kosodate-zizou

Kosodate-zizou and pinwheel

A kosodate-zizou statue staying cool with its own pinwheel fan

 The temples and shrines of Japan are full of a wide variety of photography opportunities.  On this particular occasion, the whirring pinwheel caught my eye.  I did not have a tripod with me, but I thought the pinwheel might be spinning fast enough that I could handhold a shot and capture it in motion blur beside the very still statue.  

The statue is called a kosodate-zizou, and they are for the well wishes of a newborn child.  They are adorned with various hats and scarves.  I had never seen a statue "dressed up" before going to Japan.  Something about it is just very curious to me and causes my brain to have to think on the paradox of putting soft material on a hard statue.  Somehow it seems to be a very compassionate thing to do, like, just because the statue is made of stone does not mean its head does not get chilly from time to time.