Japan Ema Guide: Votive Plaques at Shrines — How to Write, Hang & Which to Buy
Ema (絵馬) are the small wooden votive plaques you'll see hanging in thousands at Japanese shrines — each one bearing a personal wish or prayer written by a visitor and left for the deity. This guide covers the full tradition: what ema are and how the practice began, how to write and hang your own, the remarkable variety of shapes across Japan's shrines, the best shrine destinations for ema experiences in Kyoto, Tokyo, and Nara, how to choose ema as souvenirs, and the etiquette for being near others' written wishes.
What Is an Ema? History and Origins
The ema (絵馬, literally "picture horse") is a small wooden votive plaque sold at Shinto shrines and some Buddhist temples throughout Japan, on which worshippers write personal wishes or prayers before hanging the plaque at the shrine. The tradition is one of Japan's most enduring and visually striking folk religious practices, producing the distinctive sight of hundreds or thousands of wooden tablets — many bearing handwritten wishes in Japanese, Korean, Chinese, English, and other languages — suspended in rows on dedicated wooden racks (emakake, 絵馬掛け) in the precincts of busy shrines. The origin of the ema tradition lies in the ancient practice of offering live horses to shrines. In the Nara period (710–794 CE), horses were considered sacred animals capable of carrying prayers to the divine realm, and the presentation of a live horse to a major shrine was one of the most significant ritual offerings an individual or government could make — used particularly to pray for rain during droughts or for fair weather during floods. The cost of maintaining horses and the practical limitations of keeping live animals at every shrine gradually led to substitution: first with clay or wooden horse figurines, then with two-dimensional painted images of horses on wooden tablets. By the Heian period (794–1185), this substitute offering — the picture horse — had become widespread. The oldest surviving ema in Japan date from the early Edo period (17th century); Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima Island preserves early examples, as does Zuishin-in Temple in Kyoto. During the Edo period, the tradition evolved from a purely devotional practice into a combination of devotion and folk art: ema commissioned from professional painters depicted not only horses but gods, dragons, historical scenes, and auspicious symbols, and were hung as permanent decorations within shrine and temple buildings. The decorative large-format ema — known as o-ema (大絵馬, "large picture horse") — can be seen displayed inside shrine buildings throughout Japan; these were typically donated by wealthy patrons, guilds, or village communities. The small individual ema for personal prayer — the format now sold as a mass-produced item at shrine shops — became standardized during the Edo period as shrines increasingly commercialized the practice. Today, approximately 80 billion yen worth of ema are sold annually at Japan's approximately 80,000 shrines, making it one of the most commercially significant traditional religious practices in the country. The five-sided pentagonal shape (a pentagon with a pointed top representing a gabled roof) is now the most common standard ema format, typically measuring approximately 10–15 cm wide and 7–12 cm tall, though the diversity of shapes available at different shrines — from horses to foxes to torii gates to the twelve zodiac animals — is one of the great pleasures of ema collecting.
How to Write and Hang Your Ema Correctly
The process of writing and hanging an ema is simple and accessible to anyone visiting a Shinto shrine, regardless of language ability or knowledge of Shinto practice. Ema are sold at the shrine office (shamusho, 社務所) or dedicated votive goods counter (juyosho, 授与所) that typically occupies a prominent position within the shrine's main courtyard. Prices range from 500 yen for a small standard ema to 1,500 yen or more for larger or particularly elaborately shaped ema. Many shrines provide small felt-tip pens or marker pens at a writing station adjacent to the juyosho or near the emakake rack; visitors who prefer to use their own pen will find the unfinished wooden surface accepts most permanent markers and ballpoint pens well, though pencil tends to fade over time. The standard convention for writing on an ema is as follows. On the front — the side bearing the shrine's printed image or design — visitors write their wish or prayer in any language they prefer, as the content of the wish is a personal communication to the deity and need not conform to any linguistic standard. Common wish formulas in Japanese include 合格祈願 (gōkaku kigan, prayer for exam success), 縁結び (en-musubi, prayer for romantic connection), 健康祈願 (kenkō kigan, prayer for good health), and 商売繁盛 (shōbai hanjō, prayer for business prosperity). On the back, the convention is to write the petitioner's name, current age, and prefecture or country of residence — information that helps the deity direct the blessing to the correct person. This information is not required and is frequently omitted by visitors who prefer privacy. Once written, the ema is hung on the emakake rack — the dedicated wooden frame or post-and-rope structure erected within the shrine precincts for this purpose. Most shrines provide small holes or hooks at the top of the ema for hanging. There is no prescribed ritual: simply approach the rack, find a free hook or space, and hang the ema with your written side facing outward. At very busy shrines during peak seasons — particularly New Year, when millions of ema are hung in a few days — the racks fill completely and shrine staff replace full racks with new ones throughout the day. The written wish on a hung ema is technically a private communication between the petitioner and the deity. The convention is to not stop, stare, or photograph specific individuals' wishes if they contain identifiable personal information. In practice, many visitors scan the racks casually as they pass, but reading closely or photographing personal ema content is considered an intrusion on the implicit privacy of the practice. Shrines periodically retire and ceremonially burn accumulated ema during the otakiage fire ceremony, returning the prayers to the divine realm and clearing space on the racks — this typically occurs around New Year and at other seasonally significant times.
