New Year’s Visitors Throng Oyama Shrine, Kanazawa, Passing through the Distinctive Shin-mon Gate

It is traditional in Japan to visit a temple or shrine during the New Year’s holidays. And some places are especially popular as destinations for these visits, including Oyama Shrine (Oyama Jinja) in Kanazawa, capital of Ishikawa Prefecture. During the New Year’s season it is thronged with visitors from both inside and outside the prefecture. The present shrine dates back to 1873. It was built at the initiative of the Maeda clan, which had ruled the area for close to three centuries. It is dedicated to the