Ise Jingu Shrine, the largest and most revered shrine in Japan, the national shrine of the Japanese Imperial Family and the spiritual Mecca of the Shinto faith, is home to Japan’s most venerated god, Amaterasu. It is also home to some of Japan’s largest cedar grove trees, the sacred forest, which lends its majestic beauty to this mythical and ancient god kingdom.
Visiting this place a few years ago was awe inspiring because you could literally feel a power in the air around you. The sense of nostalgia you get when you see large processions of priest walking toward the main gate evoke visions of time immemorial when Japan was at the height of her glory and beauty. A dignified Japan that had once existed, exists no more outside of these gates. I was at awe at how the shrine was meticulously built and at how well it was maintained over time, even down to the smallest little ornate detailed relief.
I chose this shrine above all others because it is more pure and spiritual and because it has a longer and deeper history of shintoism in Japan. There are other great edifices through-out Japan also, but those are mostly of Buddhist origin, and so I regard them as foreign religions which are not of Japanese origin.
On a personal note, whenever I find the time to talk to Japanese people I always let them know that they need to first examine the cultural and religious dynamics of their own country first before chasing non-Japanese Western gods in the clouds.
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