ABSTRACT
This chapter concentrates on the modern era and investigates the significance of groves as symbols of the modernization of Japan, considering how these groves have come to be regarded as ancient vegetation. The shrine in Japan is a Shinto institution dating from the early eighth century that incorporates the worship of ancestors and natural spirits and a belief in the sacred powers (kami) present in both animate and inanimate things. The early Meiji government led by oligarchic leaders mainly embraced three aspirations: to accomplish industrial revolution, to develop national defence and to establish a limited democratic system which would lead the nation from the top. The value of the shrine grove can be seen in the story of the construction of the Meiji Shrine's huge, 72 hectares grove. The Meiji Shrine was designed with its two parts: its Internal Precinct was a grove, and the External Precinct corresponded to a public park.
