Mishima Shrine is a small shrine north of the Nishinasuno area. I have been there before, but a while back. It looked pretty today with the lush green of summer, so I stopped by to take some photos.
While I was there a couple of people came and opened it, and so I got a personal tour. The history and explanations of the items inside. It was really lovely, despite the obvious language barriers (it drives me crazy that I cannot grasp Japanese, no matter how many times I try it just doesn’t stay in my brain!). The man (maybe priest ? I don’t know) showed me lots and his young offsider, did a great job with the English. I got instruction on the purification ritual on entering a shrine, using Taiko drums and offering Tamagushi and even got to try the Taiko (drums).
The shrines founder (I’m not sure if that is the right word) was a Samurai called Masahi Mishima (1835-1888) so I am guessing that is about its age. There are pictures of him and other important people on the walls inside.
Another lovely Japanese moment, that I will treasure because of the inherent kindness of the local people and I now know a lot more about Shinto shrines than I did before.