Famous Ema Shapes by Shrine: Animals, Zodiac and Regional Designs
The diversity of ema shapes available across Japan's shrines is one of the most enjoyable aspects of ema collecting. While the standard five-sided wooden pentagon dominates at most general shrines, specialist shrines have developed ema shapes that reference their specific deity, historical associations, or regional character — and dedicated collectors seek out these regional specialty shapes as they travel. Animal-shaped ema are the most widespread variant. Horse-shaped ema remain popular at equestrian-associated shrines, including the numerous Hachiman shrines — the deity Hachiman being the god of archery and war, historically associated with the warrior class and horses. Fox-shaped ema (in the distinctive kitsune form with pointed ears and curved tail) are sold at all Inari shrines; the most famous is Fushimi Inari Taisha in southern Kyoto, where the fox ema come in particularly elaborate designs. The most charming variant is the blank-face fox ema: the visitor draws their own expression on the fox's face with a provided marker, producing rows of personalized fox faces expressing joy, determination, and hope that are among the most photographed sights at any Japanese shrine. Rabbit-shaped ema are sold at Okazaki Shrine in Kyoto, where rabbits are the divine messenger, and have become fashionable souvenirs particularly since the Year of the Rabbit in 2023. Deer ema are sold at shrines in Nara, where the deer are considered divine messengers of Kasuga Shrine. Cow ema are popular at Tenjin shrines dedicated to the scholar deity Sugawara no Michizane — most famously at Dazaifu Tenmangu in Fukuoka, where elaborate cow ema are particularly popular with students praying for academic success. Zodiac ema represent a major annual phenomenon. Each year, shrines produce a special ema in the shape of the current year's zodiac animal, sold from New Year onwards. The twelve animals of the Japanese zodiac — rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog, and boar — rotate annually, and collecting the yearly zodiac ema over successive years is a popular practice among dedicated shrine visitors. Major shrines sell the current year's zodiac ema in multiple sizes and materials, including versions with gold or silver foil decoration. Regional specialty ema reflect local historical and cultural associations: the daruma doll shape at Daruma-ji Temple in Gunma; the torii gate shape at Meiji Jingu in Tokyo; cherry blossom shapes at shrines famous for spring viewing; and elaborate illustrated ema at artistic shrines like Kitano Tenmangu in Kyoto, celebrated for its plum blossoms and historical association with learning and the arts.
