Tokyo Shrines

The head shrine of Hachiman worship, of which there are said to be more than 25,000 throughout Japan, is Usa Jingu Shrine in Oita Prefecture, which was built in 725.

Shrines have a rank that expresses their prestige, called "Shakkaku.

Okinawa Prefecture also has the fewest number of shrines per 100,000 people, with 0.9 shrines per 100,000 people; Osaka (8.22) and Tokyo (10.68) are in second and third place, respectively.

The shrine grounds generally consist of a torii gate as the entrance to the shrine, a hand-watering basin, guardian dogs, a hall of worship, a main hall of worship, and regent shrines.

The general etiquette for worshipping at shrines is "Nirei Ni-Beat-Itte-Ichirei" (two beats, one bow).

The most famous of these is the "three sacred objects" that Ninigi no Mikoto is said to have received from Amaterasu at the time of his descent from heaven in the "Chronicles of Japan.

The Ise Jingu Shrine is basically self-sufficient in the production of food: rice is grown in the Jingu Jinden, vegetables and fruits are grown in the Jingu Gyoen, and salt is produced in the Yakisho.

The head shrine of the Inari Shrines, said to number more than 30,000 throughout Japan, is the Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto, founded in 711.

The deity of Izumo-taisha Shrine is Okuninushi no Mikoto, the hero of the myth "Inaba no Shirohare (White Rabbit of Inaba). He is also known as Daikoku-sama, one of the seven gods of good fortune.

Including annexes and outlying regent shrines, Ise Jingu is the largest shrine in Japan in terms of area.

Visitors are required to stop in front of the torii gate and bow before passing through.

The hall of worship is the place where rituals and worship services are held, and in some cases also serves as a dance hall, kaguraden, and shrine office. Some shrines, including Ise Jingu, do not have a hall of worship.

In the Heian period (794-1185), the dedication of remote shrines was avoided, and "Nijusha" was established as a new ranking of shrines, mainly those close to Kyoto.51 "Ichinomiya" was established from the late Heian to Kamakura periods, and is the most prestigious shrine in each country (Ritsuryo/Kokugyo).

Miko (shrine maidens) originally played a central role in Shinto, performing kagura (Shinto music and dance), praying, divination, and micturition.

The torii is the boundary between the secular world of human habitation and the Shinto realm, and serves as a gateway to the Shinto realm.

Of all the Shinto shrines in Japan, about 20,000 are manned, and one priest often serves several shrines at the same time.

There are approximately 81,000 shrines throughout Japan (Agency for Cultural Affairs, 2016).

Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine in Osaka Prefecture is the head shrine of the 2,000 Sumiyoshi shrines in Japan. The three Sumiyoshi deities were worshipped as gods of navigation and purification.

The deity of Hiyoshi Shrine, Hie Shrine, and Sanno Shrine, which have about 3,800 shrines throughout Japan, is Oyakui, also known as "Hiyoshi God" or "Sanno Gongen. The deity is also the head deity of the Matsuo faith, which has Matsuo Taisha Shrine in Kyoto as its head shrine.

After the Meiji Restoration, the Meiji government established a modern shrine ranking system based on the Engi-shiki.

The gojintai, the central object of a shrine, is also called "yoriyoshiro," and the place or object where the deity dwells varies from shrine to shrine.

Suwa Shrine is the head shrine of Suwa-taisha in Nagano Prefecture, and there are approximately 5,000 Suwa shrines throughout the country, with Kenmonakata no Kami as the main deity.

About 90% of the site area of Ise Jingu Shrine is forest, which accounts for about one-sixth of the total area of Ise City.

Originally white in color, torii gates are said to have been painted red to ward off evil spirits in Buddhism as a result of the syncretization of Shintoism and Buddhism.

After the Meiji Restoration, shrines to which an imperial envoy was sent by the emperor on the occasion of rituals were called "imperial shrines.

The meaning of the tama gravel on the approach to shrines is that "tama" is the same as "tama" in the word "mitama," meaning beautiful, and that it is spread to keep the sacred place clean.

The ranking of shrines in terms of the number of Hatsumode worshippers is Fushimi Inari Taisha in second place, Sumiyoshi Taisha in third place, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu in fourth place, and Atsuta Jingu in fifth place.

Shikinai-sha," the oldest shrine ranking in Japan, refers to the 2,861 shrines recorded in the Engi-shiki Shinmei-cho, part of the Engi-shiki in 5 extended years.

The 16 shrines that are designated as "imperial shrines" are Kamo Betsurai-jinja Shrine, Kamo Goso-jinja Shrine, Ishimizu Hachimangu Shrine, Kasuga Taisha Shrine, Atsuta Shrine, Izumo Taisha Shrine, Hikawa Shrine, Kashima Shrine, Katori Shrine, Kashihara Shrine, Omi-jingu Shrine, Heian Shrine, Meiji Shrine, Yasukuni Shrine, Usa Shrine, and Kashinomiya Shrine.

In principle, ichinomiya was granted to one shrine in one country, but there are cases where there are multiple ichinomiya in one country due to a battle for shrine status.