Meiji Jingu

Meiji Jingu honours Emperor Meiji, under whose reign (1868–1912) Japan transformed itself into a modern state, and his consort Empress Shōken. After the emperor's death in 1912, a national movement called for a shrine in Tokyo; the site chosen was an imperial estate in Yoyogi that the couple had known, and the shrine was dedicated on 1 November 1920.

The shrine is best known for its forest. On what was largely open land, foresters planned a self-sustaining woodland of evergreen broadleaf trees and planted around 100,000 trees donated from all over Japan and abroad, much of the work done by young volunteers. A century on, the forest has grown into a dense, near-natural wood in the middle of the city, crossed by wide gravel approaches and entered through towering wooden torii gates.

The main buildings, in the nagare-zukuri style with copper roofs, burned in the air raids of 1945 and were rebuilt in 1958 with national donations. In 2020 they were designated an Important Cultural Property as outstanding examples of modern shrine architecture. Beyond the Inner Precinct lies the Outer Garden (Gaien) in Minato and Shinjuku wards, with sports grounds and the Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery.

The idea of a memorial shrine arose immediately after Emperor Meiji's death in 1912 and his burial in Kyoto; Empress Shōken died in 1914. The government decided in 1915 to build the shrine in Yoyogi and the Outer Garden in Aoyama. Construction and the planting of the forest took five years, drawing on labour from youth groups nationwide.

The original buildings were destroyed by incendiary bombs in April 1945, leaving the forest largely intact. The reconstruction completed in 1958 closely followed the original design. The great torii of the southern approach was renewed in 1975 using Taiwanese cypress, and a museum designed by Kuma Kengo opened in 2019 ahead of the shrine's centenary.

As a shrine to an emperor who stood for modernisation, Meiji Jingu is closely tied to national ceremony. It is the busiest shrine in Japan for hatsumōde, the first visit of the New Year, when crowds queue for hours along the approaches. The Spring and Autumn Grand Festivals feature traditional performing arts, and the most important rite falls on 3 November, the emperor's birthday and now Culture Day.

The shrine is also a popular venue for Shinto weddings, and processions of bride and groom under a red umbrella are a common sight at weekends. Families bring children here for Shichi-go-san in November and newborns for their first shrine visit. The forest itself has become a subject of scientific study as an example of an urban woodland planted to become self-sustaining.