Best Shrines for Ema Experiences in Kyoto, Tokyo & Nara
Japan's major shrine and temple cities offer distinct ema experiences, from the personalized fox faces of Fushimi Inari to the dramatic New Year displays at Meiji Jingu. In Kyoto, the premier ema destinations are Fushimi Inari Taisha, Kitano Tenmangu, and Okazaki Shrine. Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社) — the head shrine of Japan's approximately 30,000 Inari shrines, famous for its thousands of vermilion torii gates — sells the most photographed ema in Japan: white fox-shaped ema with a blank face that visitors personalize using provided marker pens at a dedicated drawing station. The result — rows of individualized fox faces expressing joy, determination, sadness, and hope — is one of the most charming sights at any Japanese shrine. Fushimi Inari is accessible by JR Nara Line (Inari Station, 5 minutes from Kyoto Station) and is open 24 hours. Kitano Tenmangu (北野天満宮) in Kyoto's Kita ward sells elaborate cow ema in multiple sizes, as well as pencil-shaped ema popular with students praying for academic success. The shrine's famous plum orchard blooms in late February, making a combined plum-viewing and ema-writing visit a popular late-winter activity. Okazaki Shrine (岡崎神社), a small but charming shrine in eastern Kyoto near Heian Jingu, sells rabbit ema in multiple styles and is especially popular with couples praying for fertility and safe childbirth. In Tokyo, Meiji Jingu (明治神宮) — the massive forested shrine in Harajuku dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken — displays the largest single collection of ema during the New Year period, when the shrine receives approximately 3 million visitors in the first three days of January. The rows of wishes in dozens of languages on the emakake racks in the inner precincts are a striking visual experience. Kanda Myojin near Akihabara is famous for anime character ema, where approved gaming and anime characters appear on ema designs with the shrine's blessing. Yasukuni Shrine at Kudanshita maintains large emakake racks with a distinctive character reflecting its historical associations. In Nara, Kasuga Taisha (春日大社) — one of Japan's most important shrines, surrounded by the free-roaming sacred deer of Nara Park — sells deer-shaped ema alongside the standard pentagon format. Writing your wish with a deer standing nearby is an experience uniquely possible in Nara, and the sight of deer wandering among the emakake racks is memorable for visitors of all ages.
Ema as Souvenirs: What to Buy and Where
Ema occupy an interesting dual role in Japanese souvenir culture: they are simultaneously a genuine religious artifact — a prayer communicated to a shrine deity — and one of Japan's most popular souvenir items. This duality means ema are sold in two distinct modes: as prayer items at the shrine's juyosho, intended to be written on and hung; and as decorative souvenirs at souvenir shops in shrine precincts and airport gift counters, intended to be taken home as decorative objects. The distinction matters practically. An ema purchased at a shrine, written on, and then taken home rather than hung occupies an ambiguous religious position — the conventional understanding is that an ema hung at the shrine carries the prayer to the deity, while one kept by the petitioner does not transmit the prayer in the same way. Many visitors adopt a practical middle position: purchasing two ema, writing the prayer on one and hanging it (leaving it with the deity), while writing a commemorative message on a second and keeping it as a memento. This approach is entirely acceptable. For souvenir ema purchased specifically as decorative items, the most desirable are those with distinctive regional shapes and high-quality artwork. The blank-face fox ema from Fushimi Inari Taisha are the most photographed and internationally recognized, but since they require personalization, pre-decorated souvenir versions are not available — visitors must draw the face themselves. Many shrines sell small decorative ema with pre-printed designs (lacquered, gold-foil decorated, or painted with seasonal scenes) specifically intended for souvenir purchase. These are typically displayed separately from plain prayer ema and may be labelled in English as "decorative" or "for display." For the widest variety without visiting multiple shrines individually, the omiyage shops along approaches to major Kyoto shrines — on Omotesando leading to Fushimi Inari, on the shopping street approaching Kitano Tenmangu, and in the Higashiyama arcade near Kiyomizudera — carry ema from multiple shrines alongside decorative ema not tied to any specific deity. Airport souvenir counters at Kansai International and Narita carry packaged ema sets as a practical last-minute option. The most meaningful souvenirs, however, remain those purchased directly at the shrine associated with the specific deity relevant to the visitor's prayer — a Kitano Tenmangu cow ema for a student, a Fushimi Inari fox ema for a traveler seeking good fortune, or a Nara deer ema for a nature lover.
