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Power Spot: Ise Grand Shrine

Ise Grand Shrine 伊勢神宮

Visiting power spot to gain special energy and improve ones’ luck has been a trend for quite some time. People go to these naturally created holy grounds to gain special energy, clean their mind and soul with an aim to get better luck. There are numerous identified power spots in Japan ands some people come up with their own list. However, whichever list you look at, Ise Grand Shrine is always within top 10 of the list. Ise Grand Shrine, particularly the Inner Shrine, has been a power spot since the ancient time. People travel a long way to come to the shrine and pay respect. For those who could not make it will send their wishes through some friends, families and even dogs who go to the shrine. Today, many Japanese still want to visit Ise Grand Shrine at least once in their lifetime. The inner shrine is indeed an impressive shrine, covering a vast area with a Isuzu River, many gigantic cypress trees, and many auxiliary structures that were built with just wood and no nails. It is…

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Oharai-Machi & Okage-Yokocho

Ise Shrine old town 伊勢神宮老街

Visiting the most sacred shrine of Japan, the Inner Shrine in Ise Jingu (Grand Shrine) in the morning, I head out for lunch in Oharai-Machi which is a “Shrine Town” right by the entrance of Ise Grand Shrine. It is a 800-meter long interesting town filled with restaurants, cafes, bars, old buildings selling souvenirs, snacks and all kinds of merchants made in Ise Shima and Mie Prefecture. In addition to the main street, there is a special area in the middle of the street called Okage-Yokocho. It is a unique section replicating a small town back in the Edo and Meiji Periods. There are restaurants selling local food, merchant shops that sell traditional toys, candies and souvenirs. The Ise Shrine Town is a really nice place to walk around and have simple lunch and snacks in the afternoon. The street is paralleled to the Isuzu River so you may also take a walk along the riverbank. Please note that the shops open early in the morning but close at 5pm in the winter, 6pm in spring and 7pm in the summer.…

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In Japan

Ise Grand Shrine

Ise Grand Shrine 伊勢神宮

Ise Jingu or Ise Grand Shrine is a complex of 125 Shinto shrines, occupying one fifth of land in Ise City. The whole shrine complex covers about 5,500 hectares of land which is around 1/5 of land in Ise City. There two main shrines: the Inner Shrine, Naiku and the Outer Shrine, Geku. The rest are auxiliary shrines around them. All shrine buildings are rebuilt every 20 years for more than 1,300 years. A ceremony called Shikinen Sengu is held to mark the “transfer” of renewed buildings. The Inner Shrine (Naiku) is the most venerable sanctuary in Japan, dedicating to the sun goddess Amaterasu Omikami, the ancestral kami (Shinto deity) of the Imperial family. She was enshrined here over 2,000 years ago and has been respected as a guardian of Japan. Hence the Inner Shrine is more popular. The Outer Shrine is about 10 minutes walk from Ise-shi JR Station and the Inner Shrine is 15 minutes by bus from the station. Travelling with time constraints, I have visited the Inner Shrine this time.

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