Izumo Taisha

Izumo Oyashiro, more commonly known as Izumo Taisha, is one of the most sacred places in Japan. A home of the gods since far before the earliest written documents in the 8th century, this shrine is truely like no other in Japan. Izumo Taisha is the home of Okuninushi, the god who was said to have ruled the gods of earth. The Kojiki and Nihon Shoki written in the 8th century in Yamato (modern Nara) notes that Okuninushi, pressured by the gods in heaven, relinquished his duties and gave them to Nigishi, the grandson of Amaterasu-Omikoto, and effectvely placed the royal line of Yamato in position to govern Japan with divine authority. This rather abrupt and conspicuous relinquishing of power is likely due to the fact that the Yamato court of Japan (Nara) annexed/absorbed Izumo, not only considered two different kingdoms at the time, but also two different realms of existence with Izumo being the realm of the gods, and Yamato being the realm of mortals. During the 10th lunary cycle of the year (October/November) Izumo celebrates Kamiarizuki, the month of many gods, a festival where all the gods of Japan gather at Izumo Taisha for a meeting, at the same time across the rest of Japan this same period is called Kannazuki, the month without gods. During this time, it is believed that prayers made at Izumo Taisha becomes exceptionally lucky.

For the casual: 10. For the educated: 11.

I mean where do I start with this shrine. Well for one, the Honden (Main Hall) is about 24 meters tall (79 ft.) even though it was likely much taller in ancient times. It is estimated that the Honden was smaller (in terms of square feet) in ancient times but was built atop massive cedar pillars with an extra long and shallow stairway, measuring the Honden at 96 meters (315 ft.) tall. Since then the shrine has gotten shorter but larger. But that’s not all. Izumo Taisha is also known for its shimenawa, massive ropes usually made of either rice or wheat grass and twisted together so that it’s massively thick in the middle but with fine tapered ends. This style of shimenawa is particular to the Shimane area of Japan, but the largest are at Izumo Taisha with a thickness wider than most adults.

Though the Honden and the other smaller shrines of the inner sanctum are off limits to visitors, guests do have access so several smaller shrines and halls in the complex. I do wish to quickly point out that though there are not English signs around the complex, many of the structures have signs in Japanese that have a minimal explanation with a QR code link to international translations. The first building is the Haiden (Worship Hall), equipped with its own shimenawa, it is the hall where blessings and rights are performed for patrons and honored guests. For example, if you would like to bless your car for traffic safety, this is the hall to schedule the rites. After leaving the Haiden (oh! this is where you can get your goshuin!), guests can walk around the exterior of the inner sanctum where a great many small shrines can be visited. These shrines are typicaly home to a variety of minor gods, but some are home to major figures like Susano’o-no-kami, god of storms and seas. Along the sides of the inner sanctum are long buildings that almost look like they’re for storage, but in fact these jukusha are lodgings for the 8 millions gods that make their way to Izumo for Kamiarizuki.

The last thing I would like to talk about are the rabbit statues. All around Izumo, and particularly around Izumo Taisha, visitors will see a number of stone rabbit statues here and there. The short version of the legend goes that a rabbit wanted to visit a small island off the coast, but naturally the rabbit couldn’t swim so he decided that he would trick the nearby sharks into helping him get to the island. He challenged them to a contest to see who had more friends, but to make it fare, he asked them to line up head to tail and he would count them one by one as he jumped on their backs. Before the rabbit could make it to the shore though, the sharks realized the rabbit’s trick and tore the rabbit’s fur off. Completely embarassed by his folly and in pain from his wounds, he cried and cried while his friends laughed at him, saying he would feel better if he went in the salty sea (bad idea). Okuninushi came along and felt sorry for the rabbit, and after hearing his tale, he told the rabbit to wash in fresh water and lie in a pile of cattail reed flowers. The rabbit did just that and not only did he feel better, his fur grew back just as flufy and white as before. Because of this story, there are many rabbit statues around the shrine grounds, some of which have a mischievous smile.

Many people enjoy taking photos under this particular shimenawa due to its size.

It looks small here, but the Honden is massive.

 

Jozan Inari Jinja

Jozan Inari Jinja is yet another shrine located on the grounds of Matue Castle. Though many visitors might miss it if they’re not careful, this shrine is known not only for an abundance of fox figurines of varying sizes, but also for the Shikinen Shinkôsai Matsuri, a festival including close to one hundred boats, dancers, prayers, and it’s only once every ten years.

For the casual: 6. For the educated: 6.

If you like foxes then this is a shrine for you. Many Inari shrines are adorned with multiple fox figures, but very few have such an impressive collection. Some figures, like Agyo and Ngyo, are quite large, but some of the smaller shrines have dozens of small white ceramic figures. Apparently this shrine was also a personal favorite location of Lefcadio Hern, a noted author born in Greece but raised in Ireland, England, and France. He arrived in Japan at the age of 40 and fell in love with the country and most importantly with mystical folk tales about yokai. When he wasn’t teaching English at a number of schools in Matsue, he documented the vivid and wonderfully frightening folk tales of rural Japan.

