Today I decided to take a trip to Atsuta shrine by bike, about 16 kilometers. There’s been too many times that I’ve passed the opportunity to see this shrine and today I thought it would be good weather and nice exercise.

Atsuta shrine (熱田神宮, Atsuta Jingū) is one of the 3 most important Shinto shrines in all of Japan with Ise and Meiji shrines. It houses the Kusanagi no tsurugi (草薙の剣, “grass-cutting sword”), which is one of the 3 Imperial Regalia (三種の神器). The other 2 are the mirror in Ise shrine and jewels in Meiji shrine. The sword, actually called ame no murakumo no Tsurugi (天叢雲剣, “sword of the heaven of the clustering clouds”), was given by the Sun Goddess Amaterasu to her grandson to fight an evil god who had taken the shape of a snake. Although the sword is not available for public display and its existance cannot be confirmed.

The area is pretty large, with plenty of things to look at and plenty of bugs to bite you. All-in-all it wasn’t as incredible as everyone makes it out to be and I was under the impression it would be, but it is a site that everyone must visit at least once. Pictures of it are online.