Meiji Jingu Shrine II

This photograph further illustrates the scale of all things at this shrine. The courtyard was massive -- and I have seen a number of temples at this point. No single photograph, short of a 360 degree shot, can convey the size. This single tree was the organic center. Underneath were wooden prayer plaques written in a variety of languages from around the world.

When I first arrived there were a large number of people in the courtyard. Perhaps they knew of the wedding on this day and wanted to witness. Even thirty minutes later, there were one quarter the number of people.

While this shrine is huge and beautiful, I expected something more delicate. Over all, the location within Tokyo is more impressive than the temple itself. It is a masterpiece in simplicity, not in dexterity of design like those of Nikko I have seen. Like Central Park in New York, there are places within the wooded lands surrounding the shrine that you no longer feel part of a city of eight million.