(When I say [shrine], it basically refers to a Shinto shrine. Shinto is our own religion based on ancient animism. Shinto shrine is a place to enshrine the particular type(s) of god(s). Please don't mix with Buddhist temple.)
In October, I took my clients to a shrine called Fushimi Inari(伏見稲荷), one of the most popular shrines in Kyoto, also known as a place where [Memoirs of Geisha] was shot. Fushimi is the name of the area and Inari is the name of the god.
What's particular about the place is that thousands of torii gates (*) neatly alighned cover all over a mountain, all of which are said to be donated by the supporters who wish for the success in their business. (It is said that there are about 10,000 of small and large gates there.)
The custom of donation is said to have started in 17C.
Here is one photo with me & my clients from America..
... and this is just a part of the "tunnel of torii gate". It can take more than an hour to finish going through it...it is that endless.It is impossible to see them in the photo, but there are names of the donators engraved on both sides of each gate. Every person can build a gate like this if you wish. (But the wish is basically limited to business as this shire worships the god of business.)
What I would like to stress here is,, it is best to go there at NIGHT TIME. It is a bit dangerous because there is not enough light. The atmosphere, though, is quite different than in the daytime. Look at the photo below.
These are the torii gates in daytime. It is OK, .. you can fully enjoy the place in daytime if you don't really care. But personally I prefer going there at night time because there are not too many people, thus it makes more authentic atmosphere. (but you can not find a cat like this when it's dark :p)
When I took my clients there in the evening, they really liked it. Also, this place in the first photo is very close to the spot they shot Memoirs of Geisha ( remember a girl is running thru the gate tunnel till she reaches the place to make wish? ) It is around the entrance area, so the gates are smaller. The deeper you go, the bigger torii gates get.
I can not think of any other shrine like this in Japan. If you want to experience authentic Japan, this is one of the places you should go.. I want to talk about the mysterious things about here, but it takes a day, so I will stop here!
Touring here in the early morning is also great, by the way! Please have a try if you ever visit Fushimi Inari Shrine!
* torii gate is a gate to a main building of a Shinto shrine. It can drive away evil spirits and also purify visitors when they go under it.
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