#maidono

Yasaka-jinja appears to be the first shrine I ever visited, 10 years ago almost to the day. For a starting point, it was rather impressive! Beyond the main gate, it was the maidono, or kagura dance stage, which stood out to me, anchored in the centre of a square, decorated with lanterns.

One finds a multitude of smaller shrines on the grounds, away from the main halls, along charming alleys. It seems so obvious now, expected almost, but there's a bit of emotion to reflect on the fact that this was once new, a basic notion but one that I was discovering.

Heading back West along Shijô-dôri to the hotel, I pass a statue - Izumo no Okuni, the lady credited with inventing kabuki theatre. At the time, I would have had no idea who this was. In fact, I've only just looked it up for this post. I didn't know much about Japan before my first trip. It was a work opportunity, a brief research collab - but it started something else. It started in Kyôto, maybe it started at Yasaka-jinja.