Japan (Page 3)

Ōe Shrine, Osaka

360° VR panorama of Oe Shrine (大江神社 Ōe Jinja) in Osaka city, Japan. It is one of the seven shrines said to be established by Prince Shotoku (聖徳太子 Shōtoku Taishi) to guard Shitenno temple (Shitennō-ji 四天王寺). The monks of Shitennoji manage the rituals at Oe Shrine.

The shrine is dedicated to the Buddhist god Bishamonten (毘沙門天), one of the Japanese Seven Gods of Fortune. The shrine contains an image of Bishamonten which is said to have been made by Prince Shotoku himself.

Ōe Jinja has always been noted for the sunset, and there is a memorial to Sunset Hill (夕陽岡 Yūhigaoka) on the premises. Instead of guardian dog statues, the shrine has guardian tiger statues. Because of this fans of the Hanshin Tigers baseball team often come to worship at Oe Shrine.

Namba Yasaka Shrine

360° VR panorama of Namba Yasaka Shrine (難波八阪神社 Namba Yasaka Jinja), in Osaka city, Japan. The shrine was once quite large, having the seven standard buildings of a Buddhist temple complex (七堂伽藍 shichidō garan) and 12 attached temples. However, the shrine was closed after the Meiji restoration in 1868 due to the separation of Shinto and Buddhism policy (神仏分離 shinbutsu bunri) of the new government.

In 1945 the shrine’s buildings were burned down in air raids, the current buildings are reconstructions built after the war. The large lion head contains a small stage (獅子舞台 Shishibutai) where dances are performed. The lion head measures 12m high, by 11m wide, and is 10m deep.