Reading Other Visitors' Wishes: Etiquette and Privacy
The emakake rack at a busy Japanese shrine — laden with hundreds or thousands of written ema from visitors of all nationalities — is one of the most intimate and revealing public spaces in Japan: a collection of private hopes, anxieties, and prayers for health, academic success, romantic happiness, and personal transformation, written in a dozen languages and hung in a shared public space. The etiquette surrounding the reading of others' ema is nuanced and worth understanding before visiting. The fundamental principle is that an ema written and hung at a shrine is addressed to the deity, not to the public. While the physical plaque is visible to anyone walking past — unlike a prayer whispered at the main hall — the writer has chosen to make their wish visible in this semi-public space as part of the religious practice. This is different from posting the wish on social media. The appropriate behavior for visitors walking past emakake racks is similar to behavior appropriate near a confessional in a church: passing by and registering that private communications are taking place is acceptable; stopping to read each plaque carefully, copying down wishes, or photographing individual wishes (especially those containing names, addresses, or clearly personal information) is not. In practice, the range of wishes visible on emakake racks at popular shrines is genuinely moving and reveals something of the human condition across cultures. Exam-related prayers (合格 gōkaku, "passing") dominate at shrines near universities and during exam season (January–February in Japan), while love-related prayers (縁結び en-musubi, romantic connection; 復縁 fuken, reconciliation with an ex-partner) concentrate at love shrines like Jishu Jinja near Kiyomizudera in Kyoto. Health prayers for aging parents and oneself appear year-round. International visitors write in English, Korean, Chinese, Thai, and many other languages — all accepted at any shrine, as the deity is understood to comprehend all languages equally. The question of whether it is appropriate to read ema for curiosity is debated among Japanese visitors themselves. The general guideline is: briefly scanning ema as you walk past is the low side of acceptable; closely reading ema that contain clearly personal details, photographing individual ema with personal information visible, or sharing such photographs publicly are considered violations of the implicit privacy compact of the emakake space. At spots like the fox-face ema racks at Fushimi Inari, where the visible hand-drawn faces are clearly intended as public artistic expression, slightly longer contemplation is widely accepted. When in doubt, treat the racks as you would a shared prayer wall — acknowledge the presence of others' communication with the sacred, and move on with respectful discretion.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does an ema cost at a Japanese shrine?
Standard ema typically cost 500–800 yen at most shrines. Larger ema, specialty shapes (animals, zodiac figures), or ema with decorative elements such as gold or silver foil cost 1,000–1,500 yen. Decorative souvenir ema at shrine gift shops and airport counters may be priced higher (1,500–3,000 yen). The donation for hanging an ema is usually included in the purchase price — you do not need to make a separate offering when hanging.
Can I write my wish in English on an ema?
Yes — writing your wish in English (or any other language) is entirely acceptable. There is no requirement to write in Japanese. The deity is understood to comprehend all languages. Many popular shrines with international visitors display ema wishes in English, Korean, Chinese, French, Spanish, and many other languages alongside Japanese wishes. If you want to add the conventional back-of-ema information, simply write your name, age, and country of origin in any language or script.
Where exactly do I hang my ema after writing it?
Look for the emakake (絵馬掛け) — a dedicated wooden rack, frame, or horizontal rope structure with hooks, usually located within the main shrine courtyard near the main hall (honden). At smaller shrines there may be just one rack; at major shrines there are multiple racks. Simply find an empty hook or space, loop the cord or string attached to the top of your ema over the hook, and hang it. Shrine attendants are available at the juyosho counter if you need guidance on the location.
Can I take an ema home as a souvenir instead of hanging it?
Yes, with a nuance. An ema purchased specifically as a decorative souvenir (often sold separately at shrine gift shops as 飾り絵馬, kazari ema) is intended to be taken home. An ema purchased as a prayer item, written on, and then kept rather than hung is also perfectly acceptable — though the conventional understanding is that the prayer is fully transmitted to the deity when the ema is hung at the shrine. Many visitors buy two: one to hang and one to keep. Shrine gift shops at major destinations like Fushimi Inari also sell pre-decorated display ema that make excellent souvenirs without any religious ambiguity.
What happens to ema after they accumulate at a shrine?
Shrines periodically conduct the otakiage (お焚き上げ) ceremony — a ritual burning of accumulated ema, omamori, and other votive objects — which returns the prayers to the divine realm and clears space on the emakake racks. This typically occurs at major shrines once or twice a year: most commonly around the end of the New Year period (late January) when the previous year's New Year ema are retired, and sometimes again in summer. The ema are not simply discarded but ceremonially burned with prayers — the ritual ensures that the wishes are honoured and the objects are respectfully retired. Hanging an ema at a shrine does not mean it will remain permanently; the periodic retirement is understood as part of the practice.