"Each step forward has a sacred meaning of its own"   Sri Chinmoy

Fushimi Inari Shrine - Feb 2026 - Kyoto

I've been fascinated by gateways, arches and portals of all kinds for as long as I can remember. Some that stand out are the gates of Angkor Thom in Cambodia, the arches of the cathedral close at both Wells and Salisbury, the carved wooden A-frame gateways on the Bristol and Bath cycle path. I could go on and make that a very long list. Being in Japan I was instantly attracted to the Tori gates that mark the entrances to so many temples, or sacred natural spaces. The chance to trek around the hill at Fushimi Inari through its Bonsen Torii (thousand Tori gates) was something I wasn't going to pass up.

I tagged along with Kokila and 2 friends, Bhauliya and Aprita, for this trip to the southern part of Kyoto. Getting the trains was a little chaotic as we knew we needed a swipe card, but didn't really know how or when to get one.... Soon it became clear at the station that you could get a 2000 yen ICOCA card and swipe in and out for several good-length train or subway rides on that one card. 2000 yen is around a tenner in my language.

So, after a rather confused but successful train journey of less than a dozen stops, we came out at Fushimi-Inari station and just followed the lively crowds. There were a few foreigners, but mostly this was a local throng - Sunday afternoon pilgrims coming for a blessing at this most significant shinto shrine. After a pause for inari sushi (the local dish - rice wrapped in "tofu skin") and some complimentary oi-cha (green tea) we climbed busy shopping streets and found ourselves looking up at the towering temple buildings, ornate pagodas in vivid red and white. Here locals were going in to pray, or write prayers on prayer-sticks for offering. A small group with Koto and Shakuhachi were playing slow, trance-rhythm music as two figures in white robes performed a ritual dance. A sign said no photography, and while some were ignoring that, I decided to respect the request.

From the main buildings, we joined the moving part of the crowd that was flowing gently up the hill through the endless Tori gates, each one with an inscription painted into the bright orange structure. The arches went on and on, climbing the hillside, until we reached a junction with a dirt track that led up into bamboo forest. Here Arpita carried straight on while the rest of us headed up the trail, though not before crawling under the limbs of blessing tree that was reputed to fix back and knee pain - I was eager to see if that worked on me.

On the trail, we had the contrasts of a serene forest of swaying bamboo and a crowd of excited pilgrims and visitors making their way around the circuit. At the top was another lovely temple, where we paused for a moment of peace, before heading back down to the Tori gates to continue the loop around the hillside. We met up with Arpita close to the main shrine, but we could have carried on through yet more archways leading up to the top of the mountain. Perhaps a challenge for our next visit?

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