Nikko . Day 3

We woke up to quite a downpour outside so we just lounged around inside our room for most of the morning.  The kids enjoyed watching Japanese TV and Mike and I enjoyed relaxing.  When the rain finally stopped we gathered our things and checked out of our hotel.  We walked across the street and headed up to the Toshogu Shrine.  It was still a little misty but far better than it had been earlier in the morning.  We prepped the kids with how we were to behave inside the shrine areas and headed up to the entrance with our tickets in hand.  Unfortunately this Shrine cost money to enter.  We saw the See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil monkeys and lots of cool golden laden Shrines and Gates.  We were able to actually go inside 3 of the shrine temples after removing our shoes of course.  It was neat to see what was inside the temples.  We even witnessed a small prayer ceremony in a small room of one of the shrines.  We weren't supposed to take pictures or videos inside the temples but I saw Mike trying to sneak a video with his iPhone.  One of the shrines had us walk up an exorbitant amount of stairs to an upper shrine.  We had such a great view of the entire shrine area as we hiked up all those stairs.  Abby wanted to walk the entire way but eventually realized that she was indeed tired and put her arms up to be carried.  After getting our fill of shrines for the day we headed back to our car.  On the way back we got to see one of the temple workers ring the big gong with a huge log attached to a big rope.  It was quite loud but very fascinating.  Of course I think shrines are just fascinating.  There were some mixed feelings about spending so much time viewing the shrines earlier in the morning from some of our younger company but I think by the end everyone agreed that shrines really are neat.

Shinto shrines have braided rope hung above the altar and sell talismans to protect the home, for success in study, to wish for something and so on. Shinto shrines also hang up Ema - wooden blocks with a picture of kami (a god) on one side. A wish is written on the other side and the ema is hung on the racks provided. The ema are ritually collected and burned as an offering.

A little history about Shrines and Shintoism:

Shintoism is not based on the teachings of someone but rather promotes devotion to the Imperial family and veneration of the gods. It is believed that the Emperor is a direct descendant of the goddess, Amaterasu. Amaterasu is believed to be the daughter of two 'kami' (gods) who created the islands of Japan and many other stories about various gods are told. The overriding principle of kami though is to protect and sustain life.

Shinto shrines do not often have pictures of gods but rather something symbolic such as a mirror, sword or beads. Shrines are called miya (important house) or yashiro. The mirror symbol stems from a legend that Amaterasu gave a mirror to her grandson when she sent him to earth to become the first Emperor and told him to look into the mirror as he would look into the face of Amaterasu. The mirror has now become one of the most venerated items in Shinto.

Shrines are usually designed so that you approach over water by a bridge and the roof of the shrine is thatched with cypress. A red gate made by two large logs for edges and a wooden top to join them symbolises the sacred areas and leads to the shrine itself. Following a path will bring you to a place with a ladle and water to wash your hands and rinse your mouth before entering the shrine proper. The shrine is guarded by two stone statues that look half dog, half lion.

Rather than sin, Shinto is concerned with purity and cleanliness so Shinto priests often perform rites of cleansing on building sites and so on and the 'washing' with the water when one approaches a shrine is essential. Shinto is also concerned with peace and it is common to see doves in the grounds. One of the most important aspects of Shinto is fostering harmony and this practice spills over into daily life and into many of the traditional Japanese art forms and martial arts.

A little history about the Toshogu Shrine in Nikko:

The Toshogu Shrine is a Shinto shrine located in Nikko and is dedicated to the kami (spirit) of Ieyasu (d. 1616), who founded the Tokugawa Shogunate, a military dynasty that ruled Japan from 1603 to 1867.  To create a worthy shrine for the shogun, 15,000 craftsman worked for two years, using 2.5 million sheets of gold leaf. The enshrinement of Ieyasu's spirit is reenacted twice each year in the Procession of the Thousand Warriors.

Unlike most Shinto shrines which are characterized by minimalist architecture that blends into its surroundings, Toshogu is a riot of color, gold, and carvings, with birds and flowers, dancing maidens, and sages following one another around the buildings

One of the most famous elements of Toshogu is the Sacred Stable, where a white imperial horse is kept (a gift of New Zealand). The stable's fame derives from the original carving depicting the three wise monkeys, "Hear no evil, Speak no evil, See no evil." Other famous carvings at Toshogu include a sleeping cat and an odd rendering of an elephant by an artist who had apparently never seen one.

Although a Shinto shrine, Toshogo contains several Buddhist elements. Next to the entrance gate is a five-story pagoda in red and gold, and beyond it is the formal entryway flanked with the Two Deva Kings. A Buddhist library with over 7,000 scrolls of sacred texts is contained in a revolving case, which can be turned in order to effect the equivalent of praying all the texts.