A number of sandals were hung at the Nio-mon Gate of Enyu-ji Temple, built in the Muromachi period

There is an old temple called Enyu-ji near my house. The destination of this day's walk was the temple, which stands in the middle of a residential area. I strolled to the temple and entered the temple grounds, which were quiet and peaceful.

The centerpiece of Enyu-ji Temple in Himonya is the Shakado Hall, said to have been built in the early Muromachi period. The second oldest wooden structure in Tokyo, as the name implies, houses a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha, but the doors are securely closed, so there is no way to see what is going on inside. To get a full view of the small Shakado, I moved toward the Nio-mon Gate. The gate is also old, though not as old as the Shakado, and was also built in the Muromachi period (1336-1573).

As I passed through the gate, I saw some sandals hanging on the wall. I guessed that these sandals were dedicated to the temple as a prayer for good health. Nowadays, no one wears old-fashioned sandals in everyday life. Even so, people still dedicate traditional sandals when praying at temples like this. This may be because the gods who have been there for a long time have no idea what they are praying for if they dedicate modern shoes.