Enshrining the deity of sacred Mt Hiei, northeast of Kyoto, this hilltop shrine has been the protector shrine of Edo-jō (Edo Castle), now the Imperial Palace, since it was first built in 1478. It's an attractive place best approached by the tunnel of red torii (gates) on the hill's western side. There are also escalators up the hill from Tameike-sannō.
Hie-jinja hosts one of Tokyo’s top festivals, the Sannō Matsuri. The shrine's present location dates from 1659, though it was destroyed in the 1945 bombings and rebuilt in 1958.
On the left, inside the main eastern entrance gate, the carved monkey clutching one of her young is emblematic of the shrine’s ability to offer protection against the threat of a miscarriage.
