Children of the Shrine

Children of the Shrine (幼巫女, osana miko) is a term that appears in Fatal Frame V. It was used to refer to a custom in which young girls, up to the age of seven, became shrine maidens on Mount Kagiroi, a mountain near Mount Hikami. At the time, the death rate amongst young children was so high that it was said children's souls were caught at the border between the human realm and the Netherworld. A saying told that until the age of seven, the children were in the hands of the gods, their souls not yet arrived at the human world. It was tradition for parents to offer their young daughters to the shrine. Those with a strong sixth sense might be sent to Mount Hikami to become Pillars.

Misc. Info

• The idea that children under seven belong to the gods was a real belief in feudal Japan, and is still reflected today in the Shichi-Go-San festival, a rite of passage for children which began as a way for parents to celebrate their survival.