Source: Salt Lake Tribune

Wire Service: AP

http://www.sltrib.com/nationworld/ci_2557177

On February 6, 2005 the Associated Press reported, "In a few months, the stewards of the Grand Shrine of Ise, or Jingu, will begin constructing replicas of these buildings, then transfer the deities to the new sites and commit what seems unthinkable: tear down the old ones. Destroying some of the country's most cherished religious monuments sounds like madness, but the removal and rebuilding of Jingu - performed every two decades - is a ritual of purification and renewal that stretches back 1,300 years and forms the heart of Shinto. 'Through the rebuilding, ancient Japanese tradition is being preserved for eternity. You can call Jingu a time capsule we have inherited,' said Yoshihisa Ishigaki, a priest showing visitors the plot where one of the new shrines will be built. 'If you look at this shrine, you'll see what Japan is, who the Japanese are,' he said. That's a bold claim - and one often made by Shinto proponents."