As the old year draws to a close (and we say good riddance to all that was disappointing and discouraging), and a new year is about to begin (along with the ever-springing hope that it will be better than the last), I find myself thinking about this odd little booth that sits in a quietContinue reading “The One Word Saint”
Tag Archives: strange shrines & temples
The Lost Cat Shrine
Don’t you just hate it when your kittehs get a touch of the walkabout? Well now you can do something about it. A quick prayer at the Tachikawa Suitengu Shrine will have them back on your doorstep quicker than a twist of the can opener! And just for fun, here are the eleven strangest shrinesContinue reading “The Lost Cat Shrine”
The Dish-Breaking Shrine
This spring, the ever-impish kami-sama apparently thought I was in need of some sort of life lesson. Because every time I set out with a well-planned, perfectly-timed plan, it was like this: “You know that amazing thing you traveled three hours on four trains to see? Well, forget it. You’re not going to see it. InsteadContinue reading “The Dish-Breaking Shrine”
The Werewolf Shrine
High on top of a snowy mountain in Chichibu – so far from any train station that you’ll be eligible for a senior citizen discount by the time you get off the bus – is the Mitsumine Jinja. At first it looks like a typical Shinto shrine with fox messengers at the gate… …but a closerContinue reading “The Werewolf Shrine”
The Fox Shrine To End All Fox Shrines
I knew I was going to love the Sasuke Inari Shrine from the moment I saw the long tunnel of red lacquer torii gates leading into the deep, dark woods. But nothing prepared me for the mossy, foxy, wonders that lay beyond! If you’d like to visit the Sasuke Inari Shrine the next timeContinue reading “The Fox Shrine To End All Fox Shrines”
Get Your Wallet Blessed By Fire & Drums
There’s nothing like a good, old-fashioned fire ceremony to get your year off to a blazing start! Flaming prayer sticks, drums being pounded by ultra-buff young priests, the chance to get your wallet blessed – what’s not to like? The fire ceremony at the Fukugawa Fudo temple in Monzen Nakacho did not disappoint! If your experience with BuddhismContinue reading “Get Your Wallet Blessed By Fire & Drums”
The Wart Shrine
Warts. Just hearing their name makes you want to get rid of them faster than pronto. And what easier way, than to visit the Wart-Be-Gone Jizo at Nishiarai Daishi temple? Just toss a coin in the box and take a pinch of the sacred pile-o-salt to rub on the offending carbuncle, and this benevolent bodhisattva will cure whatContinue reading “The Wart Shrine”
Furry Elephants. With Claws.
Do you think the artist who carved these beasties had ever actually seen one? I guess it doesn’t matter, as long as the guy who paid the bill hadn’t either. These elephants are carved on one of the main buildings at the Tōshōgū Shrine in Nikko, built by the first shogun, Ieyasu Tokugawa. •
The Scrub Brush Shrine
So, I’m trudging back to the bus stop after catching Sankei-en having the Japanese garden equivalent of a bad hair day,* when I spot this odd little shrine tucked between two houses. The altar is a big pitted rock, and it’s covered with…scrub brushes? What is this, the patron kami-sama of cleaning supplies? Wrong-o! This shrine is the cureContinue reading “The Scrub Brush Shrine”
Firewalking 101
I’m not sure who first thought that walking across burning coals would be an awesome superpower to have, but sometime in the distant past, that’s exactly what a bunch of more-rugged-then-thou Japanese warrior priests learned to do. Firewalking is still done once a year at the foot of Mt. Takao by practitioners of shugendo, aContinue reading “Firewalking 101”
The Anime Shrine
If you live, breathe, and want to work in anime, the Kanda Myōjin shrine is the place to pray that your dreams come true. But you’d better bring your markers and all your drawing chops, because competition for the gods’ attention is fierce. At most shrines, prayers are just scribbled on the backs of woodenContinue reading “The Anime Shrine”
The Lucky Cat Temple
In a corner of Gotokuji Temple, I discovered a Kannon figure totally surrounded by maneki neko lucky cats! Their raised paws are believed to beckon money and good luck into the owner’s business, so shopkeepers from all over Tokyo come here to buy a cat figure and offer it to the bodhisattva, hoping for a bigContinue reading “The Lucky Cat Temple”
At The Ise Shrine, Everything New Is Old
The god of rice’s building at the Ise Shrine sits next to a vacant lot. Or, actually, a construction site. Because every twenty years, a replica of the rice god’s shrine is lovingly built right next door. In the twentieth year, the god of rice is moved from the old shrine to the new, andContinue reading “At The Ise Shrine, Everything New Is Old”
St. Nyancat Of Matchmaking
If you want to find the gf/bf of your dreams, this is the place to do it! The gods of the Imado Shrine in Asakusa are apparently better at forking over perfect mates than the yenta in Fiddler On The Roof. This shrine is also the birthplace of the maneki neko cats you see wavingContinue reading “St. Nyancat Of Matchmaking”
Auto-Incinerate, For All Your Sacred Garbage Needs
Now you no longer have to do the heavy lifting when it comes to heaving that sacred garbage into the shrine’s designated bin! Here at the Narita Fudo-san Shrine, this conveyor belt incinerator churns year-round, ready to bear away your tired old lucky charms and exhausted household gods to be cremated in the proper way.Continue reading “Auto-Incinerate, For All Your Sacred Garbage Needs”
Only In Japan 