Shorinzan Nanakusa Taisai Daruma Market Festival

Shorinzan Darumaji Temple in Takasaki is the birthplace of Daruma dolls. These bearded good luck charms are modeled on Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism.

Choose your Daruma doll at the Shorinzan Nanakusa Taisai Daruma Market Festival at the start of the year. The market is an evening event, starting on January 6 and running until the following morning. Thousands of people attend the event every year.

Believers fill in the doll’s left eye while making a wish. When the wish comes true, they fill in the other eye.