Meiji Shrine + Wedding Bonus

On my final Sunday morning in Tokyo at 9 am, I trekked to Meiji Shrine, which enshrines the Emperor Meiji and his consort, Empress Shoken. Like so many other buildings in Tokyo, the original shrine was destroyed in WW2 bombing, but the reconstruction looks every bit as authentic.

To get there, you have to walk through the adjacent park and gardens. This is a beautiful, serene stroll, worlds removed from the bustle of Harajuku (another center of teen fashion in Tokyo). The area is also a fantastic place to hide say, a letterbox...

As I was winding through the park's paths, I suddenly turned a corner to find a bunch of men in Shinto garments processing solemnly through the park. Policemen were clearing the path of people ahead of them, so that they could proceed uninterrupted. I tried to ask someone what was going on, but they didn't speak enough English to be able to explain what was happening.

The procession meandered its way to this pavilion, right outside of the shrine's gates. They began to conduct a ceremony with a lot of stylized bowing and the waving of some kind of tree branch above people's heads. Meanwhile, the rest of the crowd began to purify their hands, using the provided ladles and pool of water.

I went on ahead into the shrine grounds, which had the now-familiar accoutrements of a torii gate, omikuji (fortune slips), and offering tills.

After about 15 minutes or so, the clerics proceeded into the inner courtyard of the shrine...

...and a large drum began to sound. As the clerics entered the shrine, the drum was beat with greater frequency and finally ended with a bit of a roll. The clerics sat down at the front of the shrine, and other shrine staffers scurried about, wearing brightly-colored green, white and orange robes. One of the clerics began to play a flute, and someone else played koto (I think). Shinto ceremonial music is fairly austere; a Bach chorale this is not. Peering into the inner courtyard, I felt like I had been transported centuries away to a wholly foreign, mystical land.

At this point, I turned to leave the shrine when I stumbled across--a wedding! My camera battery died at this point, so I don't have more photos, but the raiments of the wedding party were gorgeous, particularly the bride's dress. It was funny to see everyone wearing the traditional flip-flop-like sandals, since I associate those with going to the beach. You can also see the variety of dress in the rest of the group, from traditional kimonos to western suits to women in black skirts with high boots (of course). The group processed into the shrine, where they disappeared to presumably undergo some sort of ceremony. There was actually a second wedding taking place on the other side of the shrine, but I didn't have the camera juice to photograph it.

After leaving the shrine grounds, I headed right outside to Jingu-Bashi, the so-called epicenter of Harajuku's cosplay scene. On warm, sunny Sundays, this is where cosplaying teens gather to strut their stuff and be photographed. On a good day, you will see an array of goths, punks, French maids, anime characters and Lolitas. At 10 am though, there was not a single cosplayer there. I wasn't sure if my timing was too early, but this post seems to suggest that homework might be taking its toll on the free time of Japanese teens these days? Anyway, here's a taste of what I missed: