In The Nihon Shoki, the second-oldest book of classical Japanese history wrote in AD720, there is a sentence “Build the Pavilion for Kami and important person with Hinoki (a sacred cypress grown uniquely in Japan)”. Along this sentence, the Grand Shrine Ise and Horyuji temple, the oldest wooden building in the world, was made by all Hinoki.

 

This is the reason why the Pavilion MIWA is entirely constructed of Hinoki. Our ceremonies are held on a counter made of a single slab of Hinoki, some 300 years old. All Hinoki are from Tono region in Gifu where is located the forest of Grand Shrine Ise to prepare for Shikinen-sengu (The ritual of reconstraction every 20 years). 

The Pavilion were designed by Fumihiko Sano who is the ex-carpenter of tea ceremony house, and constructed by Masayoshi Sagara, Japanese artisans known as Miya-Daiku, specialists in the construction of shrines and temples.

 

Before beginning the construction of our Pavilion, a shinto officiant from Omiwa Jinja, the oldest shinto shrine, the start point of the journey to Ise of the first Saigu, come from Japan to perform the appropriate ritual of blessing of our pavilion. We named MIWA after this shrine. This shrine have no pavilion for Kami, but the Mt. Miwa behind shrine is Kami itself. We think the origin of gift is in this relationship to thank to Nature.

 

We keep this pavilion clean and sacred as shrines everyday.  For the fisrt time, outside of Japan, we propose your discovery of this centuries - old tradition, sister of the tea ceremony, daughter of shinto culture, and the summit of Japanese refinement.