Wooden Ema hanging at the Osaki Hachiman-gu Shrine, Sendai City, Miyagi, Japan

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Ōsaki Hachiman-gū (大崎八幡宮) is a Shinto shrine in Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan. The main shrine building, Shaden (社殿), has been designated a National Treasure of Japan. It is the oldest extant ishi-no-ma-zukuri (石の間造) structure and an example of Azuchi-Momoyama architecture. Like all shrines and temples in Japan, followers can write their messages to god on an ema. Ema (絵馬) are small wooden plaques on which Shinto worshippers write their prayers or wishes. The ema are then left hanging up at the shrine, where the kami (spirits or gods) receive them.

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Size: 4000px × 2672px
Location: 4-6-1 Hachiman, Aoba-ku, Sendai-shi, Miyagi, Japan
Photo credit: © Moonie's World Photography / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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