Meiji Shrine - A Spiritual Oasis

5 am on a quiet Saturday morning found me walking towards the train station instead of lying snuggled up in bed. My plan for the day was to visit the Meiji Jingu Shrine and take a refreshing morning walk through the forest surrounding it. In the land of the rising sun, sunrise is at 4.20 am during summer and by 5 the day was already promising to be one of those hot, breathless summer days with bright blue skies and not a cloud in sight. I wanted to make the most of the day before heat and humidity drove us indoors. 

Oasis of calm in the midst of an urban jungle 

Nestled deep within lush green woods right in the heart of Tokyo, the Meiji Jingu is dedicated to the spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shoken. Emperor Meiji, who reigned from 1867 till 1912 is known for the modernization of Japan and opening the country to the west.
To reach the shrine, you walk through a winding forest of thick trees that seem to form a wall of dense foliage. You can enter the forest from Yoyogi or Harajuku, both extremely busy districts, but as soon as I stepped inside, the city seemed to magically fall away. The only sound I heard was the wind rustling through the leaves. Even my footsteps seemed inordinately loud on the gravel. The serene walk through the lush green forest calms your senses and you are almost in a zen-like state by the time you reach the shrine.

After walking for about 15 minutes you reach an imposing 40-foot high torii (gate) made entirely of cypress. This is the official entrance to the shrine. A Torii is supposed to separate the spiritual world from the physical, material world. As soon as you pass under the Torii you are supposed to be in the presence of gods. 

The massive Sake barrels add a splash of color

Before you walk towards the shrine, you see an interesting sight – bright, colorful barrels of Sake or Japanese wine. Sake is also used as an offering to Gods in Japan and these barrels have been donated by Sake manufacturers from all over Japan. The Sake is used in religious ceremonies at the shrine.

A place of great spiritual aura

The main gate to the shrine is magnificent and sheer size boggles your mind.

The main shrine is inside a huge courtyard with entrances from three sides. The shrine was designed by the architect Chūta Itō and built in the traditional nagare-zukuri style using Japanese cypress. The roof of the main building is made of copper. 

Almost in front of the shrine stands two camphor trees bound together by a holy rope called Shimenawa. This is supposed to be a spot of great spiritual power. People flock here to pray for everlasting relationships and marital happiness.
The air was heavy with the fragrance of camphor. 

I had never seen a camphor tree and never knew the smell emanating from them could be so strong. It all added to the spiritual aura of the place. In the quietude of the morning, the shrine did seem to vibrate with the spiritual aura it is so famed for. 

Moving away, opposite the camphor trees is the place where people hang Ema or prayer plaques. You can buy these wooden plaques at all shrines, write your prayers and wishes on them and hang them here. 

Dignified in its austerity 

The Shrine is majestic but almost unadorned, its severe lines enlivened here and there by delicate woodwork. One would expect a shrine dedicated to an emperor to be flashy and colorful but there is great dignity in the austerity of the Meiji Shrine.

The shrine is also famous for Shinto weddings. I was too early to see an actual wedding but I did catch a bride and groom as they got ready for one.

A visit to the Inner Garden completes the experience

The Meiji Shrine is also known for its Inner Garden. The garden existed even before the shrine and Emperor Meiji and his wife were frequent visitors. The beautifully laid out garden has an arbor, a tea house that the emperor had built for Empress Shoken. 
The tea house is on a gentle slope of land, surrounded by greenery and overlooking the pond. 

The pond is a delightful place at all times and the clear blue sky, the cluster of lilies floating in the water, and the colorful carp weaving through them made a pretty picture.

Different flowers bloom all through the year, but the garden is particularly famous for its irises. The Irises were in full bloom when I visited.

With its imposing torii gates, austere yet dignified architecture, tranquil forest area, and a beautiful garden, Meiji Shrine is the epitome of Shintoism. A must

visit if you are in Tokyo. 

The Masked Japanese

The world has discovered masks now thanks to the coronavirus but the Japanese have been using them for a long long time. When the Japanese leave their house, don’t forget your mask is as common a refrain as don’t forget your keys.

When I first visited Japan, almost 15 years back, I was taken aback to see the number of people wearing masks. Outside of a hospital and besides a doctor, I had never seen anyone wearing a mask. And here were normal people, going about their daily lives– all wearing masks. I was completely bewildered.
Are they all seriously sick? I wondered. As time passed, I got used to the mask-wearing Japanese and realized it is as common as wearing glasses or a scarf. Infact the mask-making industry is a multi-million-dollar industry here.

The Japanese wear masks for various reasons– a lot of which us non-Japanese would find very difficult to comprehend.
The main reason of course is Health. A surprisingly large number of Japanese have hay fever allergy and wear the mask to avoid inhaling pollen. You will see a lot of masked faces during the pollen season. For the same reason, a lot of Japanese wear masks during the Flu season. Japan is a very densely populated country with overcrowded trains and cramped, often claustrophobic public spaces. Wearing a mask when you are packed like sardines in a train ensures that you are not breathing in any bacteria or germs that might be floating around.

But a more important reason for wearing masks is the Japanese emphasis on proper social etiquette and the concept of Enryo. Simply put, Enryo means to be considerate towards others. It can be seen in Japanese habits of not talking on the phone while inside a train or not picking up the last bit of food from the common plate in case anyone else wants to eat it. The Japanese wear masks to not only protect themselves from infections but to make sure that they don’t pass on their germs to others around them. This reminds me of the Jain monks in India. They cover their mouths so that they don’t inadvertently inhale small inspects. The meat-eating Japanese have no such qualms but they are considerate enough not wear masks so that they don’t give their germs to anyone.

It has been touted that the main reason for japan beating coronavirus is that most of the population was already wearing masks so that the spread of germs was much less. The government did not have to educate people about wearing masks. It came naturally to the Japanese and they were already taking this precaution before the government asked them to.

Another reason is more psychological. The Japanese tend to be reserved by nature and wearing a mask gives them a feeling of being socially distant from others. It also allows you to mask your expressions – the Japanese firmly believe in not letting the other person know what they are thinking through their facial expressions. Wearing a mask may also provide privacy and make you less approachable by indicating to others that you do not wish to talk or mingle with them. 

Coming from India, a country where social interactions and informality is the norm, this need for social detachment and inherent social anxiety amazed me. Even after being associated with the Japanese for a long time, interacting with people who wear masks is something I am still very uncomfortable with. It is unnerving to talk to people when you can only see their eyes and can never make out their reactions to what you are saying. 

Japanese who are always in the eye of the public also tend to wear masks to protect their privacy. There are some convenience store workers or bank employees who I would never recognize at any other place because I have never seen them without a mask. The reason could be that they want to be polite towards the customers and make sure that they are not breathing any germs on people or merchandise. But some people do it to remain incognito. 

Another reason has to do with vanity. Grooming and keeping a perfect appearance is paramount in Japan and you will rarely find a woman who is not well-groomed and without makeup. It is considered a disrespect to others if you appear before them slightly less groomed or without a perfectly made-up face. Masks are very handy if you just want to dash across the road for an errand and can't be bothered to put on some makeup. Wearing a mask hides most of your face and no one will ever get to see you au naturel. Showing their natural behavior or face is something most Japanese are not comfortable with. Masks can also be used to hide a slight imperfection – like a pimple. 

The mask seems to offer the Japanese protection both physically and psychologically. It remains to be seen if the other countries will follow Japan's cue to adapt masks or discard them as soon as the COVID scare is over.