DREAMSCAPES FALL/ WINTER 2017
14
IT'S
GOOD
TO
ARRIVE
AT
THE
SENSO-JI
TEMPLE
IN
TOKYO'S
ASAKUSA
DISTRICT
EARLY
IF
YOU
WANT
TO
AVOID
THE
CROWDS.
TOKYO
Is
On
The
Move
BY STEVE GILLICK
B
y 9:00 a.m., visitors converge on the
site from tour buses and the Tokyo
Metro (subway), and after the manda-
tory photos and selfies, they walk in wonder
under the giant chochin or lantern that hangs
from the Thunder Gate (Kaminarimon). The
four-metre-high lantern is a traditional way of
lighting a Buddhist temple, and the gate, orig-
inally built in AD 941 and reconstructed
several times since, serves as the main
entrance to Senso-ji, Tokyo's oldest temple.
PRECIOUS TRADITIONS
While passing through the gate, visitors
come face-to-face with the terrifying
images of Fujin, the god of wind, and Raijin,
the god of thunder, protectors of the temple
and the Buddhist religion. And then after
exploring the stalls on Nakamise-dori, one
of Tokyo's oldest shopping streets, visitors
surround the Jokoro, the giant incense
burner in front of the main temple
building, and waft smoke toward and
