Monday, July 4, 2011

procession part ii - artificial procession (and portal & frame) at fushimi


there is no lack of documentation of the fushimi inari shrine, which is perhaps most well-known for its "ten thousand toriis," so i shall spare you the obvious touristic photos. the toriis here may not quite number ten thousand, but there are certainly more than one could easily count - and they come in all shapes and sizes. this torii fetish covers not only the actual toriis themselves (which vary both in height and materiality), but also miniature scale models that visitors can purchase:

and also the torii symbols on the guide maps:

each torii is "donated" (i.e. paid for) by a local business, and both the name of the business and the date of erection can be seen on the back of each torii. this is supposedly because the dedicatee of the shrine, inari, was thought to be the patron of business. this sign seems to show that the size of the torii depends on how much money is donated for it:

i find this shrine to be extremely peculiar because the torii in shintoism usually demarcates and symbolises the transition between the sacred and the profane (the sacred-profane dichotomy), but at fushimi, their sheer repetition and commercial nature almost strips them bare of all and any religious symbolism. and so, at first glance they seem to be more decorative ornament, even tourist attraction, than religious gate.

however, as you are through torii after torii along the mountain trails, you really get to experience and appreciate the incredible spatial effect created by the seemingly endless vermillion (orange) tunnels. the toriis are not in direct contact with each other - rather, there is a space, albeit a very small one, in between adjacent toriis - but their close proximity creates the illusion of a continuous corridor or tunnel, pierced regularly and rhythmically with light:

a single torii by itself is a frame, portal, and portal-frame (as discussed earlier). a procession of toriis therefore extends the 2-dimensional portal-frame along a 3rd dimension, thereby giving it depth. further, it blocks and shields the traveller from the outside world both physically and visually by literally "tunnelling" or "burrowing" through the surrounding forest. when two of these tunnels are lined together, you get a mind-boggling spatial illusion: each presents a different path leading to what seems like a completely different universe:

and since you have no idea where either tunnel leads, you can only hope that you chose the right (left) one.

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