Iwai shrine

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The Iwai Shrine ( Japanese 石 坐 神社 Iwai-jinja ) is an ancient shrine in the city of Ōtsu in Shiga Prefecture .

history

An Iwai shrine can be found in the list of shrines in the " Engishiki ", written in the middle Heian period , but the date of foundation is uncertain. According to the shrine tradition, the sea god Wadatsumi ( 海 津 見 神 ) appeared on the hill south of Goryōdoyama ( 御 霊 殿 山 ) at the time of Emperor Tenji and ended the persistent drought. The emperor then had a shrine built on the hill: that was the beginning of today's shrine.

After the Jinshin Riots ( 壬申 の 乱 Jinshin no ran ) in 672, the shrine was moved to its current location and called Hachidairyūō-gū ( 八大 龍 王宮 ). At the time, three gods were secretly worshiped.

In the Edo period the shrine was called Hachidairyūō-sha, whereby the request for rain, the Amagoi ( 雨 乞 い ), continued to be the focus. At the beginning of the Meiji period , the shrine was given its current name.

The attachment

The inner shrine ( 本 殿 ) is registered as an important cultural asset of the prefecture. It is built as a three ken (1 ken = 1.81 m) wide shrine ( 三 間 社 流 造 Sangensha-nagare-zukuri ), is covered with thin cypress shingles ( 檜 皮 葺 き Hiwada-buki ) and has a protruding roof extension ( 棟 札 Munafuda ). The building dates from 1226 and was relocated here, showing the style of that earlier period.

Treasures of the shrine

In the inner shrine are the seated statues of Ame-mikoto-hirakasu-wake-no-mikoto ( 天命 開 別 命 ; Emperor Tenji), Prince Ōtomo ( 大 友 皇子 ; Emperor Kōbun ), Ōtomo's mother Iga no uneme Yakako no iratsume ( 伊 賀 采女 宅子 媛 ) and Hikominasu-no-Ō ( 彦 坐 王 ). The first three come from the Heian period , the latter from the period of Namboku-chō . All are marked as an important national cultural asset . They are not shown publicly. Other venerated kami are Toyo-tama-hiko-no-mikoto ( 豊 玉 比 古 神 ; Emperor Jimmu's grandfather) and Wadatsumi.

literature

  • Shiga-ken rekishi sampo henshu iinkai (Ed.): Iwai-jinja . In: Shiga-ken no rekishi sampo (jo) . Yamakawa Shuppan, 2008, ISBN 978-4-634-24625-6 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ 石 坐 神社 (イ ワ イ) . 滋 賀 県 神社 庁 , Retrieved March 18, 2017 (Japanese).

Coordinates: 35 ° 0 ′ 0.8 ″  N , 135 ° 53 ′ 17.6 ″  E