When I visited I had an encounter with a yokai in a way that I can’t properly make heads of tales of, and to be honest I don’t really want to. Let me first say that I am a fan of yokai stories and folklore and though there isn’t much on the island where I live, there is a great deal to be found in the various country towns around Japan. Shimane is known for having a strong connection with the spiritual realm since from ancient times Shimane, and in particular Izumo, is known for being the land where the gods first step foot in the realm of mortals once created by Izanagi and Izanami. So with this in mind, I was already jazzed about where I was, the temples and shrines I was visiting, and I also had my eye out for references to folklore. When I arrived at Jozan Inari, I was alone. I had passed the other visitors on the way in and the cars parked at the bottom of the stairs were gone once I reached the top of the stairs. So I felt like I had this moment to really enjoy this lovely shrine and all that was there. Though the shrine was open to visitors, the offices were closed so I couldn’t get a goshuin, and just at that moment it started to rain. Thinking the entire scenario was rather silly and ill-timed, I just laughed and started having a conversation in Japanese with myself, but also thinking I was talking to the foxes themselves. If you don’t know, foxes can be yokai and as yokai they are known for shape-shifting and pulling pranks on people. So with that in mind, I enjoyed encouraging the idea that this was all the work of some foxes having some fun, so I decided to enjoy it as well. When the rain finally began to die down, I made my way over to the gate at the top of the stairs to leave. When I turned back around to bow, thanking the gods for letting me enter, I saw what I can only assume was a ghost or at least an illusion: I saw a Noh performer with a woman’s face mask dressed in white with a black obi standing in the office space I was just standing at. Feeling a bit shocked, I bowed, and then left. I’m not sure what I saw was real, but it seemed real enough to me in the moment. All the same, I walked away feeling that I had been pranked by a fox, an idea that made me smile all the way home.

 

Matsue Gokoku Jinja

Founded in the early 20th century, Matsue Gokoku Jinja, like its siblings in Hiroshima and Shiga, is a shrine dedicated to soldiers from Matsue who gave their lives defending Japan in its wars. The shrine is said to be home to close to 23,000 souls.

For the casual: 3. For the educated: 3.

There really isn’t much to do at this shrine other than pray. I think the sprawling landscape of the shrine mixed with the solidarity of its building makes it a rather boring place to visit. I do think that the shrine itself is lovely and well maintained, but apart from praying there’s not really much else to do. I’m also not sure if they have a goshuin. You have to go to the office building on the right to check, but when I was there it was in the middle of COVID19 and I wasn’t sure anyone was there.

 

Iya Jinja

Iya Jinja is a very old small shrine on the southern edge of Matsue in Shimane Prefecture. Though it’s appearance is rather lacking, the shrine is actually a very widely renowned. Considered one of the six most important shrines of the Nara Period (710-784 C.E.), Iya Jinja is a shrine explicitly for the worship of Izanami-no-Kami, goddess of creation, wife of Izanagi-no-Kami, and goddess of death. She, who died in childbirth to the fire god, was burned alive until she finally passed away and entered the underworld. When Izanagi-no-Kami attempted to bring her back, he was tasked to make his way out and not look at Izanami-no-Kami until he was outside. In his impatience, he turned to look too early and saw the walking decomposing corpse of his sister/wife standing before him. In her rage, she send the agents of the underworld to chase him out. Izanagi-no-Kami placed a boulder over the entrance to the underworld trapping Izanami-no-Kami inside. Her final act was to curse their mortal creations with a limited lifespan. Iya Jinja is therefore a shrine built to honor her for what she created and to apease her endless rage.

For the casual: 4. For the educated: 10.

If you have no interest in Japan’s origin myth, then there’s isn’t much of a reason for visiting outside of just seeing a nice shrine. But if you’re like me and you love this kind of stuff, then you’re in luck. The shrine is a small one, so it only needs to be a stop along your day, but the staff there were amazingly kind and welcoming to everyone there. The main building is build of dark brown wood with an oxidated copper roof and above the front steps hangs a large woven shimenawa, a kind of rope usually made from rice or wheat grasses which demarks a sacred or holy area. There’s not much to say about the shrine besides that it’s a single building with several small shrines in the surrounding area, but for me the highlight was actually down the road.

There is a reason why the primary shrine to Izanami-no-Kami is where it is, because down the road is the Yomotsu Hirasaka, the blocked entrance to the underworld. Genuinly this location is very small, off the beaten path, and is practically devoid of any visitors, but for those who know about the genesis story, this is where the mortality of humans was founded. A small pond and a cluster of stones is all that’s really there to see, but there is a fun feeling knowing that this is the spot. It’s like knowing where some famous person died. Sure there may not be any pomp and circumstance regarding the event, but there’s a fun feeling knowing that you know where you are, that you know what you can see. There is a separate goshuin for Yomotsu Hirasaka but it’s at the building at the base of the street and not at the boulders themselves. The man who was there when I visited was also amazingly kind and seemed so excited that someone would stop by and talk to him.

Yomotsu Hirasaka, the blocked entrance to the underworld.

 

The stop map is for Iya Jinja, with the bottom map being Yomotsu Hirasaka.