Asakusa Jinja Shrine

Prayers written on small wooden blocks (called Ema). On one side is a drawing of an animal (one of 12) and on the other a prayer. The animals are like the zodiac animals. Different people have different animals, but they can pick another animal to grace their Ema. The white papers are horoscopes, which are left under the prayers, as they are traditionally not to be taken home. They are called Omikuji. The Shrine is the only Shinto temple in the Buddhist, Senso-ji complex. Both religions exist side by side. Japanese say Shinto is for when you are living, and Buddhism is for when you are dying. Shinto is the "religion of nature worship."

Credit
Science Source / Rafael Macia

Dimensions
3917 x 3124 pixels

Print Size @ 300 dpi
13 x 10 inches / 33 x 26 cm