Category: Architecture

Look up inside the worship hall of a Japanese shrine, and you may find yourself awestruck by dragons, phoenixes, and seasonal flowers painted across the coffered ceiling. Tracing the history of ceiling paintings that flowered in the Edo period, the cosmological meaning of dragons above worshippers, the social history of donor-funded floral coffers, and ongoing restorations and contemporary works, we uncover the depth of faith embedded in the gaze that looks upward.

Shrine Secrets Editorial Team

Quietly nestled beside the pillars that support the front roof of a shrine's haiden are small carved members called tebasami. Often overshadowed by kaerumata and kibana, they fuse structure and prayer in one. Discover their origins, meaning, and how to identify them.

Shrine Secrets Editorial Team

Some shrine stone lanterns tower several meters high, earning the name obake-tourou or 'monster lanterns.' We explore why these enormous offerings were made and the stories of faith and power behind them.

Shrine Secrets Editorial Team

Why are shrine interiors kept dim? Discover the deliberate spatial design of light and shadow in Shinto architecture that creates an atmosphere of the sacred.

Shrine Secrets Editorial Team