You can't arrive at Fushimi-Inari Temple too early; head out before sunrise so you can watch the sun break though the vermilion torii gates either near the temple entrance or through the trees higher up the mountain of Inari-san. The higher you go the thinner the crowds, and you'll still encounter seemingly endless arcades of gates, mostly large but also small ones, and tiny ones, all bright red against the dark green foliage and gray stone foxes, scattered by the hundreds throughout the shrine and sub-shrines. It's a beautifully surreal experience. Fushimi Inari Shrine has ancient origins, predating the capital's move to Kyoto in 794. Fushimi Inari was dedicated to the gods of rice and sake by the Hata family in the 8th century. The fox is considered the messenger of Inari, the god of cereals,
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