Shrine visit. Visitor before a large stone statue holding a mallet in Soto-Kanda, Tokyo
Photo: Alpgiray Kelem · Japan · 2026-06-08 · Editorial use
Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan - June 8, 2026: A visitor stands at a small wooden booth below a large stone statue on shrine grounds in Soto-Kanda, Tokyo. The smiling figure raises a mallet in one hand, holds a sack over its shoulder and sits on two carved bales on a granite pedestal. A straw rope hung with white zigzag paper streamers runs along the front of the pedestal, and a carved stone lantern stands on each side. In the foreground, orange slatted cones linked by braided orange ropes mark out paths across the stone paving. On the right, a temporary bamboo frame with a reed roof covers part of the courtyard, beside a stone post inscribed with the characters for hyakudo-ishi. A modern glass-walled building rises behind the statue, its upper windows reflecting the surrounding trees and apartment blocks.
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