sacred sakaki branch with paper or cloth strips; Shinto offering wand
A ritual offering in Shinto, typically a branch of the sakaki tree decorated with shide (zigzag paper strips) or cloth. Used in ceremonies and presented at shrines.
When visiting the shrine, we offer a tamagushi before the deity.
The Shinto priest attaches paper streamers to the tamagushi.
sakaki tree; Cleyera japonica
Refers to the sakaki tree itself, an evergreen sacred in Shinto. This sense is less common than the offering sense; the tree is usually called 榊 (さかき).
See also: 榊
The sakaki is an evergreen tree indispensable for Shinto rituals.
Standard kanji spelling for the Shinto offering.
Mixed kana spelling sometimes used for readability.
Alternate kanji spelling; 籤 is a non-jōyō character and less common.
玉 (tama, 'jewel, sacred') + 串 (kushi, 'skewer, spit'). The combination refers to a sacred skewer or branch, likely from the practice of skewering offerings. The reading たまぐし is standard; たまくし is an older variant.