Mt. Inari & Intro to Shinto

Our first morning in Kyoto found us on a “hidden trails” hiking tour up Mt. Inari to see the infamous collection of “ten thousand” torii gates over paths meandering between Shinto subshrines of Fushimi Inari-taisha, the gorgeous main shrine at the mountain’s base.

It was a leisurely hike to the top of the mountain on less popular trails (but still well marked because Japan loves a good sign 🤓) through the forest, along bubbling streams, stopping at small shrines and bamboo groves along the way to learn a bit about the area and Shinto symbolism. Our tour guide was nice but a bit hard to understand and took terrible photos, lol.

Fushimi Inari-taisha was founded in 711AD to venerate the Shinto deity Inari, the principal kami of rice, fertility, and worldly prosperity, thus making it a significant spiritual center for agriculture and business. Over the centuries, it gained immense significance, receiving imperial patronage during the Heian period (794-1185AD) when Emperor Murakami decreed important events be relayed to the guardian kami, including Fushimi Inari.

While most wouldn’t recognize the mountain by name, you’ve almost certainly seen photos of its iconic feature—thousands of vermilion torii gates winding up the mountain, donated by worshippers and businesses since the Edo period. Sponsoring a torii gate is seen as a way to gain favor from Inari Okami, with the hope of being blessed with good fortune, business success, and bountiful harvests.

The torii mark the boundary between the ordinary world and the sacred realm. For kami (Shinto deities), the gates welcome and allow passage into the shrine grounds. For mere mortals, walking through a torii gate simultaneously cleanses the spirit and allows one to transition from the mundane to the sacred. It’s kind of like a UV cleanser for the soul because those enshrined kami don’t want to deal with any of your spiritual garbage. ☺️

The ancient Japanese had a notion that everything in this world is a sacred spirit, even things like wind, rain, mountains, etc. As a result, the number of Shinto kami is described as 8 million, which in traditional culture is synonymous with infinity. (Sounds like someone got tired of counting, “…7,999,999, 8,000,000. *takes a breath* Do we REALLY need to go any higher? Let’s just call it infinity and go have some sake.”)

Shrines here feature fox statues—kitsune (fox) are believed to be the sacred messengers and guardians of Inari, acting as intermediaries between the divine and human realms. They’re thought to possess supernatural abilities and are revered for protecting rice crops from vermin and bringing prosperity, hence the association with the god of rice & agriculture.

After cleansing our spirit (it should be spotless for a few years given the sheer number of gates we walked thru), getting slightly depressing fortunes (they were free, go figure), and photobombing countless tourists’ dreams shot, we made our way down to the main shrine. Perfect timing as tons of people were just arriving to head to the top, on a MUCH steeper trail than we took. That alone was worth the price of the tour.

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By the Numbers:

• Mt. Inari stands 233 meters (768 feet) above sea level and networked with over 4km of trails
• There are >1,300 subshrines of Fushimi Inari-taisha just on Mt. Inari, with thousands more spread across Japan
• The actual number of torii gates is closer to 32,000, with more being added every day (but “ten thousand” just rolls off the tongue)
•A bamboo shoot can can grow 100cm EACH dayLue lisää