Deep in the forests of the Japanese Alps, Shinto priests have overseen the felling of two ancient cypress trees as part of a 1,300-year-old ritual at Ise Jingu, Japan's most sacred Shinto shrine. The complex, dedicated to the sun goddess Amaterasu, is rebuilt from scratch every 20 years in a process known as Shikinen Sengu.
This year marks the 63rd cycle of reconstruction, which began in 690 during Empress Jitō's reign. The $390 million project spans approximately nine years and involves the country's finest carpenters, woodcutters, builders and artisans. All 125 shrine buildings will be knocked down and identical structures, along with more than 1,500 garments and ritual objects, will be rebuilt using techniques passed down over generations.
The rebuilding is accompanied by 33 festivals and ceremonies, culminating in a 2033 ritual where the presiding deity is transferred to the new shrine. According to Noboru Okada, professor emeritus at Kogakkan University, the world of humans and the mountain realm are separate, requiring permission from mountain deities before cutting trees.
The ritual was stopped only twice: during the civil wars of the 15th and 16th centuries and after World War II. Harvard professor Yukio Lippit notes that Ise is unique due to its sustained renewal cycles, which many other shrines have abandoned.
Yosuke Kawanishi, a Shinto priest whose family crafts miniature shrine replicas, explains the cyclical perspective: 'After 20 years, the shrine we are building will have deteriorated. But instead of thinking it’s a shame to tear down something we worked hard to build, we think it’s been 20 years, so we want the deity to move into a beautiful, fresh, new shrine.'
The shrine attracts about seven million pilgrims a year, and thousands gather to witness the rebuilding ceremonies, which embody the enduring traditions of Japan's indigenous Shinto faith.
