Wisteria at Fujishima Shrine

The first blossoms of wisteria transplanted from Nara

Takako Sakamoto May 05, 2015 - 1 min read

Wild beauty bathing in the bright sunlight

The entrance of Fujishima Shrine in the late afternoon

White flower blooming toward the sunshine

The prayer hall of Fujishima Shrine seen through a red torii gate

Colorful azaleas blooming at the entrance

The first blossoms after seven years wait, radiant with sunlight

The first blossoms modestly dangling from an iron trellis

Afternoon sunshine filtering through lush green leaves at the entrance

One day in early May, I visited Fujishima Shrine in Fukui to see the wisteria flowers, as I heard the news that they were blooming for the first time. The head priest of this shrine used to work at Kasuga Taisha Shrine in Nara. When he moved to Fukui seven years ago to become a head priest here, he brought seedlings of wisteria from Kasuga Taisha and transplanted them on the grounds of Fujishima Shrine. And this year, after seven years wait, they finally bloomed! When I visited, a few tufts of wisteria flowers were dangling from a small iron trellis inside the shrine. Although small and modest, they looked precious. There was also a wild wisteria tree standing in front of the shrine welcoming visitors with beautiful flowers.

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Takako Sakamoto @takako.sakamoto

I was born in and grew up in Tokushima prefecture, and have lived in many places since then: Nishinomiya, Kyoto, Nara, Mie, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Fukuoka and Fukui. I am currently living in Yokohama City. All the places I lived, all the places I visited, I have loved dearly. The histor...