Recent Additions​

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November 7:   Otori Jinja   大鳥神社

​The oldest shrine in Tokyo's Meguro-ku. Its origins date back to 71-130, although it was not officially founded until 806. It is situated on an intersection of the busy Meguro-dori and Yamata-dori highways; the intersection is called Otori Jinja.Its celebration of the Tori-no-Ichi (酉の市) festival is one of the most popular in the city. 

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October 26:    Sakuramori Inari Jinja          櫻森稲荷神社

Relatively little is publicly known about this Inari Jinja. It is most notable for the two Koshin-to in its grounds. One of the two dates to 1730, the other to 1810. ​

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October 19:   Himonya Hachiman-Gu         碑文谷八幡宮

It is said that this particular Hachiman-Gu was founded sometime during the Kamakura Period. The current shrine buildings were rebuilt in 1674, renovated in 1872 and again in 1887.  Until the Separation of  Shinto and Buddhism Act was enacted along with the Meiji Restoration, the shrine’s affairs were managed by a sub-temple in the grounds of the nearby Enyu-ji Temple, Jingu-in.

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Oct ??:   Kameido Katori Jinja                   亀戸香取神社

Sept 28: Futoo Myogi Jinja    太尾妙義神

Probably about 300 years old, it was originally located at a crossroads in Futoo-cho which connected the towns of Koyasu and Mizunokuchi before being moved to its present location. In addition to attracting local parishioners, it also attracted people who wanted to worship at the main Myogi Jinja at Mt. Myogi in Gunma-ken but were unable to do so and hence used this jinja as a substitute.​

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Sept​22:  Morooka Kumano Jinja      師岡熊野神社

The shrine describes itself on its home page as "the centre of Kumano faith in the Kantō region and the guardian shrine for northern Yokohama". Along with Kameido Katori Jinja in Tokyo’s Koto-ku it is one of the two football-related "power spots" in Kanto.

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June 26:  Doso Jinja　 道祖神社

​A small shrine near Kyoto Station where Saruta-hiko-Okami and his spouse, Ameno-uzume-Mikoto, an emblem of marital bliss engraved in a stone Dosojin carving, are enshrined.

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June 14: Rokusono Jinja　六孫王神社

Rokusono is the childhood name of Minamoto Tsunemoto, grandson of Emperor Seiwa and the shrine is seen as the birthplace of the Seiwa Genji clan, the most successful and powerful line of the Minamoto clan: the founders of both the Kamakura and Ashikagu Shogunates descended from it, and Tokugawa Ieyasu claimed descent from it.

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​June 6: Sutoku Tenno　崇徳天皇

​The 75th Japanese emperor, and one of the Three Great Vengeful Spirits, along with Sugawara Michizane and Taira Masakado.

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June 2:  Shiramine Jingu　　白峯神宮

This is one of a small number of shrines dedicated to sports and one of an even smaller number dedicated to ball sports as opposed to the martial arts. The main deity at the shrine is Emperor Sutoku (reigned 1123-1142) and along with Sugawara Michizane and Taira Masakado he is regarded as one of Japan's Three Great Vengeful Spirits.　　

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May 25:   KisshoinTenman-Gu   吉祥院天満宮

​Said to have been founded in 1934 this is the oldest of Japan's 10,000+ Tenman-Gu. The shrine claims to have been the birthplace of the Kami of Knowledge, Sugawara Michizane, although this is disputed. Among the relics in the shrine grounds are a mound said to contain Michizane's umbilical cord.

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April 20:   Sugiyama Jinja　杉山神社

Origins are unclear, but there is a suggestion that it may have been right around the turn of the 9th century on property belonging to a certain Sekiguchi Hachiroemon. In 1574 it became the tutelary shrine of what was then Namamugi Village, and six years later was moved to its present location. By 1725 the stone torii was in place, and in 1877 the staircase leading up to the shrine buildings was built. The current shrine buildings were built after 1937.

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April 14:   Ushioda Jinja     潮田神社

Although the historical details are a little vague, this shrine’s origins are said to date to date to 111 AD during the reign of the 12th emperor, Keikō, by his son, Yamato Takeru.  When on his way to northern Honshu  to subdue the Yemishi people he stopped along the coast and built a small shrine in a grove of ancient cedars near what was then the village of West Ushioda.

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April 6:  Tsurumi Jinja　 鶴見神社

The shrine’s home page tells us that it us the oldest shrine in Kawasaki and Yokohama. It is said to have been founded during the reign of the 33rd emperor, Suiko (reigned 593-628) , and it was initially known as Sugiyama Daimyojin. It did not take its present name until 1920.

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March 16:  Ko Jinja　   少神社

If I have been describing the Sugiyama Jinja I visited in Hodogaya-ku as shrines about  which little seems to be known I am almost at a loss of words about Ko Jinja. I came across it while looking for Sugiyama-Gu, the two are 140m apart, and I have been unable to find out anything at all about it. It is a small shrine, its very name, Ko Jinja, literally means small shrine; and I will thus leave the five photos below to do the talking.

 

March 14:   Sugiyama-Gu 　 杉山宮

​At the risk of sounding repetitive I have to say that this is another Sugiyama shrine about which little is known. Even its name seems unclear. While the hengaku (扁額), the board showing the the shrine's name hung in front of the prayer hall, gives the name as Sugiyama-Gu, the Shingaku (神額), the board  bearing the shrine's name and hung at the top centre of the torii, gives the name as Sugiyama Jinja. 

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