Yasukuni Shrine

This is a gorgeous, lively, maddeningly nationalistic, must-see Imperial shrine. Like the Meiji Shrine, the Yasukuni Shrine is dedicated to the Imperial family and built of un-lacquered cedar, with golden decorations.

If you follow Japanese news at all, every year you’ll hear about the Yasukuni Shrine. It’s the place where the souls of all soldiers who fought for Japan since the samurai era are enshrined. It always makes the news if the prime minister decides to appear and make an offering on Japan’s version of Memorial Day, because certain souls enshrined there are considered WWII war criminals by other countries. But that’s not all there is to this grand shrine!

The Yushūkan Museum has an impressive collection of Japanese WWII memorabilia, displayed in a chronological retelling of the action from the Japanese perspective. English explanations are few and far between, and you should be aware that this shrine is the favorite of those with a nationalist bent, so the POV is distinctly different from Western takes on that war.

But there is an extensive collection of personal war memorabilia, including an only-in-Japan exhibit on the kamikaze pilots…

and the vehicles they launched in. Until I spent some time at this museum, I didn’t know that the kamikaze didn’t just fly planes.

The shrine also has a nice koi pond and garden…

January

New Year’s is an excellent time to visit the Yasukuni Shrine, because they put on a huge festival with all the trimmings, including plenty of food and traditional entertainment.

Festival food in Japan is fresh, delicious and safe, and shrine festivals can be a godsend during the three days everything is closed at New Year’s, including restaurants and grocery stores.

This could be your big chance to try some octopus balls…

or how about a whole skewered fish?

If you’re really feeling adventurous, start your new year out right with some squid on a stick!

The best part of the Yasukuni Shrine’s New Year’s celebrations are the three days of traditional music…

dance…

and—most important of all—a place to dispose of your sacred trash.

April

Who knew that sumo started out as the Shinto practice of “wrestling with the gods”? The Yasukuni Shrine still hosts a FREE amateur & professional tournament once a year in their outdoor sumo amphitheatre, on the first Friday in April.

Wrestlers of all ages and sizes compete in this tournament, from ten-year-old kids to aspiring pros.

July

The Mitama Matsuri in July is the shrine’s biggest event all year…

and once again it dishes up traditional revelry with all the trimmings.

MAP

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And here are the other places I take my friends when they come to town

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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had