There are few countries in the world that have been successful in retaining their rich culture and heritage. One such country is Japan. Every city in Japan, displays a unique combination of rich culture keeping up the pace with latest happening within the global community. One such city in Asia, which has very well retained the history and culture of the region is Tokyo.

In order to experience and understand Tokyo’s culture, you should visit the various places that will define the city in terms of faith and belief. Among many other things which are meant to be seen in Tokyo, there are few must see shrines. Every shrine has its own impact and story to tell.  People in Japan visit shrines during special events such as New Year, setsubun, shichigosan and other festivals to pay respect to the kami or to pray for good fortune. Additionally wedding ceremonies are also held in the shrines. New born babies are brought for blessings to the shrine.

A visit to Tokyo is incomplete if you do not visit these shrines. It is a tradition in Japan to visit a shrine from New Year’s Eve to the first week of January for special prayers. This first visit to the shrine in the New Year is called hatsumoude, where people pray for health, fortune and safety in the New Year.

There are many shrines and temples in Tokyo, but the must see ones are listed below :

• Meiji Jingu Shrine: This magnificent shrine is dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken and they are enshrined here. Established in 1920, this shrine is considered to be the most opulent Shinto shrine in Japan. World War II damaged this shrine to a great extend, and hence had to be rebuilt in 1958. The inner and outer garden along with the main shrine is located in the 700,000 square-meter forest. Meiji Jingu Shrine buzzes with tourists and visitors all year round but during the New Year’s holidays in Japan it is flooded with devotees who come here to offer special prayers.

• Yasukuni Jinja Shrine: The Yasukuni Jinja is a Shinto shrine located in Tokyo. It is dedicated to the soldiers and their spirits who died fighting for the Emperor of Japan. It is believed that 2.5 million war heroes are enshrined here and all negative or evil acts committed are dissolved when the enshrinement occurs. The shrine believed to give peace and rest to all the war heroes enshrined here. This is a famous but controversial shrine of Tokyo. You can take the Tôzai or Hanzomon subway line to Kudanshita station to reach this shrine.

• Sensoji Buddhist Temple: The Sensoji Temple is one of best and oldest temples in Tokyo, built in 628. It was destroyed by the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and World War II and had to be restored again. This temple is dedicated to Buddhist goddess of mercy and is also famous for the large red lantern hung at kaminari-mon gate. The Sensoji temple is Tokyo’s biggest tourist attraction, and is flocked by hundreds of tourists and worshippers from Japan and all over the world every day.

• Zojo ji Buddhist Temple: This is one of the oldest Buddhist temples of Tokyo built in the Shiba neighborhood of Miniato-Ku. The temple is as old as 7 centuries and had to be reconstructed after World War II destroyed it.

Apart from those mentioned above there are many small shrines in Tokyo which can be visited to have a closer look to the unique history of this land. In spite of being one of the most modernized cities of the world, Tokyo has not given up its roots which are deep and clings to its rich history happily. Every shrine in Tokyo is worth a visit once, but those mentioned above are must see.