Samukawa shrine

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The main hall of the Samukawa Shrine
The main gate

The Samukawa Shrine ( Japanese 寒 川 神社 , Samukawa-jinja ) is a Shinto shrine in the Samukawa community in the Kōza district of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan . Its area covers 47 km².

The exact history of the Samukawa Shrine is not clearly established. He is mentioned in a document from the 5th century in connection with Emperor Yūryaku . Clear indications can only be found in the extensive legal books that were created under the rule of Emperor Daigo in the 10th century . During this part of the Heian Period , Samukawa Shrine was declared Ichi-no-miya (the first shrine) in Sagami Province .

The main hall is protectively oriented to the southeast, as the Tokyo Imperial Palace is in this direction . It was extensively restored in 1997, the cost of 5 billion yen was paid entirely from donations. Their new copper roofs represent a further approximation of the architectural style of the Meiji Shrine . The main hall itself consists of four buildings: the outer worship hall, the inner worship hall, the prayer hall and the holy of holies ( honden ) in the Nagare-zukuri -style.

In it the Kami Samukawa-hiko-no-mikoto ( 寒 川 比 古 命 ; male) and Samukawa-hime-no-mikoto ( 寒 川 比 女 命 ; female) are venerated. Local residents call the couple Samukawa Daimyōjin ( 寒 川 大 明 神 ). According to unconfirmed assumptions, they are deified rulers from early Japanese history, as they were not mentioned in either the Kojiki or the Nihonshoki .

During the first three days of the Japanese New Year, the shrine receives nearly 500,000 visitors.

Web links

Commons : Samukawa Shrine  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 35 ° 22 '46.4 "  N , 139 ° 23' 0.1"  E