Towatari Shrine (登渡神社, ''Towatari-jinja''), also known as Nobuto Shrine (登戸神社, ''Nobuto-jinja''), is a Shinto shrine located in Nobuto, Chūō-ku, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Originally a branch temple of Kongojū-ji, a temple to the Buddhist

deity A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greate ...

Myōken founded by the Chiba clan (modern

Chiba Shrine Chiba Shrine (千葉神社, ''Chiba-jinja'') is a Shinto Shinto shrine, shrine located in Chūō-ku, Chiba, Chūō-ku, Chiba (city), Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture. Originally a Buddhist temples in Japan, Buddhist temple dedicated to the Deva (Bud ...

), it was converted into a Shinto shrine during the mid-19th century.

Deities

The shrine is dedicated to the three deities of creation (造化三神, ''zōka sanshin'') of classical

Japanese mythology Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto and Buddhist traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of year ...

: Ame-no-Minakanushi, Takamimusubi, and Kamimusubi. Enshrined together with them is Ame-no-Hiwashi, originally the deity of a nearby shrine that was

merged Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. As an aspect ...

into Nobuto Shrine in 1908 ( Meiji 41).

History

The shrine was originally founded in 1644 ( Shōhō 1) by Chiba Sadatane, 33rd head of the Chiba clan, as a Buddhist temple named Hakujasan Shinkō-in Jōin-ji (白蛇山真光院定胤寺). It was a branch temple or ''matsuji'' (末寺) of Kongojū-ji (also known as Chiba Myōken-ji), a temple dedicated to Myōken, the Buddhist deification of the Big Dipper and/or the northern pole star revered by the Chiba clan as their patron deity (what is today

). In 1867 ( Keiō 3), the temple became a Shinto shrine dedicated to the gods Ame-no-Minakanushi (a deity in Japanese mythology conflated with Myōken), Takamimusubi, and Kamimusubi and renamed "Towatari Shrine". In 1990 ( Heisei 2), the shrine's ''

honden In Shinto shrine architecture, the , also called , or sometimes as in Ise Shrine's case, is the most sacred building at a Shinto shrine, intended purely for the use of the enshrined ''kami'', usually symbolized by a mirror or sometimes by a sta ...

'' (dating from 1860) was moved to its present location and a new ''hei''-'' haiden'' constructed in front of it.

Structures

*''Honden'' :The ''honden'' was originally Jōin-ji's former main hall, constructed in 1860 by a craftsman named Monjirō (紋次郎) from the village of Yagi in Katsushika District, Shimōsa Province (part of the modern city of

Nagareyama Nagareyama City Hall is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 200,136 in 84,800 households and a population density of 5,700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Nagareyama is ...

, Chiba Prefecture). The bas-reliefs decorating the building were carved by Tatekawa Washirō Tomimasa (立川和四郎富昌, the 2nd generation of the Tatekawa Washirō line of craftsmen) from Suwa District in

Shinano Province or is an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture. Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, whi ...

(modern

Nagano Prefecture is a landlocked prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Nagano Prefecture has a population of 2,052,493 () and has a geographic area of . Nagano Prefecture borders Niigata Prefecture to the north, Gunma Prefecture to the ...

) and/or his son Tomishige (富重). The reliefs were designated tangible cultural properties by Chiba City in 1967 ( Shōwa 42).

Notes

References

{{reflist, 2

External links