Japan Shots

I Once Knew This Place

Far away, long ago Glowing dim as an ember Things my heart used to know Things it yearns to remember

Did you ever have the feeling that you remember being somewhere, but you can't pull up any more details than that? It is almost like a barely-remembered hint of a dream you think you once had. It is fading, but you can still hold on to the vaguest image, kind of like a faded photograph from long ago.

Don't Call Him Antler-Head

The Rising Sun

Stairway to Heaven

Eyes of the Dragon

Cherry Blossom Blizzard!

Buddha Path

A View to a Pond

A tiny shrine next to a hotel. Strange as it may seem, many hotels have shrine nearby so that customers can go pray if the need takes them (many companies do the same).

Hell's Flames at the A-Bomb Dome

Hiroshima had been spared the horrors of war. It was a beautiful city. Kids were playing, people were going about their daily business. Then, in a single moment, it was gone. 70,000–80,000 were killed instantly, only 20,000 of whom were soldiers--about 30% of Hiroshima's population. Another 70,000 were injured by the fires that resulted, and countless thousands more have since died from radiating posioning. In fact, the total number of hibakusha--survivers of the bombing--died from Hiroshima as of this writing is 292,325.

安らかに眠って下さい 過ちは 繰返しませぬから。 Let all the souls here rest in peace, for we shall not repeat the evil.

Cloudy & Blue

Shy Smile

Breaking Through

Reality can sometimes be confusing.

Gate to the Shogun's Shrine

Once upon a time, only the rich were allowed to enter here. Only daimyo (regional lords) who controlled a certain amount of people were allowed to climb those steps and enter.

A pretty exclusive place.

Reason why was that Ieyasu himself, the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate, was taken here when he was born so the temple was considered sacred.

Nowadays anyone can enter. It is considered a lucky place for pregnant women to come and pray, perhaps hoping their baby will also one day conquer Japan as Ieyasu once did.

Enlightened Shrine

The shrine here is Iga Hachimangu (Hachiman Shrine). It is dedicated to Hachiman, the god of war, and was a special shrine for the Matsudaira family. Tokugawa Ieyasu’s grandfather moved the shrine to Okazaki from Mie and it was built up to it’s current form by Ieyasu’s grandson, Iemitsu.

The Matsudaira and Tokugawa lords would come here before major battles to pray for victory. When praying for victory, the armies would stay at the shrine until the torii gate at the entrance (in the background of the above photo) moved, signifying Hachiman’s blessing. Knowing this and wanting to boost morale, Ieyasu would order ninja from Iga Province to secretly move the torii at night. Clever guy, eh?

The Eyeless

Daruma waiting patiently to be given eyes in return for granting a wish.

One eye is filled in upon making a wish and the other is filled in upon the wish being granted.

Seems harsh: "give me my wish or no eye for you!"

Impressive Gate

These traditional house gates are always impressive. They are very expensive so you don't many this nice.

The tree is a Shinto thing. Most houses in Japan, even the smallest and cheapest, will try to have a pine tree hanging over the main entrance, be it gate or simple path.