Atsuta Shrine

We went to Atsuta Shrine on our way to what ended up being a strange hip-hop/clown performance/Japanese idol group/carnival thing produced by the Brother company in Nagoya.  Bit of a set-up, right?  Well, if you're looking for crazy clown pictures, I can't deliver - although one did say "hello" to us - so you'll have to settle for pictures of an incredibly old and famous shrine.

The large performance hall.

The grounds of the shrine are set in the middle of Nagoya city, but when you step inside, it feels like you've taken a portal away from the city.  The noise of cars disappears, and you're surrounded by thick woods.  Stone-lined paths wind through the trees, crossed by dirt paths, leading to small lesser shrines, museums, and tea houses on the compound's grounds.

First, we walked through the museum.  This area of Japan is famous for its swordsmaking, and we looked at many ancient and fearsome examples.  Supposedly, the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, or "Grasscutter Sword," is also at this museum, but it is never seen.  In ancient lore, it was a gift from Susano-o (the God of Storms) to Amaterasu (the great Goddess of Japan), as payment for a previous indiscretion.  I can't cover it all here, so go read more about it!  Maybe it's real, maybe not.

The small performance hall.

After the museum, we wandered through the woods until we passed through a large gate.  We found ourselves facing the large performance hall, a splendid sight of golden architecture.  Beside it was the small performance hall, a more traditional sight.  Around the corner from both is the main shrine.  The walk-up prayer gate, pictured on the right, is a lovely minimalist affair, a decor choice that pervades at this shrine.  They appear to have chosen minimalism and history over showiness.

Walking up to the main shrine.

Something really cool about the Shinto religion: anything from nature that is large and impressive is a God.  To the left is pictured a rather formidable tree that grew in the middle of the shrine grounds.  It is decked out in shrine symbols, denoting it as a God and a place to worship.  People come and pray before it, asking for health, good fortune, etc.

The little dude to the right is apparently a monument to glasses... or at least that's how Matt's translated the kanji.  I quite liked him.  This style of statue isn't common in this area of Japan, and I always enjoy seeing sights that are different than expected.


Here are two shots of lesser shrines on the Atsuta grounds.  To the left, a gate showered with small torii.  To the right, an idyllic gate to a complex of a small southern shrine.

But wait!  Lest we forget what's truly important in society: behold, the Japanese tween girl pop idol group.