The staircase to the Shinto shrine was crowded with worshippers

Worshipers on steep stairway
Stairs of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine
Similar Photos

The main shrine of Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura sits atop 61 steep stone steps. If you think that's the building seen at the top of the stairs in this photo, you may be a bit premature. The first thing you will come across after climbing the stairs is the Sakura Gate, and the Main Shrine is just beyond that gate.

Since the shrine is associated with Minamoto Yoritomo, the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, I was sure that Yoritomo had recommended Hachiman-sama to the shrine, but it was Minamoto Yoriyoshi who did so, and it was he who moved the shrine from its original location in the Zaimoku-za area when it was built in 1063 to its present location. Incidentally, a shrine called Motohachiman still stands on the original site.

When I visited there, the precincts were crowded with people. A large number of worshippers were climbing the steep stairs to the main shrine. The trees on the stairs are large and must have seen a long history, but they must not have existed when the shrine was built, of course.

Comment via
日本語
Jan 2005 IN THE CITY KANAGAWA

PHOTO DATA

No

4

Shooting Date

Nov 2004

Posted On

January 1, 2005

Modified On

October 15, 2023

Place

Kamakura, Kanagawa

Genre

Street Photography

Camera

CANON EOS 1V

Some Photographing Locations inside Japan

See all Locations »

Some Categories by subject

PREV & NEXT