At all Shinto shrines and temples, worshippers and casual visitors are asked to purify themselves (Harai) of impurity before praying to the Shinto deities. The act of cleansing is called Misogi, and the actual washing of hands and mouth with water is called Temizu.
The protocol is thus: take one of the ladles provided, fill it...
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Senso-ji Temple (also known as Asakusa Kannon Temple) is an ancient Buddhist temple located in Asakusa, Tokyo. It is Tokyo’s oldest temple, and one of its most significant.
The legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida River, and even though they...
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Another photo of the the floating O-Torii (Grand Gate) of Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社).
Miyajima is well-known as a sacred island wherein people and gods dwell together harmoniously. Since ancient times, the people living there worshipped the island itself as a god. Like any old folk tale, this belief was passed down from generation to generation until...
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Tags: architecture, Asia, Asian, blue, blue sky, building, color, colour, dawn, dusk, East Asia, entrance, evening, exit, gate, gateway, Grand Gate, Hiroshima, Honshu, horizontal, Itsukushima Shrine, Japan, Japanese, Japanese Culture, JP, JPN, landmark, lantern, Miyajima, morning, mountains, multicolor, multicolour, night, nobody, O-Torii, Orange, outdoor, portal, red, reflection, religion, sand, sea, shrine, sky, spiritual, stone, temple, torii, Torii Gate, tree, twilight, water, wood
Miyajima’s best known symbol - the floating torii (gate) of Itsukushima Shrine (厳島神社), stands in the bay 200m in front of the shrine. The current gate, dating back to 1875, is built of camphor wood, is about 16 metres high and was built in a four-legged style, that is four additional legs as well as...
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Tags: architecture, Asia, Asian, blue, blue sky, building, color, colour, dawn, dusk, East Asia, entrance, evening, exit, gate, gateway, Grand Gate, Hiroshima, Honshu, horizontal, Itsukushima Shrine, Japan, Japanese, Japanese Culture, JP, JPN, landmark, Miyajima, morning, mountains, multicolor, multicolour, night, nobody, O-Torii, Orange, outdoor, portal, red, reflection, religion, sea, shrine, sky, spiritual, temple, torii, Torii Gate, tree, twilight, water, wood
