Nara Park

Nara Park is home to a little over 1,000 sika deer. Since Takemikazuchi, one of the gods enshrined at Kasuga-taisha, first visited while riding a white deer, all of these “Nara deer” are considered sacred. And according to Wikipedia, anyone who kills one is sentenced to death (but there hasn’t been an incident since 1637).

Nowadays, you can feed the deer “shika senbei,” which are special sugar-free deer crackers made from wheat flour and rice bran. They only cost a couple hundred yen for a package, and a percentage goes to protecting the deer. But don’t feed them regular food (or the paper packaging or plastic bags), because that will make them sick.

Kasuga Shrine and the surrounding primeval forest are part of the “Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara,” a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Kasuga-taisha is known for its great number of bronze lanterns (inside) and stone lanterns (outside).Read more