Priests at Fushimi Inari walk past the protective sheets put up to shield the moving of the kami at their annual matsuri
Anyone who has seen kami being moved from one place to another will know it’s an occasion of much pomp and mystery. The kami are shrouded with sheets so as to be kept free from impure gaze, there may be gagaku music, and priests may make eerie sounds to indicate the presence of the divine. On Friday, as reported by the Asahi below, Kasuga Taisha witnessed such an event as the shrine prepares for its shikinen sengu renewal (it’s one of only a handful of shrines that keep to the ancient practice).
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Photo by Noboru Tomura
Under cover of curtains, deities transferred at Nara shrine
By NORIHIDE FURUSAWA/ Asahi March 28, 2015
NARA–Shinto priests relocated enshrined deities at Kasuga Taisha shrine in a nighttime ceremony held on March 27 amid repair work on the UNESCO World Heritage site.
The main hall and furnishings of the eighth-century shrine are refurbished every 20 years. This will be the 60th time that the work will be undertaken.
The ceremony got under way at 7 p.m. as chief priest Hirotada Kasanoin and other shrine officials transferred the deities one by one to a temporary facility located west of the main building.
The area around the facilities was covered with large white curtains, and Shinto priests made sounds with their voices to signify the presence of the deities.
The shrine’s main hall will be open to public between April 1 and May 31, after which work will start to restore the interior and construct a new roof.
The deities are scheduled to be returned to the main building on Nov. 6, 2016.
Kasuga Taisha, now preparing for its 20 year renewal (the deer are exempted)
Great article, I’ll go once more before the work starts