Tokyo Up Close

Deep green forests around the historic Shinto shrine established by Emperor Meiji in 1867 are thick with peaceful solitude. Though most Japanese today would not consider themselves religious at all, tradition suggests that if you are Japanese you automatically have some connection with Shinto, which is a vague sort of animism with veneration of the ancestors thrown in. Losing its official status in the nineteenth century, today it is the unofficial national religion of Japan. After seeing the Shinto shrine we visited the Asakusa Kannon Buddhist Temple, which reflects the ancient faith of China which came into Japan around 600 A.D. Both the Shinto shrine and the Buddhist temple contain indescribably beautiful woodwork.

The Japanese have a casual, friendly relationship with all of the deities/spirits/ancestors they know. While most Japanese who want a religious wedding will go to the Shinto shrine and enlist the services of a priest, that same couple could easily be found at the Buddhist temple in a few months praying for the birth of a child. There are no hard and fast rules for either cultus, nor are there official membership rolls. In Japan religion is a much more fluid thing than in the west.

Some of us enjoyed, and others endured. a traditional Japanese meal which we ate with chopsticks. Some of our number came away hungry, but not I. Our guide Sayuri took us briefly to the magnificent grounds around the Emperor’s Palace, but since Glenda and I had already seen it yesterday, we found a beautiful park downtown and hung out there for over an hour enjoying its many fountains. The park was first built in 1958 in honor of the wedding of the former Emperor Akihito. At 88 years of age he retired last year in favor of his son Naruhito. The beautiful park was refreshed and redesigned when the current Emperor married his bride Masako in 1993.

As we returned to our bus I saw the building General McArthur chose for his headquarters when he served as the administrator of postwar Japan. We passed through the glitzy Ginza shopping district, and saw the site of the old fish market and the shiny new one as well.

Over the last four days we have been dazzled by Tokyo—by its history, it’s progress, and by the kindness of its people. We saw so many instances of thoughtful rationality in the way the Japanese live. Their politeness and their cleanliness were astounding. With the Japanese insistence on keeping the rules, I cannot leave this place without thinking that in some sense this city is my own.Read more