Today's first visited was to the Kiyomizu Temple, built
into the side of a mountain and supported by pillars. It takes its name, which means 'clear water',
from a waterfall within the temple complex.
Sadly I made the decision to pass on visiting the Kiyomizu Temple as the
time given for us to visit this temple was beyond my capabilities. I did however take a picture of the
traditional housing below the temple complex.
The morning was rounded off with a traditional Uji tea
drinking ceremony. The tea was made by
whisking matcha, green tea leaves ground to a powder, in hot water with a bamboo whisk. Although I like green tea matcha is somewhat of an acquired taste.
Sake is Japan's traditional fermented rice drink. We visited the Kizakura brewery in Fushimi which
is a traditional sake brewing district in southern Kyoto known for its nearly
40 sake breweries. Kizakura sake is made
from select rice and the underground water of Fushimi springs. I had no idea before today about what was involved
in the brewing of sake until watching a film shown at the brewery. We were given a tasting of two different sakes
made at the Kizakura brewery and I also had a taste of their pumpkin beer which
was quite palatable.
Our last visit of the day was to Fushimi Inari, a vast shrine
to the gods of rice and sake with winding mountain trails leading to a series
of individual shrines. Inari was
originally and remains primarily the object of workshop for rice and
agriculture, but merchants also worship Inari as the patron of business.
Fushimi Inari has of the order of 10,000
torii donated by a Japanese business. A
torii is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or
within a Shinto shrine where it symbolically marks the transition from the
mundane to the sacred; these gates are where spirits, gods and deities of
Japan's Shinto religion are welcomed and thought to travel through.
Approximately 800 of these are set in a row
to form the Senbon Torii creating the impression of a tunnel.
Fushimi Inari has many stone fox statues in the shrine
compound. These foxes are the messengers
of Inari, the god of rice, and said to keep the rice free of vermin.
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