Peaceful Rambles at Japan's War Shrine.

[sechan19]

I betook myself yesterday on a long walk along Tokyo's Yasukuni dori Avenue, ending at the famed Yasukuni shrine. For those of you who read my thesis, Yasukuni figured prominently in that work as an example of how modern Japanese continue to relate to issues of death and the supernatural. I was very eager to visit the shrine myself and discover it on a first-hand basis.

My visit there was delightful and surprising. Rather than finding even a single hint of the controversy that the foreign press loves to assign to Yasukuni (which is Japan's war shrine - honoring those who fought and died for the nation, including a number of Class-A war criminals much to the international community's chagrin), I found only peaceful tranquility. Families sprinkled fish food into the coi pond, while children laughing looked on. Elderly women swapped giggling gossip in the gardens. The faithful quietly communed with the Kami. The connotations I expected the place to exude in actuality formed no part of the essence of Yasukuni, and I was wholeheartedly delighted with it. I hope to return and make it one of my spots. It's proximity to my school makes it a very desirable haunt, and more than that I felt a deep connection to the spot.

I sat in the garden for half-an-hour, watching visitors come and go, and then I made my way to the shrine - where I gave offerings and prayed, clapping my hands to get the attention of the Kami and bowing to them in deep respect and love. Shintoism very much suits me - as it reflects my belief that God has many faces. I like the multi-headed face of God that I find in Shinto, and I value being able to love a rock or a tree (or a lamppost) as much as I love the infinite unknowable.

Comments

[reteva.livejournal.com]

For me it was actually something of a vindication to find Yasukuni so peaceful and devoid of strife. One of my main thesis points was that foreign arguments about the sinister nature of Yasukuni complete failed to take into account how a reverence of the dead was (and is) such a natural thing for the Japanese. One of my professors actually fought me on that issue (although I held out), and it was very satisfying to me to find the shrine much more in line with the natural, unpretentious attitude I'd suggested in my paper.

That said, I'm always disappointed when things are less dark than I might fantasize so I feel you there. I nearly cried when I discovered the Paris catacombs weren't in the slightest bit spooky. ;)