Tokyo Shrines

The forests maintained in and around the grounds of shrines are called "chinju no mori (woods).

Including annexes and outlying regent shrines, Ise Jingu is the largest shrine in Japan in terms of area.

The most famous of these is the "three sacred objects" that Ninigi no Mikoto is said to have received from Amaterasu at the time of his descent from heaven in the "Chronicles of Japan.

The basic architectural style of shrine pavilions is the gabled gabled roof, which can be broadly divided into the "Shinmei-zukuri" style, which has its roots in the Ise Jingu Shrine, and the "Taisha-zukuri" style, which has its roots in the Izumo-Taisha Shrine.

Visitors are required to stop in front of the torii gate and bow before passing through.

The prefecture with the fewest number of shrines is Okinawa Prefecture with 13 shrines.

Komainu are the guardian animals of shrines. They are placed in pairs on the left and right, with the mouths of each pair representing the "A" and "Un" forms.

Since Shinto originally originated from nature worship, the objects of worship are so numerous that they are said to be "eight million gods.

After the Meiji Restoration, the Meiji government established a modern shrine ranking system based on the Engi-shiki.

The chief priest is the head of a shrine, and there is one priest for each shrine. Only Ise Jingu has "Grand Shrine Priest" and "Minor Shrine Priest.

The Outer Shrine, officially named Toyoke Grand Shrine, enshrines the deity Toyoke, the patron god of agriculture, industry, food, clothing, and shelter.

Okinawa Prefecture also has the fewest number of shrines per 100,000 people, with 0.9 shrines per 100,000 people; Osaka (8.22) and Tokyo (10.68) are in second and third place, respectively.

It is considered good luck to dedicate an ema (votive tablet) to the left side of the shrine, with the horse facing to the left.

The southernmost shrine in Japan is Miyako Shrine on Miyako Island, Okinawa Prefecture.

The deity of Hiyoshi Shrine, Hie Shrine, and Sanno Shrine, which have about 3,800 shrines throughout Japan, is Oyakui, also known as "Hiyoshi God" or "Sanno Gongen. The deity is also the head deity of the Matsuo faith, which has Matsuo Taisha Shrine in Kyoto as its head shrine.

The shrine grounds generally consist of a torii gate as the entrance to the shrine, a hand-watering basin, guardian dogs, a hall of worship, a main hall of worship, and regent shrines.

Atago Shrine in Minato Ward, Tokyo, is located on Mt. Atago, the highest mountain in the 23 wards as a natural terrain mountain.

The Tokyo Ten Shrines are Kanda Myojin, Nezu Shrine, Shiba Daijingu Shrine, Kameido Tenjin Shrine, Hakusan Shrine, Shinagawa Shrine, Tomioka Hachimangu Shrine, Oji Shrine, Hie Shrine, and Akasaka Hikawa Shrine, which were designated as associate shrines by the Emperor Meiji.

Suwa Shrine is the head shrine of Suwa-taisha in Nagano Prefecture, and there are approximately 5,000 Suwa shrines throughout the country, with Kenmonakata no Kami as the main deity.

It is a basic rule to visit the Outer Shrine and then the Inner Shrine in that order.

Since the center of the torii gate and the approach to the shrine is considered to be the path of the gods, it is customary to pass by either side of the gate.