[Suwa Taisha Shrine] The sacred tree used in the Onbashira Festival is a spectacular sight, including the back side

Famous for its Onbashira Festival, held once every seven years, Suwa Taisha Shrine is the Ichinomiya (first shrine) of Shinano Province and has 10,000 branch shrines across the country. There are four shrines - Kamisha (Maemiya, Honmiya) to the south of Lake Suwa and Shimosha (Harumiya, Akimiya) to the north - and it is popular to visit all four shrines at once. The "mae" shrine of Kamisha Maemiya was said to have been located "before" Kamisha Honmiya. It is about 10 minutes from Suwa IC and is easily accessible by car. As soon as you pass through the torii gate from the shrine's parking lot, the road starts to go uphill, and the main shrine is on even higher ground. A clear stream (sui-ga) flows to the left of the main shrine, and you can purify your hands in the stream's water. The Onbashira pillars that have been pulled during the Onbashira Festival are erected in the four corners of the main shrine. The sacred tree is over 200 years old and has a diameter of over 1m. Its size and smooth, shiny surface make it overwhelmingly divine. However, the underside of the pillar is thorny. From the forest where it was cut down to Suwa Taisha, it is about 20km for the upper shrine and 12km for the lower shrine, and the sacred tree weighing over 10 tons is transported by hand across rivers and mountains. This is the Onbashira Festival, which is held once every seven years. The marks left by the hauling are clearly visible as thorny marks on the underside. It is a culmination of the strength of the people, and is definitely worth seeing. Suwa Taisha Kamisha Maemiya feels like a shrine carved out into the forest, and I think that out of the four shrines, it is the shrine where you can feel the most close to nature. It is definitely a power spot. Suwa Taisha Kamisha Maemiya: Address: Miyagawa 2030, Chino City, Nagano Prefecture Access: 2.5km (10 minutes) from Suwa IC Seal: 9am-4pm (More than 20 people were lined up because it was Golden Week) #Prayer #Suwa #Suwa Taisha #Shrine