shrine – Susan Spann, Adventure, Mystery, and Mountains

The Koubai (Red Plum Blossom) Festival at Ushi-Tenjin Kitano Shrine in Tokyo

Susan Spann Blog, Flowers in Japan, Holidays & Observances, Shrines and Temples February 11, 2024February 11, 2024Shinto, shrine, spring, sugiwara no michizane, Tokyo, ume, ume matsuri, Ushi-Tenjin Kitano

Every February, Ushi-Tenjin Kitano Jinja (shrine) holds a koubai (red plum blossom) festival to celebrate the blooming ume (Japanese plum) trees that grow around the shrine. Last weekend, a friend and I hopped a train to Bunkyo to check out the festival, and the early blooms.

The Main Shrine at Hakone Jinja

Susan Spann Blog December 4, 2017December 3, 2017Hakone Jinja, Japan, komainu, Shinto, shrine, travel

Last week, I started a virtual tour of Hakone Jinja (Shrine), one of my favorite Shintō shrines in Japan – and today, we continue that tour with a look at the shrine’s main courtyard and worship hall. In some ways, the layout of Shintō shrines varies more than Buddhist temple architecture, in part because of the way Shintō attempts to integrate the shrine with the natural landscape. Hakone Jinja is no exception. The main courtyard, where the worship hall stands, sits uphill from the entrance. Because of the distance, and the fact that several paths lead up to the worship hall

Tonosawa’s Secret Benten Shrine

Susan Spann Blog October 2, 2017November 8, 2017Benten, Benzaiten, Hakone, Japan, Shinto, shrine

As I mentioned in Friday’s post, Tonosawa Station is a tiny stop on the Hakone Tozan Railway between Hakone-Yumoto and Gora. For most people, the station is either a one-minute stop where the train takes on new passengers before continuing its run up the mountain or else a place to disembark and head for one of the nearby ryokan. However, Tonosawa Station also has a lovely secret–a Shintō shrine called Tonosawa Fukazawa Zeniarai Benten, that sits just off the train tracks on the “uphill” side of Tonosawa Station. In the photo below, the entrance to the shrine is just to the left

Visiting Fushimi Inari, Part 2

Susan Spann Blog April 14, 2017November 8, 2017Fushimi inari, Japan, Shinto, shrine, taisha, travel guide

Fushimi Inari Taisha is one of Kyoto’s loveliest, and most famous, Shintō shrines.

A Visit to Fushimi Inari – Part 1

Susan Spann Blog April 10, 2017November 8, 2017Fushimi inari, Japan, Shinto, shrine, taisha, travel guide

Many Shintō shrines in Japan have subshrines dedicated to Inari. In fact, the country has more than 10,000 Inari shrines of various sizes. However, Fushimi Inari Taisha, just south of Kyoto, is the largest and most spectacular.