Ise Shrine is located in the city of Ise and is perhaps the most important Shinto shrine in Japan. It consists of the Inner Shrine, the Outer Shrine and other affiliated shrines.

The Inner Shrine enshrines the sun goddess, Amaterasu Omikami: According to ancient legends, the first Emperor, Jinmu, was descended from Amaterasu. The shrine dates from the third century A.D.. The design of its main building is called yuiitsu-shinmei-zukuri, a special architectural style that can be used only for Ise Shrine because of its especially sacred status. It is rebuilt every 20 years in a ritual called shikinen sengu. The last such ritual took place in 1993.

The Outer Shrine is believed to date from the fifth century A.D.. It enshrines Toyouke-no-Okami, the god of food, housing, and clothing.

Ise Shrine has been a center of Shinto worship since the tenth century, when droves of Japanese began making pilgrimages there. People all over Japan formed Iseko, or pilgrimage associations, to visit the shrine. Under the Iseko system, they contributed money to a communal treasury, from which funds could be drawn to allow villagers to take turns visiting the shrine.

Photo by Ministry of Foreign Affairs.