Author of the Hiro Hattori (Shinobi) mysteries
Akagi Jinja (shrine) sits on the shore of Lake Onuma, not far from the trailhead that leads to the peaks of nearby Mt. Akagi. (The mountain, a stratovolcano, has numerous summits – three of which I summited last weekend as part of my hyakumeizan climb.) The shrine dates to at least the 14th century, and has subsidiary shrines across Japan.
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Today we continue the virtual tour of Hakone Shrine with a trip to the water gate. In the Shintō faith, torii (the red-orange gate in the images) mark the boundary between the secular and the sacred – though on occasion, it often seems that the areas on both sides of the torii are equally sacred. The water gate at Hakone Shrine is one of those places.
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(To read this series from the beginning, click here!) Hakone Shrine sits on the shore of Lake Ashi, in a grove of massive, sacred trees. The scents of pine and cedar follow visitors up the shaded paths. In winter months you may also catch a whiff of wood smoke in the air. After visiting the purification fountain, most visitors either head down to the water gate on the shore of Lake Ashi or up the steps to the shrine’s main worship hall.
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Hakone Jinja (Hakone Shrine) sits on the shore of Lake Ashi (Ashinoko) in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture – about an hour’s journey south of Tokyo. Its giant lakeside torii makes it among the most picturesque Shintō shrines, as well as an important historical, tourist, and religious site.
Read moreKanda Jinja (also known as Kanda Myojin) is one of Tokyo’s oldest Shintō shrines. Founded in 730, the shrine was originally located in Chiyoda-ku, near the Imperial palace; it was moved to its current location in 1603, when Tokugawa Ieyasu moved the Japanese capital from Kyoto to Edo (now Tokyo). The shrine’s entrance is unassuming–in fact, you could easily miss it if you didn’t know what you were looking for. The torii that marks the official approach stands on a downtown street, between a pair of buildings. The shrine’s main entrance gate sits just beyond the torii. If you visit, don’t rush past the
Read moreThe walk to the summit of Inariyama (Mount Inari) takes between 45 minutes and 2 hours, depending on your personal fitness, pace, and whether or not you choose to stop for lunch or tea along the way.
Read moreNumerous sub-shrines line the slopes of Fushimi Inari Shrine, many with teahouses and restauarants as well as shrines, offering visitors a chance to stop for rest and refreshment as well as offerings and prayers.
Read moreSub-shrines, restaurants, and teahouses line the slopes of Fushimi Inari Shrine, offering visitors a place to stop and pray, leave offerings, or rest and enjoy a cup of tea or a snack along the way.
Read more(Click here to start the series from the beginning.) Near the base of Mount Inari (Inariyama), past the stairs that lead from the Hondo (worship hall) to the path that climbs the sacred mountain, lies the famous “Path of a Thousand Torii” – a tunnel made of sacred gates that has become a familiar, iconic image of Japan: At the start of the path, enormous torii tower twenty and thirty feet high, dwarfing visitors. Inside the path, the gates are placed so close together that the light takes on an orange hue:
Read moreKenzan Jinja is a small Shinto shrine perched atop Mt. Bizan in Tokushima City, on the Japanese island of Shikoku.
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