Visiting a Japanese Shrine

1. Visiting a Japanese Shrine: Sacred Trees Treasures and sacred trees Inside the main pavilion we find the ship ( gejin ) and the area of the altar ( naijin ). The gejin is the space where the priests perform the Shinto services, and the naijin , further down, is the place where the objects of the god or the consecrated goddess are found. These objects usually represent the three sacred treasures of the Imperial House: the mirror, the jewel and the sword. It is considered that the deity resides physically in these objects, that in rare cases can be seen by the general public that goes to the sanctuary.

2. On the other hand, Shinto is a religion that venerates nature, and therefore there are also sanctuaries that consecrate some objects or phenomena of nature among which are known as kannabi , iwakura or himorogi , among others. The kannabi venerates mountains and mountains whose silhouette stands out especially for its shape on the horizon. The most representative of all are found in the Shrines in Japan of Asama on Mt. Fuji, in the Hakusan Shrine on the Mount of the same name, and in the Shrine of Oyama on Mount Tateyama. The Iwakura especially venerated huge and imposing rocks on which is believed to reside a god. Among the most famous are the Gotobiki rock in the Kamikura Shrine, the three large rocks of the Mitsuishi Shrine, and the giant rock of the Hananoiwa Shrine. The himorogi reveres the forest and especially the deities that inhabit large trees. Among the most characteristic are the great camo of Gamō in the Shrine of Gamō Hachiman, the great Kinomiya camphor in the Sugihokowake Sanctuary no

3. Mikoto, and the ryūjinboku or "celestial dragon tree" (a zelkova) in the Shrine of Chichibu Imamiya.