10月14日、お昼前に宝鏡寺を訪れました。
宝鏡寺は通称「人形寺」と呼ばれるお寺で、江戸時代初期に後水尾天皇の皇女・久厳尼（くげに）が入寺してから門跡寺院となり、代々の皇女が住持を務めた尼門跡寺院です。毎年この日（10月14日）には「人形供養祭」が行われます。

人形供養祭では、境内にある人形塚の前で、傷んだり役目を終えたりした人形を弔い、供養する法要が営まれます。人形塚の左側には、全国から持ち込まれた人形がずらりと並べられ、厳かな雰囲気の中、僧侶による読経が響きます。法要には日本人形協会や京人形商工業協同組合など関係者の方々が参列しますが、一般の参列者も焼香をすることができます。

大切にされてきたであろう人形たちを前に、ひとつの命のように思いを込めて供養する——その場に立ち会えたことを嬉しく感じました。なお、この日に並べられた人形は、後日お焚き上げによって丁寧に送られるそうです。


Doll Memorial Service at Hōkyōji Temple — A Gentle Autumn Ritual in Kyoto

On October 14, I visited Hōkyōji Temple just before noon.
Commonly known as the “Temple of Dolls” (Ningyō-dera), Hōkyōji became an imperial convent in the early Edo period when Princess Kugin-ni, daughter of Emperor Go-Mizunoo, entered the temple. Since then, generations of imperial princesses have served as its abbesses.

Every year on this day (October 14), the temple holds the Doll Memorial Service (Ningyō Kuyōsai) — a solemn ceremony to honor and lay to rest dolls that have become worn or have fulfilled their role.

The ceremony takes place in front of a stone monument called the Doll Mound (Ningyō-zuka) within the temple grounds. To the left of the mound, countless dolls brought from all over Japan are carefully arranged, creating a serene yet deeply moving sight. As the monks chant sutras, the atmosphere becomes filled with reverence.
Representatives from the Japan Doll Association and the Kyoto Doll Industry Cooperative attend the service, but ordinary visitors are also welcome to offer incense.

Standing before these beloved dolls — each one once cherished as if alive — I felt grateful to witness this act of gentle remembrance. After the ceremony, the dolls are respectfully cremated in a ritual fire, ensuring that their spirits are properly sent off.