Now you no longer have to do the heavy lifting when it comes to heaving that sacred garbage into the shrine’s designated bin! Here at the Narita Fudo-san Shrine, this conveyor belt incinerator churns year-round, ready to bear away your tired old lucky charms and exhausted household gods to be cremated in the proper way. Just step up to the offering box, throw in a coin, and wave goodbye to last year’s tapped-out Safety In Traffic amulet as it’s automatically spirited away under the altar to the purifying flames beyond.
But clueless worshippers be forewarned: not only are you forbidden to send Daruma figures that didn’t deliver that 7th grade boyfriend,discarded My Little Ponies and grubby stuffies to their fiery doom, the sign to the left warns against launching anything made of veneer (toxic fumes may result), plastic (likewise), or non-burnable items like glass.
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The Last Tea Bowl Thief was chosen as an Editor’s Pick for
Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense on Amazon
“A fascinating mix of history and mystery.” —Booklist
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Only In Japan 
I wonder what the U.S. equivalent would be — worn-out rosary beads, tarnished crucifix necklaces, painted-over doorpost mezuzahs…?
Now that you mention it, what DO people do with those? Somehow it doesn’t seem right to just pitch them in the dumpster…o_O