Christmas and a Shinto Shrine are as different as chalk and cheese. Though these were the two things that came together one day during my Kyushu trip. This is my holiday to Kyushu with my family that started off a bit uneventful and with a compromise. Our trip the next day to Dazaifu Tenmangū turned out a bit better.
Dazaifu is one of Japan's main shinto shrine (there are around 80,000 of them in Japan) and it is dedicated to a 9th century scholar called Sugawara Michizane. Shinto is a Japanese religion, that dates back to as far as 300 BCE - 300 CE. It is so ingrained in Japanese culture that some say it's actually a culture rather than a religion. This is true to a certain extent, as unlike the Koran or Bible, there is no text about its founder, principles or beliefs.
Shinto's key concepts of purity, harmony, family respect, and subordination of the individual before the group have become parts of the Japanese character whether the individual claims a religious affiliation or not.
Source
SHRINE NOT TEMPLE
This site of Dazaifu is actually the burial ground for Sugawara Michizane, that's why it's called a shrine and not a temple. Michizane was a noble, a politician as well as an esteemed scholar who lived between 845 - 903. It was quite common in the old days for one to be all three as often the noble were the well educated with power and thus were often politicians as well.
After Michizane died in 903, his followers built a shrine for him at this location in 905. In 919 other larger structures were added but sadly they were later destroyed in a fire. The current structures date back to 1591, still very impressive for a shrine that is more than four hundred years old. No wonder Dazaifu Tenmangu is one of the most visited landmark in the city.
Entry to the Dazaifu site is via two Torii gates. You will see these at all Japanese shrines as they mark the entrance into the sacred place.
The other common feature that can always be found at the entrance of a Japanese Shinto shrine is the temizuya. This is the structure on the right. Worshippers should purify themselves here first before entering the sacred grounds. The ritual consists of washing your hands and rinse your mouth with the water. I always forget how to do this properly, so luckily there's always instructions at the temizuya. Although I'm not a Shinto believer, I think it's important to respect one's culture and practice, just like you wouldn't wear shorts or revealing clothes when you enter a temple in Thailand.
THE HONDEN
After conducting ritual at the temizuya, we entered main area where the honden is located. This is the main sanctuary at Dazaifu Tenmangū and is the final resting place of Michizane. The honden was part of the structures built in 1591 and is now an Important Cultural Property of Japan. There were some people praying outside, as you would do when you visit a shrine.
We walked around the grounds admiring the impressive architecture. It was very calming and not at all busy despite it being Christmas day. I guess Christmas and a Shinto Shrine doesn't really go together.
The site of Dazaifu Tenmangū is around 3000 acres. Apart from the shrine and related structures, there are many other garden features. My favourite part of the whole site was the pond. It had a lot of wooden planters floating inside. I don't know if they were fixed and what was planted inside, but they made a very unique pond.
HEAD OF TENJIN SHRINES
Due to Michizane's role as a scholar, he is enshrined at Dazaifu as Tenjin, the deity of learning, culture and art. In fact, Dazaifu status as a Shinto shrine is so prominent that it heads up more than 12,000 Shinto shrines in Japan who are dedicated to Tenjin. Many visitors, especially students come here during exam times to be blessed by the deity. They do this by writing their wishes on an ema. These are the little wooden boards often found in Japanese shrines. Worshippers write their wishes or prayer on the back and hang them outside to receive the deity's blessing.
MONZENMACHI
We spent about an hour or so at Dazaifu Tenmangu and left the sacred grounds via the tori gates. Beyond the tori gates is Monzenmachi, the main street connecting Dazaifu station and the shrine. If one needs a reminder that they are back into the real world, then of course there are plenty of souvenir shops and little cafes selling Japanese snacks including many made of plum, which is Michizane's favourite tree. You didn't think this would be souvenir free zone did you 😀
If you missed the first part of my Kyushu trip, you can read it here. Will be back with the next parts later. Till then, see ya!!!
