Previously, I used to take walks around the Nikko area several times a year, but it had been a while since my last visit, so I went there after two years.

The other day, after visiting Kawa-dera Temple in Narita, Chiba, I suddenly had an image of visiting temples in Nikko, and also of visiting temples in Tokyo in the order of "South -> East -> North -> West." I had already visited the temple in the south (Kawa-dera), and then visited the temple in the east (Narita-san Shinshoji), and this time, I decided to visit the temples in Nikko, which are located in the north, as a tourist.

However, I have always personally felt that there is a problem with the people involved in the tourism industry in Nikko, even though the nature there is wonderful. About 5% of the people I meet (subjectively) glare at me or act aggressively, which happened frequently, and it happened again this time. The frequency of encountering such people is too high.

Despite that, I visited the places I needed to visit.

▪️Nikko Toshogu Shrine

At Nikko Toshogu Shrine, I asked a male priest a simple question, and he deliberately said "Aaa???" in a loud voice with an irritated expression, as if he had a "red angry mark" on his forehead, and glared at me with piercing eyes, and then shouted "⚪︎⚪︎!" and answered in a spitting manner. Is this the attitude of someone who serves God? I just asked a simple question about where something was. There really are priests at Nikko Toshogu Shrine who engage in "lordly" behavior. It's one thing if it's a staff member in the tourism industry, but it's a staff member at Nikko Toshogu Shrine, which is a World Heritage Site, and it's a priest who behaves like this. It's only in places like Nikko where you can see someone who serves God behaving so blatantly and terribly. Moreover, it goes without saying that staff members of a World Heritage Site should not behave in this way. I vaguely remember that when I visited about 30 years ago, I was also treated badly by a priest at Toshogu Shrine, but it seems that the "lordly" behavior at Nikko Toshogu Shrine has not changed, even though it was a long time ago. It's not everyone, but some of the male staff members are problematic. Women are not a problem.

It is often said in spiritual circles that "Nikko Toshogu Shrine has bad vibrations." (Despite having such terrible staff), in reality, the vibrations (energy) seem to be much better now than they were 20-30 years ago or 10 years ago. When I visited about 30 years ago, Toshogu Shrine had relatively bad vibrations (atmosphere), and I felt like there might be some minor spirits, so my mood was quite subtle. Now, there are more tourists than before, and even though it's so crowded and in a state of overtourism, it's amazing that it can maintain such a normal vibration. The land, buildings, and power of the gods and Buddhas in Nikko should not have changed from before, but perhaps the energy has recovered because people haven't been coming due to the pandemic, or perhaps (unbeknownst to us), there are people who are diligently performing rituals to raise the vibration. I wonder what it is. The presence of even one highly skilled shrine maiden would make a significant difference.

Looking back, perhaps the staff member who was treated so poorly was isolated to a small shop in a separate building away from the main hall because of the priest's behavior. If that's the case, it might be considered appropriate treatment. This is just my imagination, but it's possible.

▪️Nikko Futarasan Shrine
The staff at Nikko Futarasan Shrine, located near the Toshogu Shrine, have relatively normal behavior. There's a slightly bluntness in their responses, but it's neither good nor bad. It's more like indifference or coldness, but perhaps that's what it is. There's nothing particularly terrible that happened. This shrine is related to both Mount Nantai and Mount Nyoho, and perhaps because of the mountain worship, this shrine feels sacred, but since it's next to Toshogu Shrine and has a lot of visitors, it seems like a relatively normal shrine when you only look at this part.

▪️Rinno-ji Temple
There are two locations of Rinno-ji Temple near Toshogu Shrine, and they are relatively normal temples. You won't be treated poorly here. They provide normal temple service. I think it was the same in the past.

▪️Takio Shrine
Takio Shrine (located further in from Nikko Futarasan Shrine and Rinno-ji Temple) seems quiet and retains a traditional atmosphere. Before the construction of Toshogu Shrine, the area around Takio Shrine was the main pilgrimage site and the residence of Shugendo practitioners. Even though it's a short walk, you can feel the clean air.

▪️Bus Driver
What's particularly bad in Nikko is the bus drivers. In the past, 30 years ago, bus drivers were always like tough guys, and they would constantly yell at customers, even without doing anything. However, the bus driver I rode on this time was a "tough guy" who had become much more well-behaved than before, but he was still a little irritable, just like in the past.

At this point, it's almost a Nikko specialty.
It's truly a place where "lordly" business practices are common. However, I did see a tendency towards improvement.

In other tourist destinations, you rarely see such people, and at most, it's less than 1%, or you often don't see them at all. So, I personally think that the rate of encountering "tough guys" in Nikko is abnormally high.

In terms of personality, it's similar to the roughness of the parishioners at Suwa Shrine.
Well, if you think of it that way, you can keep your distance, so it's okay to avoid them.