Religious Tradition in Japan - Geography of Religion in Japan: Religious Space, Landscape, and Behavior - page 30

Fig. 2.14 Sacred place (Sangui)

Sangui is the most important place of worship at Seifa-utaki . Here, large, sheer
triangular shaped rocks lean over each other and resemble the mouth of a cave
(Fig. 2.14 ). When sunshine enters the small mouth of the dark cave, the landscape
provides a mysterious and fantastic atmosphere, and one can instinctively feel that
it must have been a sacred place even before the Kingdom of Ryukyu. A completely
different world appears after passing through the cave mouth. Kudakajima Island
can be seen in the sea to the east between the break in the trees (Fig. 2.15 ). The
creators of the Ryukyu Archipelago, a brother and sister named Amamikyo and
Shinerikyo, respectively, were said to have descended to Kudakajima Island from
Niraikani 3 beyond the sea, and to have traveled from there to the main island of
Okinawa. That place is Seifa-utaki . A myth describing the creation of the world tells
us that the pair then commenced building the Ryukyu Dynasty at Shuri.
Seifa-utaki has no shrines (buildings), Torii (shrine archways), shimenawa
(sacred straw ropes), or holy statues. This sacred place's landmarks can be under-
stood as nature itself, consisting of huge and oddly shaped rocks, stalactite cave
mouths, and dense forests. These elements, such as trees, may authoritatively
oppose people on one occasion but also care kindly for them on another; the sacred-
ness evoked by them is the subject of the worshipers' beliefs.

3 Niraikanai denotes a sacred place that is said to be in the sea to the east where the sun rises. There
is a tradition there that the Gods visit to bless people every year. Niraikanai is also said to be the
origin of seeds for crops (Otsuka Minzokugaku-kai 1994 ).