 2009
TOKYO (AP)
A record 99 million Japanese visited Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples in the first three days of the New Year, the National Police Agency said Friday.
The agency said nearly 99.4 million people visited shrines or temples across the nation, up by 1.21 million from a year earlier, marking the highest number since it began compiling annual data in 1974.
Making pilgrimages to shrines or temples is a New Year tradition in Japan. Many people, including women wearing traditional kimonos, visited before dawn on New Year's Day and tossed coins, offered prayers and bought charms for the coming year.
The police said the high turnout reflected people's growing anxiety over Japan's recession-hit economy, which is expected to post no growth over the next year.
"There may be many people who prayed for economic recovery," an agency official was quoted by Kyodo News agency as saying. The official said good weather also might have helped boost the number of New Year visitors.
A police spokeswoman declined to elaborate on the report, saying the agency could only provide the statistics.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g1_tsyorJJCX_xLUVMb-qTtKA81QD95JESB03
