A steep stairway was the main entrance of the Ichigaya Kamegaoka Hachiman-Gu shrine

Steep stairway of Shinto shrine — Shot at Ichigaya Kamegaoka Hachiman-Gu shrine, a Shinto shrine in Ichigaya, Tokyo

Kameoka Hachimangu Shrine in Ichigaya used to be built on top of a small hill. Although it is now completely surrounded by tall buildings, it must have had a great view in the past. Historical shrines are often built a bit higher than their surroundings. Even after the massive earthquake in east Japan, shrines were not often damaged by the tsunami.

I had always assumed that the reason for this was that the noble beings wanted to look down on the people of the city from on high, but that does not seem to be the case. In the past, the sea level was much higher than it is now, and shrines built on the shore were often left on top of small hills as the coastline retreated.

Since this Kameoka Hachimangu shrine is located in such a high place, you might think that it has a long history, but it is not so old because it was built by Ohta Dokan. In any case, climbing these stairs is not an easy task. The staircase at Atago Shrine is famous for its steepness, and this staircase was just as steep as the one at Atago Shrine.

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