 |
| Kurumazaki Jinja 12 (Photo credit: aurelio.asiain) |
 |
| Kurumazaki Jinja 17 (Photo credit: aurelio.asiain) |
Kurumazaki Jinjain is located Kyoto! The Kurumazaki Jinja shrine may not be very big but it is very well known. The shrine includes a sub-shrine called the Geino-jinja shrine which is said to help those in the entertainment professions. Fittingly there is a large film industry near by so the shrine is often frequented by famous entertainers looking for a little luck. There is even a fence shrine (known as a Tamagaki) where the names of entertainers who have visited the shrine are written for everyone to see.
Inside the shrine there is a 'Kinen shiseki'. This is a small pile of stones that have the prayers of visitors inscribed on them. This sort of tradition can be linked back to Tibetan Buddhism in which six syllabled mantra of Avalokiteshvara was inscribed upon stones that were then placed along roads and river banks.
 |
| mani stones (Photo credit: taod) |
The shrine has many different types of cherry blossom tree that bloom at different times. This means that the shrine is covered in cherry blossom petals just a little longer than most other places.
This shrine honors Kiyohara Yorinari a Confucian scholar from the Heian period. The same Kiyohara Yorinari who is celebrated in the Mifune Matsuri festival.
Can we count on seeing you there next May?
