Jozan Inari Jinja is yet another shrine located on the grounds of Matue Castle. Though many visitors might miss it if they’re not careful, this shrine is known not only for an abundance of fox figurines of varying sizes, but also for the Shikinen Shinkôsai Matsuri, a festival including close to one hundred boats, dancers, prayers, and it’s only once every ten years.

For the casual: 6. For the educated: 6.

If you like foxes then this is a shrine for you. Many Inari shrines are adorned with multiple fox figures, but very few have such an impressive collection. Some figures, like Agyo and Ngyo, are quite large, but some of the smaller shrines have dozens of small white ceramic figures. Apparently this shrine was also a personal favorite location of Lefcadio Hern, a noted author born in Greece but raised in Ireland, England, and France. He arrived in Japan at the age of 40 and fell in love with the country and most importantly with mystical folk tales about yokai. When he wasn’t teaching English at a number of schools in Matsue, he documented the vivid and wonderfully frightening folk tales of rural Japan.

When I visited I had an encounter with a yokai in a way that I can’t properly make heads of tales of, and to be honest I don’t really want to. Let me first say that I am a fan of yokai stories and folklore and though there isn’t much on the island where I live, there is a great deal to be found in the various country towns around Japan. Shimane is known for having a strong connection with the spiritual realm since from ancient times Shimane, and in particular Izumo, is known for being the land where the gods first step foot in the realm of mortals once created by Izanagi and Izanami. So with this in mind, I was already jazzed about where I was, the temples and shrines I was visiting, and I also had my eye out for references to folklore. When I arrived at Jozan Inari, I was alone. I had passed the other visitors on the way in and the cars parked at the bottom of the stairs were gone once I reached the top of the stairs. So I felt like I had this moment to really enjoy this lovely shrine and all that was there. Though the shrine was open to visitors, the offices were closed so I couldn’t get a goshuin, and just at that moment it started to rain. Thinking the entire scenario was rather silly and ill-timed, I just laughed and started having a conversation in Japanese with myself, but also thinking I was talking to the foxes themselves. If you don’t know, foxes can be yokai and as yokai they are known for shape-shifting and pulling pranks on people. So with that in mind, I enjoyed encouraging the idea that this was all the work of some foxes having some fun, so I decided to enjoy it as well. When the rain finally began to die down, I made my way over to the gate at the top of the stairs to leave. When I turned back around to bow, thanking the gods for letting me enter, I saw what I can only assume was a ghost or at least an illusion: I saw a Noh performer with a woman’s face mask dressed in white with a black obi standing in the office space I was just standing at. Feeling a bit shocked, I bowed, and then left. I’m not sure what I saw was real, but it seemed real enough to me in the moment. All the same, I walked away feeling that I had been pranked by a fox, an idea that made me smile all the way home.

Predating the capital of Heian-kyô in the 8th century, Fushimi Inari Taisha is one if not the most iconic shrine known to foreigners around the world. Home of Ukanomitama-no-Mikoto, the goddess of agriculture, the shrine is dedicated to the well being of crops. The shrine has had many famous donors over the years, including famed warrior Toyotomi Hideyoshi who donated the front gate of the shrine. Unlike most other shrines, Fushimi Inari ranges all over a single mountain from the main shrine at the bottom to the "center" of the shrine at the top where a flame is lit.

For the casual: 10. For the educated: 10

The shrine's inconicity is derived from two key features: it's tori gates and its fox statues. Foxes are the messengers of the goddess and are known for hunting many of the pests that would harm agricultural fields. Now if you've read my Intro to Shrines page, which I highly encourage you do if you haven't yet, you'll know that all shrines will have a tori gate. This gate signifies the boundary between the worlds of mortals and immortals, the sacred and impious. Fushimi Inari on the other hand doesn't have one, two, or ten, it has thousands upon thousands of tori gates which align the twisting pathways that lead from the base of the mountain, to smaller shrines across the mountain, and finally to the "center" of the main shrine at the summit of the mountain. These tori gates are all donations from various individuals and companies over the years and by stacking them closely together, the viewer gets the illusion of walking through vermilion hallways. In fact, at the entrance to the main shrine, there are even notices letting visitors know how much one tori will cost ranging from small tori only about a food tall, to one of the many thousands of large tori which mark the main pathways up the mountain.

Because Fushimi Inari Taisha is a celebrety amongst shrines across Japan, be prepared to face large crowds if visiting on a weekend or on a holiday. An easy way to avoid most crowds on any day is to visit around noon (all the tours arrive in the morning) or on a weekday. If you're not interested in climbing the mountain, that's totally fine, but the majority of visitors will be staying close to the base of the shrine and some of the first few hallways of vermillian tori before leaving for the next major tourist attraction. All the same, I don't believe that a visit to Kyoto is complete without visiting Fushimi Inari Taisha.