Hachisaka Jinja

 These two stelae are each engraved with the words mountain god.

 This is the row of stelae.

 Very surprisingly, on the far side of the grounds, I found a graveyard. This is surprising because graveyards are associated with temples, not shrines which are concerned with purity.

 This is the view from the top of the stairs.

 I left the shrine and walked across the area seen in the picture from the top of the stairs. I turned and looked back at the shrine but it was hidden in the trees at the top of the hill. You can, however, see the stairs in this picture.

The farmer, when I used my telephoto lens, was typical in that he was old enough to have white hair.

Hachisaka Jinja

 About three quarters of the way up the flight of stairs, there were short dirt paths leading off to the left and right. Along the uphill sides there were rows of bas-relief statues, some Shinto and some Buddhist. These appeared to be Buddhist although it was hard to tell.

 

 This row was a mixture of Buddhist and Shinto and there did not seem to be any particular reason for the order. However, it is quite possible that there was something esoteric about it.

 The center stele is engraved with the name of Kannon, a Boddhisattva, and the other two stones contain statues of him.

 This is a Shinto god who is somehow related to horses and thus to the nobility.

 Looking over the top stair, you find the shrine itself.

On the right side of the shrine is another row of bas-relief carvings.

Hachisaka Jinja

 My goal for this walk, the Hachisaka Jinja (hachisaka means eight hills), is at the top of the hill nestled in the trees.

 The entrance is from the street. At the very top of the hill, the roof of the shrine is visible through the trees.

 The stone lanterns at the bottom of the hill are new, if my memory serves me right. They also look new and do not appear to be at all weathered.

 The solid back sides of the lanterns have bas-relief carvings of various animals.

 I could not tell whether the animals were real of mythical.

The view from the top of the stairs must have been nice when the area was completely covered with rice paddies. However, now the first field across the street has become a junk yard for old cars.