By Saruwatari Tsuyoshi, Kyoto Shimbun News

October 11, 2012: Kyoto, Japan – Solemnly striding along the omotte sando, the main road, just beyond the Lion Hall, the Shishodo, they pass the sacred tree.  They wash their hands and mouths in the crisp morning water, then proceed through the gate up to the main complex cloaked in the chill morning mists.  The waterfall is called Konryu Myojin no Taki and its force fills the air with sound and water vapor.  Bathed in the soft glow of white candles perched upon the ancient stones, they approach with a solemn stride.  Above the sound of the crashing water can be heard voices.  One voice, old and rich, leads the others.  The high priest chants; the cave resonates with his prayer.

This is the Misogi Shuho at the Tsubaki Grand Shrine in Mie Prefecture, Japan.  The solemn worshippers are the players of the Edo Battousai.  They have come here to participate in the traditional Shinto ritual, the Misogi Shuhu to cleanse themselves of impurities and renew themselves.

Before they attended the ceremony, I spoke with Edo slugger Morihiro Nakamura.  He said, “The season has been long and hard.  After a difficult beginning, we have reached our first goal; to retake the lead of the Bright Blade Group.  Now, just as Izanagi-no-Mikoto (divine creator of the solar system) cleansed his body in the divine river of heaven, we must purify ourselves so that we may grow and become complete.  I put this challenge before our team in the spring, and we have come together in our purpose.”

When asked about the future, Nakamura merely smiled and turned to teammate Kenko Nakamura.  Their faces washed over in silence and their steely eyes locked fiercely.  In that instant, like a thunderclap, one could feel the primal force of the unspoken message.  Their commitment to some silent task they have set before themselves.  The mists, which had blanketed the silent dark mountain, began to dissipate in the golden morning sun, and the temple bell sounded the beginning of the Misogi Shuho.

It’s a new day in Edo.