One of Kyoto's oldest (711 BCE) and most revered Shinto shrines, Fushimi Inari Taisha serves as the headquarters for all the 40,000 shrines dedicated to Inari across Japan. While predominantly the deity of rice and sake, Inari has also grown to govern the modern capitalistic concepts of success and prosperity in business and consequently the shrine draws thousands of businesspeople and tradespeople seeking blessings for their enterprises. The many Torii or gates that adorn this mountain shrine are dedicated by prominent families or business and each has the name of the benefactor inscribed upon it.
Posts
This is my absolutely favorite spot in Japan. We visited this shrine early in the morning before the crowd and was able to enjoy the quiet serenity of the torii, creating paths to the shrine up in the mountain. The sakura trees were also in bloom and so it was just so perfect. I regret not having walked further up those paths... maybe, one day. Did you? If yes, was it a difficult walk?
ReplyDeleteThis is also one of my favorite areas in Japan and this visit was my first to the top of the mountain, the photograph is actually from quite high up - however it is difficult to tell as they all stat to look similar. At some point the path is a mild grade of stairs that winds its way slowly up, slightly challenging but not too difficult as long as you take your time and enjoy the atmosphere, well worth the journey next time you find yourself in Kyoto. Thanks for the comment.
ReplyDelete