The Holiest site on Okinawa “Sefa Utaki”

The main purpose of this trip was to visit “Sefa Utaki”
Okinawa has Ryukyu Shinto.
Ryukyu is the name of the kingdom until the Japanese government compulsorily merged with Okinawa.
Sefa Utaki is the most sacred place of worship in Okinawa.
There is a masonry altar in the subtropical forest.
It’s such a beautiful place.
After all, I visited about 10 large and small Utaki on this trip.

Traffic conditions to Sefa Utaki

Most travelers use a rental car because the railway is not well developed in Okinawa. There are buses, but I can’t move freely.
There is also a sightseeing taxi.
Sefa Utaki is located in Nanjo City, which is 50 minutes by car from Naha by highway.
If you do not use the expressway, it takes about 1 hour 30 minutes.
You can see the beautiful sea as you cross the famous Ninai Kanai Bridge.

Great excitement! Arrived at Sefa Utaki

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I stopped the car at the parking lot and went to the ticket office.
Walk in the subtropical forest.
The road is well maintained. It takes about 1 hour.

One day, when I went to a bookstore and looked at a travel guidebook, this photo was posted. I wanted to go to this place.
Then I immediately prepared for the trip and went out.
You can see the sea behind the triangular rock hole.
In the sea there is a legendary island where God has come down.
It seems that the god created this holy site.
This island is called Kudakajima island.
The interesting part of this holy site has no building.
There are only stone steps like it in the photo below.

At one time, it was forbidden for men. Even the king had to mark himself like a woman when he entered this holy place.
In Okinawa Shinto, women are the highest goddesses.
She was positioned as the guardian deity of the king.
Your heart will be healed when you enter Utaki at located in nature.

This is not a pond, but a mark of a bomb dropped in a war.
I was afraid of the size.
In World War II Okinawa is the only place of ground warfare in Japan.
It is important to know the war through the images, but when I see the traces of a real war, the fear is transmitted to my body.
There are many war remains in Okinawa.

See you on our next trip!!