Aioi Cedar

　The Aioi Cedar stands within the precincts of the Okumiya (Inner Shrine) at Kifune Shrine. Whilst Kifune Shrine is home to other sacred trees, such as the katsura, this one is the most impressive of them all, causing many worshippers to pause in its presence.

　Two trunks rise straight towards the sky from a single root, and the tree is said to be 1,000 years old.

　As its appearance has been likened to an elderly couple living in harmony, the kanji characters ‘相老’ (meaning ‘to grow old together’) were applied to it; furthermore, the characters ‘相生’—which share the same pronunciation and signify the auspicious concept of ‘coexistence’—were also adopted.

　Its moss-covered form exudes an indescribable sense of solemn grandeur.