. The mythology of all races. storof the tribe, or to the tutelary genius of the region. A simpleshrine of wood stands in the gloomy shade of old trees, usuallyat a spot which commands the best view of the sacred place, andit becomes the centre of communal life. There the people as-semble on festival days, at thanksgivings for harvest, at prayer-meetings for rain or for deliverance from pestilence, and onother occasions of common interest. Some memory of the deityis preserved in a natural object which is believed to have hadits origin in the benevolent interest of the deity in the people of PL
. The mythology of all races. storof the tribe, or to the tutelary genius of the region. A simpleshrine of wood stands in the gloomy shade of old trees, usuallyat a spot which commands the best view of the sacred place, andit becomes the centre of communal life. There the people as-semble on festival days, at thanksgivings for harvest, at prayer-meetings for rain or for deliverance from pestilence, and onother occasions of common interest. Some memory of the deityis preserved in a natural object which is believed to have hadits origin in the benevolent interest of the deity in the people of PLATE XV Furo-No-Yashiro, a Shinto Shrine Dedi-cated TO A Sword Believed to Possess Mirac-ulous Power Notice the topography and surroundings of thespot and several adjunct shrines beside the mainbuilding in the centre. The trees surrounding theshrine are chiefly pines and sitgi. For an account ofsuch shrines see pp. 246—7. Taken from Yainato Mrisho Zu, the illustrateddescriptions of the famous places in the province LOCAL LEGENDS — COMMUNAL CULTS 247 his choice. That object may be a giant tree, which the deity issaid to have planted, or in which his spirit is believed still toabide. It may be a rock, on which he once sat, or which is sup-posed to be his weapon left behind him and petrified. It maybe a fountain which the deity has caused to gush forth. Besides the chief shrine there are likely to be many subsidiaryshrines in the neighbourhood. Each is dedicated to a peculiardeity or spirit and has its own story associated with the divineor miraculous manifestation of the worshipped one. Thesesmaller shrines are scattered about in various places, in a grove,or by the waterside, or close to a waterfall, or on a hillock. Itis not necessary to erect a shrine, however, in order to indicatethe sacred character of a place. A straw-cord to which pieces ofpaper are tied, the sign of sanctity, can be suspended for thispurpose. A tree near which a spirit appeared or a miracle
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