The Japanese Buddhist temple bell traditionally struck 108 times on New Year's Eve is called a bonshō.
The ceremony is known as Joya no Kane, meaning “bells on New Year's Eve.” Buddhist tradition connects the number 108 with the earthly desires or defilements that cause suffering. Striking the bell is therefore understood as a symbolic way to dispel those burdens while entering the new year.
Bonshō are large cast-bronze bells suspended in temple bell towers and struck from the outside with a wooden beam. The sound may carry across neighborhoods during the final hours of the old year. The practice is religious rather than merely decorative, although it has become one of Japan's best-known New Year's customs. Not every temple follows exactly the same schedule, but 108 strikes is the standard symbolic count.