Japan13 Nikko5

1. JAPAN Short but sweet touching trip Nikko 5

2. Tōshō-gū is dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. Initially built in 1617, during the Edo period, while Ieyasu's son Hidetada was shogun, it was enlarged during the time of the third shogun, Iemitsu. Ieyasu is enshrined there, where his remains are also entombed

3. Tōshō-gū Shrine Yomei mon Main gate - National Treasure of Japan - also known as Higurashi no mon or the Sunset gate, because people spend an entire day watching this great art work. There are over 500 carvings. It was named after the main gate of the Imperial palace in Kyoto

4. Statue of Yoritomo Minamoto Toyotomi Hideyoshi

5. Statue of Yoritomo Minamoto, the founder of the Kamakura Shogunate in 1192

6. “Shisa is a traditional decoration, often in pairs, resembling a cross between a lion and a dog, from Okinawan mythology. People place pairs of shisa on their roof tops or flanking the gates to their houses. Shisa are wards, believed to protect from some evils. When in pairs, the left shisa traditionally has a closed mouth, the right one an open mouth.."

7. The open mouth wards off evil spirits, and the closed mouth keeps good spirits in. In magic typology, they might also be classified as gargoyle beasts. They are traditionally used to ward off evil spirits Shisa

8. Shisa

10. Yomei mon

11. The Yomeimon Gate leads to Nikko’s 2nd level. The gate is elaborately decorated with 508 sculptures of dragons, Iki (dragon with nostrils on the upper lip) and other dragons, such as ‘giraffes’ (single-horned dragons), flying dragons, shin, and horse-dragons, (2 horns) along with lions, tapirs, elephants, rhinoceros, and phoenix, as well as other imaginary animals. There are also numerous sculptures of people from Chinese legends and Japanese life http://www.digital-images.net/Gallery/Scenic/Japan/Shrines/Nikko-2/nikko-2.html

33. The gate is 11.1 meters high, 7 meters wide, and 4.4 meters deep. In former times, common people were not allowed to pass through this gate, and even imperial envoys were required to change clothes before passing through

39. There are four columns at the back of the gate. Interestingly, patterns are depicted upside down on the second column from the right. In order to avoid angering the gods with the presumption of perfection, one of the gate’s white columns is deliberately placed upside-down; this is called mayoke-no-sakabashira (evil-averting inverted pillar) http://sbarnhill.mvps.org/japan/attractions/toshogu.htm

41. This model of the Yōmeimon was created in the nineteenth century and exhibited at the Japan British Exhibition in  1910 at the Great White City, Shepherd's Bush, London. It has been restored and is now part of the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London

42. Pictures: Internet All  copyrights  belong to their  respective owners Presentation: Sanda Foişoreanu https://www.slideshare.net/michaelasanda https://ma-planete.com/michaelasanda 2015 Sound: Oliver Shanti - Senzei Kentaka´s Katsura Garden

43. The Japanese saying "Never say 'kekko' until you've seen Nikko"—kekko meaning beautiful, magnificent or "I am satisfied"—is a reflection of the beauty and sites in Nikkō

44. Nikko