Tokyo Shrines

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.

There are various theories as to the origin of the torii, such as that the perch of a bird was placed in front of the shrine in reference to the "everlasting long-nesting bird" that appeared in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) to lure Amaterasu out of Ama-no-Omikami (Amaterasu) from the Ama-no-Iwato.

In the Heian period (794-1185), the dedication of remote shrines was avoided, and "Nijusha" was established as a new ranking of shrines, mainly those close to Kyoto.51 "Ichinomiya" was established from the late Heian to Kamakura periods, and is the most prestigious shrine in each country (Ritsuryo/Kokugyo).

The shrine with the largest site area in Japan is Meiji Jingu Shrine. It has a total area of 700,000 m2.

Ookunitama Shrine is located in Fuchu City, Tokyo, and is the head shrine enshrining from the first to the sixth shrines of Musashi Province.

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

There are 22,000 priests in Japan, of which approximately 3,000 are women.

The presidency of the Honcho has been held by a female member of the Imperial Family for generations, and it is customary for the president to also serve as the chief priestess of Ise Jingu Shrine.

Of all the Shinto shrines in Japan, about 20,000 are manned, and one priest often serves several shrines at the same time.

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

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.

Nakajima Shrine in Hyogo Prefecture enshrines Tamizumamori-no-mikoto, who is revered as the god of sweets.

The Hachiman Shrine, affectionately known as "Hachiman-sama," is dedicated to Emperor Ojin (Honoritabetsumei). In the Middle Ages, he was worshipped by the warrior class as a warrior god.

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.

The general etiquette for worshipping at shrines is "Nirei Ni-Beat-Itte-Ichirei" (two beats, one bow).

The entire 233-meter-high Mount Inari is the object of worship at Fushimi Inari Taisha, and Sei Shonagon wrote about his pilgrimage to the mountain in his "Pillow Book.

Dendenmangu Shrine at Horinji Temple in Arashiyama, Kyoto, enshrines Denden Myojin, the god of electricity and radio waves, and is visited by people in the TV and IT industries.

Ise Jingu was considered a separate entity and was placed outside the classification of the modern shrine ranking system and imperial shrines.

There are more than 2,000 single shrines that do not belong to the Honcho, including Nikko Toshogu Shrine, Meiji Shrine, Yasukuni Shrine, and Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine.

In principle, ichinomiya was granted to one shrine in one country, but there are cases where there are multiple ichinomiya in one country due to a battle for shrine status.

Tenmangu Shrine is dedicated to Sugawara Michizane, a scholar and politician of the Heian period. There are approximately 12,000 Tenmangu shrines and Sugawara shrines throughout Japan.

The Tokyo Gosha are Meiji Shrine, Yasukuni Shrine, Hie Shrine, Okunitama Shrine, and Tokyo Daijingu Shrine, which are considered historically prestigious among the approximately 1,800 shrines in Tokyo.

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.

The 16 shrines that are designated as "imperial shrines" are Kamo Betsurai-jinja Shrine, Kamo Goso-jinja Shrine, Ishimizu Hachimangu Shrine, Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Atsuta Shrine, Izumo Taisha Shrine, Hikawa Shrine, Kashima Shrine, Katori Shrine, Kashihara Shrine, Omi-jingu Shrine, Heian Shrine, Meiji Shrine, Yasukuni Shrine, Usa Shrine, and Kashinomiya Shrine.

Originally white in color, torii gates are said to have been painted red to ward off evil spirits in Buddhism as a result of the syncretization of Shintoism and Buddhism.

Ise Jingu is the collective name for 125 shrines, centering on the Inner and Outer Shrines, and consisting of 14 annexes of the two shrines, as well as regent shrines, subordinate shrines, and shrines under jurisdiction.

By prefecture, Niigata Prefecture has the most shrines, with 4,727.

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.