The forest that surrounds a Shinto shrine is called 'chinju no mori' — a sacred grove. Sometimes it remains standing in the middle of rice fields, like a small green island.
What a Small Forest Has Protected
Chinju no mori is the forest surrounding a shrine's approach and main hall. Because it has remained uncut for hundreds of years, trees native to that land, along with rare mosses and slime molds, still live there. Some of these creatures would simply die out if the forest were cut down.
During the Meiji era, a policy to consolidate shrines caused many chinju no mori to be lost. It was the naturalist Kumagusu Minakata who, alarmed by this, called for nature conservation. Minakata was the first person in Japan to use the word 'ecology,' arguing from an ecological standpoint that these forests should be protected.
Restoring the Forest That Belongs to the Land
The plant ecologist Akira Miyawaki spread a method of creating forests from trees native to a given land, and planted tens of millions of trees both in Japan and abroad. Miyawaki described chinju no mori as 'the foundation of life and the mother of culture that allows the Japanese people to survive.'
Just Having a Forest Brings Balance
Walking through a forest, you sometimes feel your mind settle. Research also reports that spending time in green spaces eases stress. Chinju no mori is a place of prayer, and at the same time, a piece of familiar nature left within a town.
I paint in Yamagata. I believe the colors of green and water in this land are something I receive from places like chinju no mori. Because there is a forest rooted in the land, there is a color that belongs to that land.
In Mermaid nao's order art, I sometimes include the green and light of a place meaningful to you within a single piece.
[References]
ウィキペディア（鎮守の森）
公益財団法人 日本交通公社（里の雑木林と鎮守の森）
イオン環境財団 midoripress（鎮守の森／宮脇昭）
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/鎮守の森
https://tabi.jtb.or.jp/tabirepo/japanese-forest/
https://www.aeon.info/ef/midoripress/jp/japanese/20120614_post_2.html
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