Tag: Hirano Shrine

Cherry blossom in Kyoto

April 6, 2024 / John D. / 0 Comments

Cherry blossom has arrived in Kyoto! The trees along the Kamogawa are out in glorious bloom, and people are flocking to the petals in Hirano Jinja, Kyoto’s special shrine for cherry blossom. Today was a fine day for the emerging blossom, and the crowds were out in force. Next weekend is sure to see a peak.

Hirano Jinja is one of thirteen Kyoto shrines in Cali and Dougill’s Shinto Shrines: A Guide to the Sacred Sites of Japan’s Ancient Religion (Univ of Hawaii, 2013). From that we learn the shrine was founded in 782 in Nara, before being relocated to the new capital of Heiankyo (Kyoto) in 794. The present buildings date from 1625, and with their unpainted wood and cypress-bark tiles they present an evocative rustic appearance.

The shrine has long been considered prestigious. It may have been intended by Emperor Kanmu to guard the north-west of his new capital, and the Engishiki (967) mentions it as guardian of the imperial kitchen. It was one of only 16 shrines to receive regular offerings from the emperor, and the hereditary priests were drawn from the powerful Urabe clan who specialised in tortoise-shell divination. (The Urabe were one of the three ‘houses of Shinto’, who later divided to form the influential Yoshida lineage.)

The four Hirano kami are unusual. According to the shrine, Imaki okami is a god of revitalisation; Kudo okami is a deity of the cooking pot; Furuaki okami is a deity of new beginnings; Hime no okami is a deity of fertility and discovery. There are suggestions of links with Paekche (in ancient Korea) and that the last kami is in fact the ancestral spirit of Emperor Kanmu’s mother, who was descended from a king of Paekche.

The people who throng the shrine these days are little concerned with history, however. Their concerns are with saké, picnic, conviviality and the brief glimpses of the moon appearing through clouds of pink blossom. Within the compound are some 500 cherry trees, and the shrine was noted even in Heian times as a place to go for blossom viewing. Now with lanterns dotting the grounds and a classical guitar strumming ‘Sakura’ in the Haiden, the shrine is a celebration of spring renewal and the touching brevity of life in this world.

Cherry blossom selfies are always popular

Even without cherry blossom the Honden (Sanctuary) has an attractive air with its gabled cypressbark roof, slender chigi crossbeams and goldplated details such as the imperial chrysanthemum

As evening falls, the stalls begin to do good business with people arriving after work for ‘hanami’ (blossom viewing parties)

For some, partying takes precedence over cherry blossom

For others the combination of moon and cherry blossom is enrapturing..

Paper lanterns painted by primary schoolchildren adorn the grounds

Cherry blossom heaven (Hirano)

April 4, 2021 / John D. / 2 Comments

Today being Easter Sunday inevitably leads to thoughts of death and rebirth, and Japan’s cherry blossom season is an annual reminder of nature’s power to renew itself. Of all Kyoto’s many shrines, none is so prominent at this time of celebration as Hirano Jinja, which is host to no fewer than 400 cherry trees of 50 different varieties.

Though not as famous as other shrines in the city, Hirano was actually one of Japan’s most prestigious shrines in Heian times (794-1186). It ranked no. 5 after Ise, the Kamo shrines (meaning Kamigamo and Shimogamo), Iwashimizu Hachimangu and Matsuoo Taisha. It was because of its prestige that aristocrats started donating cherry trees.

The different varieties of cherry bloom over a period of a month, but by Easter Sunday this year most had passed their peak.

The shrine holds a cherry blossom festival on April 10 each year, which used to be when the flowers were at a peak. This year the cherry blossom have bloomed ten days earlier than usual, causing concerns about climate change. (Some authorities even suggest it may be the earliest for over 1000 years.)

The beauty of the cherry blossom is inextricably linked with transience in the Japanese tradition, adding a note of melancholy to its appreciation. This was identified by the famous Nativist scholar Motoori Norinaga as mono no aware (the pathos of things), an aesthetic which underlies Japanese culture as a whole. It prompted him to compose a famous haiku:

If someone wonders
how to describe the spirit
of the Japanese,
say “mountain cherry blossoms,
glowing in the morning sun.” (Tr. David Bowles)

shikishima no yamatogokoro o hito towaba asahi ni niou yamazakura hana.

Covid-19 kept down the crowds this year, making for a leisurely atmosphere in which to admire the blossom. The red and white screen indicates celebration (red being the colour of blood, the life force, and white a symbol of purity).

The different varieties are clearly marked, this one being a yellow cherry.

The paths looked like streams of pink between the bordering rapeseed flowers (*nanohana*).

Fans of the boy band King&Prince have a dedicated *ema* site because the group has a member called Hirano. Another example of shrines appealing to the younger generation’s taste for manga and anime, etc.

The sign in the foreground, with English at the bottom, says “Do not sit on these steps,” and it is easy to see why.

Despite having to cater for non-Japanese these days, the shrine has made some effort to keep its signage traditional.

The shrine usually has a boisterous and packed section with drinks and picnicking, but the Coronavirus has changed that completely.

The shrine is not all about cherry trees, for one of its main objects of worship is an ancient sacred tree with offertory box and platform for circumambulation.

This machine dispenses bilingual fortune slips for a mere ¥100. Happily my fortune turned out to be “Excellent” (Daikichi).

But in the end it’s all about the cherry blossom and the seasonal round of death and resurrection. How will it be this time next year? Unfortunately my fortune slip didn”t say….

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For more about Hirano Jinja and cherry blossom, see this 2015 account. For cherry blossom celebrations in general, see here and here.

Cherry blossom (Hirano)

March 31, 2015 / John D. / 4 Comments

Cherry blossom has arrived in Kyoto! The trees along the Kamogawa are out in glorious bloom, and people are flocking to the petals in Hirano Jinja, Kyoto’s special shrine for cherry blossom. Yesterday was the first fine day for the emerging blossom, but since it was a Monday the crowds were not yet out in force. Next weekend is sure to see a peak.

The four Hirano kami are unusual. According to the shrine, Imaki okami is a god of revitalisation; Kudo okami is a deity of the cooking pot; Furuaki okami is a deity of new beginnings; Hime no okami is a deity of fertility and discovery. There are suggestions of links with Paekche (in Korea) and that the last kami is in fact the ancestral spirit of Emperor Kanmu’s mother, who was descended from a king of Paekche.

The people who throng the shrine these days are little concerned with history, however. Their concerns are with saké, picnic, conviviality and the brief glimpses of the moon appearing through clouds of pink blossom. Within the compound are some 500 cherry trees, and the shrine was noted even in Heian times as a place to go for blossom viewing. Now with lanterns dotting the grounds and a classical guitar strumming ‘Sakura’ in the Haiden, the shrine is a celebration of spring beauty and the touching brevity of life in this world.

Cherry blossom selfies are much in vogue this year

Even without cherry blossom the Honden (Sanctuary) has an attractive air with its gabled cypressbark roof, slender chigi crossbeams and goldplated details such as the imperial chrysanthemum

As evening falls, the stalls begin to do good business with people arriving after work for 'hanami' (blossom viewing parties)

For some the party takes precedence over the cherry blossom!

For others the combination of moon and cherry blossom is enrapturing... how happy the wandering poet Saigyo would have been!

Paper lanterns painted by primary schoolchildren adorn the grounds

Only two more weeks of cherry blossom heaven... A gift indeed from the gods.