Mountains in Japan have long been considered the realm of the kami. Many Shinto shrines used to have a mountain as their sanctuary, with the shrine buildings as a kind of stage from which worshippers could petition the deities. Notable shrines still keeping this relationship include Miwa Shrine near Nara, Fushimi Inari Taisha in southeastern Kyoto, and Kamigamo Shrine in northeastern Kyoto.

"Beautiful, the evening clouds,
Endless, the distant hills, blue upon blue, peak upon peak..." (Setcho)




All photos and text © Copyright John K. Nelson, 1999