In the Shinto religion, prayer plaques are called ema and they are used by believers to communicate their wishes and thanks to deities worshiped at Shinto shrines. Each shrine sells its own brand of ema on which a believer writes his/her prayer onto the board and hangs it on a special rack. It is a very public way of publicising a private wish, unlike Christians who pray to their God and communicate their wishes in private.
A pile of emas at the Kasuga Shrine, Nara
Seen at Tenman-gu Shrine, Dazaifu
