The bright red vermilion building is magnificent! Heian Shrine is loved by everyone
Hello! I'm Mo, a female college student. Not long ago, I used to visit a lot of Kyoto's shrines and temples, as well as places with beautiful scenery such as cherry blossoms and autumn leaves, but recently, times have changed, so I spend my days basking in the memories of places I used to visit (lol). Kyoto is a truly mysterious place, and in addition to the various temples and shrines, it's also incredibly interesting because it has famous cherry blossom and autumn leaf spots. Each place has its own unique character, so the more you get to know it, the deeper it becomes!!!
Well, this time I would like to explain about Heian Shrine, but do you all know about this shrine???
I had never heard of Heian Shrine until recently! So I decided to go and check it out! I've put together this article with my impressions of the place!
This time, I would like to explain Heian Shrine in a simple and easy-to-understand way!
Please stay with us until the end!
【table of contents】
What is Heian Shrine?
Highlights of Heian Shrine
How to get to Heian Shrine
What is Heian Shrine?
Heian Shrine is a replica of the architecture of Heian-kyo.
Heian-kyo was built for political purposes during the Heian period, but it was also a place where transportation and cityscapes were developed.
Heian Shrine was built in 1895 (Meiji 28) to commemorate the 1,100th anniversary of the capital's relocation to Heian.
The enshrined deity is Emperor Kanmu, who moved the capital to Heian.
There is actually a touching story behind the founding of Heian Shrine.
When Kyoto was first built, the city had fallen into ruin due to the wars at the end of the Edo period, and the people of Kyoto were heartbroken by the rapid changes that had occurred with the Meiji Restoration. Amidst all this, what saved Kyoto was the people's attachment and passion for the city. They wanted to preserve Kyoto as a good, old town. Heian Shrine was born out of this effort to revitalize the town. Also, unfortunately, in 1976, there was an arson attack on Heian Shrine, and nine buildings, including the main hall, were burned down. However, thanks to donations from the government, most of the buildings were rebuilt three years later. These things show that Heian Shrine is a truly beloved building.
Highlights of Heian Shrine
The bright red vermilion buildings of Heian Shrine truly symbolize the Heian period. I have visited many temples and shrines, but I have never seen such a large and magnificent vermilion building.
The first thing that greets us is the large torii gate of Heian Shrine.
It's huge. It's 24 meters high and 18 meters wide. When it was first built, it was the largest in Japan.
It was built to commemorate the Imperial Ceremony of Emperor Showa.
The next thing that blew my mind was the Otenmon Gate.
Otenmon Gate was modeled after the main gate of Chodoin Temple in Heian-kyo. Yes, this was also incredibly large. It was 18.43m high. That's huge! But it's not the same size as the original building! It's a 5/8th scale reproduction of the main gate of Chodoin Temple in Heian-kyo, which was built during the Heian period. The original Otenmon Gate was much larger. Amazing!!!
There is a little story about Kobo Daishi (Kukai) about the Otenmon Gate (now called "O", formerly called "O") of Heian Shrine.
One day, Kukai was ordered by the Emperor to write a plaque to be hung on Otenmon Gate. Kukai was such a skilled calligrapher that he was included in the "Sanbutsu" (three great calligraphers) of the early Heian period, one of the three most skilled calligraphers. Despite his skill, when he finished writing the characters to be hung on the plaque at Otenmon Gate and held it up over the gate, Kukai realized that he had forgotten to put a dot on the character "O" in Otenmon Gate!!! There is an anecdote in which he threw the brush he was holding at the gate to put the dot in. Kukai was a real performer. It is important to be able to deal with mistakes well, even when you make a mistake.
How to get to Heian Shrine
We will show you how to get to Heian Shrine, located in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City.
There are two main ways to get to Heian Shrine from Kyoto Station using public transportation: by bus or by combining two subway lines.
If you only go by bus,
Take the city bus [100] or [5] line, [110] line from the bus stop "Kyoto Station", and get off at "Okazaki Park" or "Jingumichi". From there, it's about a 1-2 minute walk to the hotel. This method will take about 30 to 35 minutes.
The way to get there by changing two subway lines is
Take the Karasuma Line from Kyoto Station and get off at Karasuma Oike Station. The ride takes about 5 minutes. Then, change at Karasuma Oike Station and take the Tozai Line to Higashiyama Station. The ride takes about 5 minutes. Get off at Higashiyama Station and walk 10 minutes from Exit 1 to Heian Shrine. It takes about 25 minutes in total from Kyoto Station to Heian Shrine.
The Kyoto City Kyocera Museum of Art and the Kyoto City Zoo are also nearby. We recommend visiting them in addition to Heian Shrine!
The official website of Heian Shrine is here: http://www.heianjingu.or.jp/
If you are going to visit the wonderful place, Kyoto, we recommend renting a kimono!!
Kimono rental shop VASARA is based in Kyoto and is popular with people of all ages.
Kimono Rental VASARA Kyoto Station Store
https://vasara-h.co.jp/shop/detail.html?id=20
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If you are interested, please check out the plans, prices, and kimono list!
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