Chilean Influencer’s Sacred Shinto Gate Workout Video Sparks Massive Outrage In Japan

A Chile-based gymnast and social media influencer has come under huge criticism after she posted a video of herself performing pull-ups on a sacred ‘Torii’ gate at a Shinto shrine in Japan. Maria del Mar ‘Marimar’ Perez Banus, the gymnast, caused massive social media outrage after she used the sacred symbol to create a physical workout video of herself. After filming the video, she even uploaded it to her accounts across social media.

In the viral video, she was seen using the Torii as a bar to do pull-ups. Perez held onto the symbol and was seen performing various leg movements to the song ‘Cha Cha Slide’ by DJ Casper.

Following the outrage, the video was deleted. However, by then, it had already garnered over 40 million views.

Watch the video here:

The Torii Gate is considered a sacred symbol in Japan. It is usually placed at the entrance of Shinto shrines, marking the boundary between the physical world and the spiritual realm. Using this sacred gate or traditional arch for physical activities is termed disrespectful in the country. Such acts violate its role to preserve the purity and sanctity of these places, South China Morning Post reported.

Apology

Amid backlash, Perez deleted the video from her social media handles and shared another clip, apologising for her actions.

“I apologise for my actions, I did not mean to be rude. I am really sorry for what I did without thinking,” she said in the apology video in Spanish while urging people to stop sending her messages.

Perez is a former gymnast and earlier secured a silver medal at the South American championships in 2019. The social media account on Instagram has nearly 1,40,000 followers.

In the comments section, several people appreciated Perez for her apology, while some further accused her of disrespecting Japanese religion and culture.

“Too many foreigners with no manners come to Japan and the Japanese people are fed up,” one user wrote, while another one added, “Don’t come back to Japan.”

Meanwhile, a third person wrote, “We welcome travellers who respect Japanese culture and abide by the rules… it is said that the god of Inari Shrine is really troublesome if you make him angry, so if possible, we recommend that you go to the shrine to apologize.”

As per the latest figures by the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), Japan welcomes as many as 2.87 million tourists in September, while 2.93 million people visited the country in August.