ASAGUCHI, Okayama Prefecture–With its 320-step stone stairway and centuries of history, Tarojinja shrine here appears to be just like any other place of Shinto worship. And that is how it should be. But it also attracts pilgrims from across Japan, especially anime fans drawn to the site featured in “Tenchi Muyo!”

The sci-fi anime series was released as a straight-to-video series in 1992 and then spawned sequels and spin-offs. The original creator, Masaki Kajishima, hails from the prefecture, so the names of the places and characters in the anime series are closely associated with Okayama Prefecture, including Funao and Washu in Kurashiki.

The story centers around a senior high school student, Tenchi Masaki. His grandfather is a Shinto priest at a shrine modeled after Tarojinja, which is said to have been built in 1601. The shrine grounds and buildings in the anime are almost identical to the existing structures. In some scenes, the protagonist is seen sweeping the grounds with a broom.

The “Tenchi-bako” box set up at the side of the worship hall can only be opened when a quiz question is answered correctly. (Takuya Nishie)

Tarojinja is known as one of the earliest precedents of “pilgrimages” by anime fans to locations featured in their favorite movies and shows. They started visiting the shrine in around 1994. There is even a box for visitors with a tag that reads “Tenchi-bako,” whose doors can be opened with a key when a quiz question is answered correctly. Placed inside is a “Tenchi Notebook,” in which fans can leave messages and draw illustrations. “I could finally come here,” one fan wrote, while another simply said: “I’m moved.”

Fans from Nara, Aichi, Chiba and Tochigi prefectures, as well as other points of the compass, are passionate in the way they express their adoration for the anime. When an offertory box was stolen in 2004, fans across the country joined hands to donate a new one. They also offered money when the shrine buildings underwent refurbishment.

For fans, their pilgrimage destination is a place where they can be a part of the anime. They cherish the work by taking care of their sanctuary. “I’m connected with Okayama (Prefecture) through the anime. For me, it is my second hometown,” Toshinori Tsugoshi, 40, a Tokyo-based member of a preservation society set up by fans, said.

“Tenchi Muyo!” fans also help maintain Tarojinja. “We can coexist with fans without problems,” said Naoaki Kuwano, 77, chief priest at Tarojinja. A new series of the anime is currently in the pipeline.

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Click for Youtube series with subtitles.