When most people think of a prosperous area in Shinjuku, they probably think of the area between Shinjuku Station and Shinjuku 3-chome. However, when the new post station called Naito-Shinjuku was built, the center of the area was neither Shinjuku Station nor Shinjuku 3-chome. It was located toward Yotsuya, near Shinjuku Gyoen Garden, or Shinjuku 1-chome and 2-chome in today's address. As evidence of this, there are no old shrines or temples near Shinjuku Station today, but there are still temples in Shinjuku 1-chome and 2-chome that date back to the Edo period. Even though the locations of downtown areas change with the passage of time, the locations of shrines and temples do not change so much.
A small shrine that I found while walking along the old Koshu Kaido probably has been in this location for a long time. Nowadays, the small shrine stands in a small precinct sandwiched between large buildings. It was the Akiba Jinja Shrine dedicated to Kagutsuchi, the god of fire. Even though he is a fire god, Kagutsuchi is not the kind of god that sparks fire, but the kind of god that prevents fires. What is interesting is that, whether by design or by accident, a fire station stands next to the Akiba Jinja Shrine. The location next to Akiba Shrine is a perfect base for a firefighting organization.
Jun 2022 PEOPLE TOKYO | |
SHINJUKU SHRINE TORII UMBRELLA |
No
12312
Shooting Date
Apr 2022
Posted On
June 30, 2022
Modified On
August 12, 2023
Place
Shinjuku, Tokyo
Genre
Street Photography
Camera
SONY ALPHA 7R II
Lens
ZEISS LOXIA 2/35