Kasuga-taisha Audio Guide

Kasuga-taisha: what does the audio guide cover?

1. 01

   Welcome to Kasuga-taisha

   Welcome to Kasuga-taisha, known in Japanese as 春日大社, in the Kasugano district of Nara City. You are in Nara Park, and the shrine sits against the dark green backdrop of the Kasugayama primeval forest. Together with other monuments of the ancient capital, it is part of the World Heritage listing called Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara. The shrine was founded in the year 768, in the Nara period, to pray for the protection of the capital, Heijo-kyo, and for the prosperity of the people. It enshrines the clan deities of the Nakatomi and Fujiwara families, two of the most powerful names in early Japanese history. As we walk through this guide, we will follow the legend of a god who arrived on a white deer, step into a world of vermilion corridors and thousands of lanterns, and see how a shrine once woven together with a great Buddhist temple became its own institution. Let us begin with the story of how a sacred mountain became a shrine.

2. 02

   Kasuga-taisha and the God on the White Deer

   Long before the buildings stood here, this land was sacred ground centered on a hill called Mount Mikasa. Ancient myths tell us that about 1,300 years ago, when the national capital was built at Nara, the god Takemikazuchi traveled all the way from Kashima Shrine, in what is now Ibaraki Prefecture, to dwell on the summit of that holy mountain. Around the year 710, the powerful statesman Fujiwara no Fuhito welcomed this god, the guardian deity of the Fujiwara family, to Kasuga. Tradition says Takemikazuchi arrived riding a white deer. That is the reason deer are honored here as messengers of the gods. When you see deer wandering the shrine grounds and the neighboring Nara Park, you are looking at a belief that has lasted for centuries. Even the charms and fortune slips given out at the shrine often carry a deer design. The shrine as you know it took shape in 768. Fujiwara no Nagate, acting under the ordinance of Empress Shotoku, built magnificent halls on the present site. Two more deities were invited at that time: Futsunushi from Katori Shrine, in what is now Chiba Prefecture, and Ame-no-Koyane and his consort deity Hime-gami from Hiraoka Shrine, near Osaka. Together with Takemikazuchi, these four are worshipped as the Kasuga deities.

3. 03

   Kasuga-taisha in Vermilion and Lantern Light

   What strikes most visitors first is the color. Vermilion lacquer covers the front tower gate and the long corridors that wrap around the main sanctuary. The east corridor measures about 52 meters, and the west corridor about 81 meters. Against the green of the forest, the red glows. Now look up and along the approach. Along the corridors hang about 1,000 lanterns, offered by worshippers over a span of about 800 years. Lining the paths outside stand about 2,000 stone lanterns. Many are carved with deer designs, so searching for them has become a pleasure of its own for visitors. Twice a year, the lanterns take center stage. During the festival called Mantoro, the stone lanterns of the approach and the hanging lanterns of the corridors are all lit at the same moment, a spectacle for which the shrine is famous. At the heart of the complex, the four buildings of the main sanctuary date from the Edo period and are designated National Treasures.

4. 04

   Kasuga-taisha, the Fujiwara and a Changing Nation

   To understand why this shrine matters, follow the Fujiwara family. Fuhito, who welcomed the first deity here, saw his daughter become empress consort of Emperor Shomu and became grandfather to Empress Koken. From his sons came the five regent houses: Konoe, Kujo, Nijo, Ichijo and Takatsukasa. With such close ties to the throne, Kasuga earned deep reverence from the imperial court, and the faith spread. Branch shrines across the country number about 3,000. The shrine's crest, the hanging wisteria, recalls the family it served. In 1135, in the late Heian period, a further shrine called Wakamiya was added, and its festival, the Kasuga Wakamiya On-matsuri, remains one of Nara's best-known annual events. Then came a turning point. For centuries the shrine and the great temple Kofuku-ji had been bound together in a blended Shinto and Buddhist faith. In 1868 an order separating the two religions triggered a wave of anti-Buddhist destruction across Japan, and Kofuku-ji suffered heavily. Buildings at the shrine connected to the temple were renamed, reused or demolished, and Buddhist images and implements were removed. In 1871 the shrine took the name Kasuga Jinja. In 1946 it became Kasuga-taisha, so as not to be confused with the many other Kasuga shrines. In 1998 it joined the World Heritage list.

5. 05

   Before You Head Off

   As you wander on, let your eyes do the exploring. Look for a stone lantern with a deer carved into it, and notice how the vermilion corridors change in the light filtering through the forest. If the day allows, think of what it would be like to see all those lanterns glowing at once. The shrine also keeps a treasure house, holding about 3,000 items, including sacred treasures and the armor and swords that nobles and warriors once offered here. It is a way to meet the shrine's long story face to face. To reach the grounds, buses run from Nara's two main stations to the stop named Kasuga Taisha Honden in about 11 to 15 minutes, or you can take a city loop bus to Kasuga Taisha Omotesando and walk about 10 minutes. Bus schedules change with the season, so check ahead. And as you walk, ask yourself what other stories this forest is still holding.