is a

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located in

Fuchū, Tokyo file:FuchuCityHall2023091.jpg, 260px, Fuchū City Hall is a Cities of Japan, city located in the western Tokyo, western portion of the Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. Fuchū serves as a regional commercial center and a commuter town for workers in cent ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Six shrines in

Musashi province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Kawasaki and Yokohama. ...

were consolidated and their gods enshrined there. Ōkunitama is now known as one of the five major shrines in Tokyo, the others being the Tokyo Great Shrine, Yasukuni Shrine, Hie Shrine and Meiji Shrine. It is the

Sōja file:Bitchu Kokubunji, zenkei.jpg, 270px, Bitchū Kokubun-ji is a Cities of Japan, city located in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 69,428 and a population density of 330 persons per km2. The total area of the ...

Musashi Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Kawasaki and Yokohama. ...

It is dedicated to identified as Ōkuninushi

General description

Within the shrine complex, there are many buildings and points of interest. The main shrine buildings are in a walled inner complex protected by an inner and outer gate. The main shrine is dedicated to Ōkuninushi. In addition, the main shrine is also an amalgamation of branches of the six main shrines from around Musashi Province: In addition, the main shrine complex is surrounded by seven smaller subsidiary shrines. These are ''Matsuo Shrine'', ''Tatsumi Shrine'', ''Tōshōguu Shrine'', ''Sumiyoshi Shrine'', ''Ōwashi Shrine'', ''Miyanome Shrine'' and an '' Inari shrine''. There is also a

sumo is a form of competitive full-contact wrestling where a ''rikishi'' (wrestler) attempts to force his opponent out of a circular ring (''dohyō'') or into touching the ground with any body part other than the soles of his feet (usually by th ...

ring and a

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

memorial, as well as the remains of the former Musashi provincial office.

History

According to the shrine's legend, it was established on 5 May in the 41st year of the reign of Emperor Keikō, which corresponds to 111 AD in the western calendar. The offspring of ''Noomiame-no-hohino-mikoto'' (出雲臣天穂日命) appointed '' Kuni no miyatsuko'' of

, the capital of which was located in what is now Fuchū. Its position as the of Musashi Province was confirmed from the Taika period (645 AD), and archaeological evidence confirms that the shrine was located very close to the provincial capital ('' kokufu'') of Musashi. During the late

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

(1062) Minamoto no Yoriyoshi and his son, Minamoto no Yoshiie donated thousands of

zelkova ''Zelkova'' (from the Georgian language, Georgian ''dzelkva'', 'stone pillar') is a genus of six species of deciduous trees in the elm family Ulmaceae, native to southern Europe, and southwest and eastern Asia. They vary in size from shrubs (''Ze ...

saplings to the shrine as part of a prayer for victory in military campaigns in Mutsu Province, and in 1182

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate, ruling from 1192 until 1199, also the first ruling shogun in the history of Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako ...

made an invocation for the safe delivery of a child during the pregnancy of Hojo Masako. Following the start of the

Kamakura period The is a period of History of Japan, Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura, Kanagawa, Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the G ...

, Minamoto no Yoritomo extensively rebuilt the shrine. It was rebuilt again in 1590 under

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

and after a fire in 1649. Under the

State Shinto was Empire of Japan, Imperial Japan's ideological use of the Japanese folk religion and traditions of Shinto. The state exercised control of shrine finances and training regimes for Kannushi, priests to strongly encourage Shinto practices that ...

system of the

Meiji period The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...

, the shrine was officially renamed Ōkunitama Jinja in 1872, and appointed a Kanpei-shōsha ( Imperial Shrine, 3rd rank) in 1886.

Kurayami matsuri

The is claimed to be one of the three oldest festivals in Kanto region. This festival is held every year, between 30 April and 6 May. Originally this festival was described as an . Ryotaro Shiba, a Japanese essay writer and novelist, observed that this festival resulted in disorderly conduct by the participants.司馬遼太郎1964「燃えよ剣」 He claimed that, amongst the single men and women who had gathered to sing and dance for each other, were also those who were married and who intended to have sex under cover of darkness. In the

Meiji Era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feu ...

, facing criticism from Christian missionaries, the authorities put a stop to this festival. In its place, ''Kurayami Matsuri'' was created. ''Kurayami'' means 'darkness' and ''matsuri'' means 'festival' in Japanese. It was originally held during the night, but this was changed to evening in 1959. On May 4, the road approaching the temple () is used as a track for horse-racing and performances of a masked folk dance known as . On May 5, six large taiko drums lead eight mikoshi to a temporary holding area. They are returned to the shrine early in the morning the following day.

Gallery

File:Keyaki Namiki N Cross autumn.jpg, ''Keyaki Namiki'' Crossing File:Fuchuookunitamajinjyakorou.jpg, Drum Tower File:Okunitama-shrine-comingofageday2014B.jpg,

Torii A is a traditional culture of Japan, Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the mundane to the sacred, and a spot where kami are welcomed and thought to ...

gate File:Ookunitamajinjya.shidarezakura.jpg, The cherry tree beside the hand-washing station File:大国魂神社.JPG, Kurayami Festival

List of research papers

Kurayami matsuri and Ohkunitama shrine

* 中里亮平 2009 Matsuri boom and influence on festivals: the case of the kurayami-matsuri festival at Okunitama shrine in Fuchu, Tokyo. ''The Japanese folklore review'' (24), 47–60. * 中里亮平 2008 Festivals and ''Influential'' members of the community: the case of the Kurayami-matsuri Festival at Okunitama shrine in Fuchu-shi, Tokyo. ''The Japanese folklore review'' (23), 51–64. * Tsuruga Eisuke 2007 Possibility on recovery of the humanity, concerned with festival reciprocity : Through the Fuchu Kurayami Matsuri researches. ''Education for sustainable development'' 6, 105–112. * Mogi Sakae, Shimada Kiyoshi 1989 The Kurayami Matsuri at Okunitama Shrine in Fuchu ''Transactions of the institute for Japanese culture and classics'' 64, 140–207, * 杉浦翔子 2006 A study of the chief priest system of the plum wine drinking ritual held at Owari-no-Okunitama Jinja 「皇学館論叢」 39(6), 36–63, * Koide Goro 1983 On Argonauta argo Housed in the Okunitama Shrine.「ちりぼたん」 14(1), 21.

Utagaki

* 糸永正之 2009 ''Utagaki'' in Bhutan: the verification of face-to-face interaction through fixed-verse songs. ''Asian folk culture studies'' (8), 1–32. * Nittamachi Yoshinao 1997 The Symbolism of The Expression in Touka. ''Research memoirs of the Kobe Technical College'' 35, 89–94. * Miyazaki Takeshi 1997 A Study of a Traditional Event Utagaki in Tsugaru Area.7 「日本歌謡研究」 37, 73–83.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Okunitama Shrine Beppyo shrines Shinto shrines in Tokyo Fuchū, Tokyo Kanpei Shōsha Sōja shrines Tokyo Metropolitan Designated Tangible Cultural Property