靖国神社是日本一座备受争议的宗教设施，现已祭祀超过240万人[1]。这座神社由明治天皇于1869年下令建造，原意是纪念为帝国献身者[1]。其中包括14名二战甲级战犯的祭祀，使其成为地区关系中的敏感话题[1]。这些甲级战犯于1978年被靖国神社祭司秘密祭祀，每年8月15日获得纪念[1]。昭和天皇在发现此事后，未再访问靖国神社[1]。
对日本国内信徒而言，靖国神社具有重要的精神寄托意义。日本遗族会会长水落俊英表示："我一年去靖国神社的次数多得不计其数"[1]。然而，对经历日本帝国统治的亚洲国家来说，这座神社象征着日本军国主义，日本领导人的参拜常遭中韩批评[1]。二战中，日本海外阵亡士兵超过240万人，其中约100万人的遗骨至今未被找到[1]。1945年12月，美国将领麦克阿瑟曾颁布命令废除国家神道[1]。
Yasukuni Shrine, established by order of Emperor Meiji in 1869, commemorates those who died in service to the Japanese empire and has become one of the nation's most contentious religious sites [1]. The shrine currently honors more than 2.4 million individuals, including 14 Class-A war criminals from World War II [1]. For many Japanese believers, the shrine holds profound spiritual significance as a place of remembrance [1]. However, for nations that experienced Japanese imperial rule across Asia, Yasukuni represents militarism, making visits by Japanese leaders frequent subjects of criticism from China and South Korea [1].
The shrine's enshrinement of war criminals has been a particular flashpoint. In December 1945, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur issued an order abolishing State Shinto [1]. The shrine's priests secretly performed the enshrinement of 14 Class-A war criminals in 1978 [1]. When Emperor Showa learned of this action, he ceased visiting Yasukuni thereafter [1]. Each year on August 15—the anniversary of Japan's surrender—these war criminals are commemorated at the shrine [1]. More than 2.4 million Japanese soldiers died overseas during the war, with approximately one million remains never recovered [1]. Toshihide Mizuochi, chairman of the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association, stated: "I visit Yasukuni Shrine countless times each year" [1].