Japan Travel Fixes
What's a "goshuin"? How do I get one?
It's a hand-written seal stamp given as proof of your visit to a shrine or temple. Bring a dedicated "goshuincho" stamp book and offer a few hundred yen at the shrine/temple office.
Goshuincho books are sold at shrines and temples themselves, and also at stationery shops and souvenir stores in tourist areas.
You're expected to actually worship first and get the stamp afterward — collecting goshuin purely as a checklist, without visiting properly, is considered outside the original spirit of the custom.
When it's busy or no one's available to write it live, you may be handed a pre-written stamp ("kakioki") instead.
Requesting a goshuin
御朱印をお願いできますか？
Goshuin o onegai dekimasu ka?
Could I get a goshuin (temple/shrine stamp)?