The shrine here is high up on a hill, and is marked by a torii gate, an entrance to every Shinto shrine, and a demarcation of the division between the sacred world, and our own. Larger shrines might have several torii, but this Nago shrine, being…
Photographer’s Note: “Burial Urn, buddhist figures (sic), for the ones of a man and wife”
Note the mandala-circle in the bottom section of the burial urn which symbolizes eternal balance of the cosmos. There are various Indian influences on…
Photographer’s Note: “These womb shaped tombs originated in China, however they have been in vogue here for centuries. Nearly every hillside in the island has many of these. The people save all their lives and go without to buy one of these.…
Photographer’s Note: “Upon the edge of the womb-shaped tomb is a fancy urn in which the bones are placed, 2, 4 or 5 years after interment. The young daughters clean the bones and put them in the urn, then place the Urn back on the altar shelf in…
One of the tombs scattered across Okinawa, otherwise known as 'turtleback tombs' for their distinctive shape. Turtleback tombs are found all over Okinawa, but are also, interestingly found in Fujian Province, one of the big provinces in mainland…
