Miyazaki is known as the home of the Japanese mythical gods. There are several places where myths and legends occurred in ancient times. These include the Awakigaharashinrin Park and Eda Jinja at the Shimin no Mori (Citizen’s Forest). After attending the first day of my conference in Miyazaki, I took the bus with two colleagues to the forest.

We wandered around the park after arriving there after a 25-minute bus ride. The park is not that spectacular, but it’s a nice place to have fun with nature. There are many types of birds lurking around the trees, unluckily I am not in my “birdwatcher” mode. What took my attention was the wooden zigzag bridge. There are supposed to be Japanese iris in that area. They are not yet in season, so the bridge became an art piece in the middle of a forest.

Then, we went to look for the pond the city advertised on its tourism pamphlets. When we saw it, it was not the same as in the pictures. The lotus was not in full bloom. The Misogi pond is significant in Japanese mythology. The God Izanaki bathed there to purify himself. This was after his journey to the land of the dead.

Eda Jinja is a Shinto shrine. Its name was registered at the Engishiki-jinmyocho. This is a document of ancient Japan from the 10th century. The shrine is dedicated to the deities Izanagi and Izanami. These mythological gods are a couple and siblings responsible for giving birth to the islands of Japan. According to the myth, Izanami died after giving birth to the god of fire Ohyamatsumi. Izanagi felt defiled by the evil spirits. He performed the purification rite after fleeing from the land of the dead. He gave birth to the sun goddesses Amaterasu, Susanoh, and Tsukuyomi during this purification process.

The forest is located in a remote area in Miyazaki. We have to wait for an hour for the bus to go to the city center to arrive. We just spent our time looking at the trees, a few flowers, and some flying birds.

And finally, the bus arrived.