Hinokuma Jingū & Kunikakasu Jingū

Hinokuma Jingu and Kunikakasu Jingu.

In Wakayama City, in a quiet residential neighborhood, sit two shrines that share a single set of grounds.

This is unusual. Most shrines in Japan stand alone. These two stand together — left and right, mirror images of each other, with their main halls facing the same direction.

The story behind this arrangement reaches back almost three thousand years.

According to the oldest written records, when the great mirror was created — the same mirror later enshrined at Ise Grand Shrine — there were two earlier prototypes made first, before the final mirror was finished. Those two earlier mirrors became the deities of these two shrines.

In other words: this place enshrines the rough drafts of the most important sacred object in Japan.

What is striking is the symmetry. Standing at the entrance, looking in, you see two parallel paths leading to two parallel sanctuaries. The grounds breathe in two directions at once. Walking through the place, your sense of left and right rebalances.

The trees here are unusually tall and dense for an urban shrine. Step inside the gate and the city falls silent within seconds.

For over two thousand six hundred years, this shrine has been involved, quietly, in the imperial succession ceremonies. Special offerings travel from here to the new emperor. Few visitors know this. The shrine does not advertise it.

Stand between the two halls. Look left. Look right. The exact center is where you are.

Some places teach by being two things at once.