Sarutahiko Shrine (Ise)

Sarutahiko Shrine Goshuin

– Sarutahiko Shrine – 猿田彦神社 – Ise(伊勢) – April 29, 2018   Sarutahiko Shrine is not far from Ise Grand Shrine Naiku. It’s a good place to stop if you decide to walk along Okage-yokocho. It’s on the opposite end from Naiku. Sarutahiko Okami is the kami enshrined here. He was the leader among earthly kami. Many people visit to pray for safe travel and business success. The shrine is very pretty. The torii is a simple wooden structure with lovely decorative caps on the ends. On your way in, you’ll notice that the temizuya is covered in stickers. Location:

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Ise Grand Shrine Naiku

Ise Grand Shrine Naiku Goshuin

– Ise Grand Shrine Naiku – 伊勢神宮内宮 – Ise(伊勢) – April 29, 2018 Ise Grand Shrine, or Ise Jingu, is considered to be Japan’s most sacred shrine. Jingu is not a single place, but a huge complex of shrines through the area centered around Geku (the outer shrine) and Naiku (the inner shrine). Naiku houses Amaterasu-Omikami, the sun goddess and the ancestor of the Japanese imperial line. Geku and Naiku both were designed and built before the introduction of Buddhism to Japan, so the architecture is pure, old-style Shinto. Ise Jingu is also special in that a new Naiku and…

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Ise Grand Shrine Blue Goshuincho

Ise Grand Shrine Blue Goshuincho Front

Ise Grand Shrine Geku Goshuincho When: April 29, 2017 Where: Ise Grand Shrine Naiku Size: Large (12cm x 18cm)   I originally got the small purple goshincho at Geku, but when I was looking at the shop at Naiku I really loved this light blue goshuincho. I wound up buying two at Ise Jingu. The pattern on this goshuincho is simple, but because of the way its woven it sparkles quite a bit. The Ise Jingu logo is woven into it. This one costs 1200 yen. This design is not available at Geku. At Naiku, this and a few other…

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Ise Grand Shrine Geku

– Ise Grand Shrine Geku – 伊勢神宮外宮 – Ise(伊勢) – April 29, 2018   Ise Grand Shrine, or Ise Jingu, is considered to be Japan’s most sacred shrine. Jingu is not a single place, but a huge complex of shrines through the area centered around Geku (the outer shrine) and Naiku (the inner shrine). This is the goshuin for Geku. Like a lot of older shrines’ goshuin, it is very simple. This goshuin is from Geku. It’s a fairly short walk straight out from Iseshi Station. This outer shrine was established during the 5th century. Geku houses Touyoke Omikami, the…

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Ise Grand Shrine Purple Goshuincho

Ise Grand Shrine Geku Goshuincho Front

Ise Grand Shrine Purple Goshuincho When: April 29, 2017 Where: Ise Grand Shrine Geku and Naiku Size: Small (11.5cm x 16cm)   I was determined to get a goshuincho from Ise Grand Shrine when I finally visited. The first stop we made was Geku. This goshuincho is the simplest in my collection. Other than the usual goshuincho written on the label, there’s no writing or fancy illustrations on the front or back covers. It’s covered completely by a woven tiled pattern of the Ise Grand Shrine symbol. This goshuincho was 1000 yen plus 300 for the goshuin for Geku. This…

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Gosha Shrine / Suwa Shrine

– Gosha Shrine / Suwa Shrine -五社神社/諏訪神社– Hamamatsu (浜松) – October 21, 2017   Gosha Shrine / Suwa Shrine is a nice sized shrine in Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture. There used to be two separate shrines, but they merged in 1960. It’s not a very far walk from Hamamatsu Station. I visit Hamamatsu every year for the big Zen Nihon Iaido Renmei Taikai. This year I decided to go a bit early on Saturday so I could visit a shrine or two before the banquet. It was raining pretty hard, so I only went to one: Gosha Shrine / Suwa…

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Kasuga Shrine (Seki)

Kasuga Shrine Goshuin

– Kasuga Shrine – 春日大社 – Seki(関市) – October 8, 2017   Kasuga Shrine is a medium sized shrine in Seki located next to the Sword Tradition Museum. It is a swordsmithing shrine that was built in 1590. I went to the Seki Hamono Matsuri (Seki Cutlery Festival) to buy myself a nice cooking knife and to have fun. While there, I dropped by the shrine.  On that day, they also had an exhibit of old clothes and masks that you could go inside and see. They’re old enough that everyone who went in to see had to wear a surgical…

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Tejikarao Shrine

Tejikarao Shrine goshuin

– Tejikarao Shrine – 手力雄神社 – Kakamigahara (各務原市) – August 26, 2017   Tejikarao Shrine is one of the five major shrines in Kakamigahara. It enshrines Ame-no-Tajikarao and is associated with Ise Grand Shrine. While Oda Nobunaga was attempting to take Gifu Castle, he came through Kakamigahara with the intent of destroying everything in his path. This was a common strategy for him. However, when he was preparing to attack the shrine a strange fog blew in. It was so uncanny that Nobunaga was deeply unsettled to the point that he apologized to the gods and prayed for victory at…

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Masumida Shrine

– Masumida Jinja – 真清田神社 Ichinomiya (一宮市) – July 28, 2017   Masumida Shrine was the ichinomiya, or main shrine, of old Owari Province. It was built at least 1400 years ago and enshrines Amenoho no Akari no Mikoto. Every year in April is the Plum Festival. At this event you can see some funny yabusame and a parade. I actually learned about goshuin when I was here with some friends. The huge Tanabata Matsuri that the city if famous for is held in late July. Food stalls start at the station and extend all the way to the shrine.…

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Atsuta Shrine

– Atsuta Jingu – 熱田神宮 – Nagoya (名古屋) – April 23, 2017 Atsuta Shrine is one of the Japan’s most important Shinto shrines, second only to Ise Shrine. It was built 1900 years ago and enshrines the Sun Goddess Amaterasu. As you may be aware, Japan has Three Sacred Treasures: the sword Kusanagi, the mirror Yata no Kagami, and the jewel Yasakani no Magatama. Atsuta Shrine houses one of these three treasures: Kusanagi. Sadly you cannot see the sword. Not even the emperor can see the sword. No one has actually seen the sword since the Edo Period, but we…

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