is a shrine in

Kumamoto Castle is a hilltop Japanese castle located in Chūō-ku, Kumamoto, in Kumamoto Prefecture. It was a large and well fortified castle. The is a concrete reconstruction built in 1960, but several ancillary wooden buildings remain of the original castle ...

Chūō-ku, Kumamoto is one of the five wards of Kumamoto City, Japan. The ward is located in the center of the city. As of 2012, it has a population Population typically refers to the number of people in a single area, whether it be a city or town, regio ...

Kumamoto is the capital city of Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 738,907 and a population density of 1,893 people per km2. The total area is 390.32 km2. had a population of 1,461,0 ...

, Japan, in which ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominall ...

'' or powerful territorial lord

Katō Kiyomasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo periods. His court title was Higo-no-kami. His name as a child was ''Yashamaru'', and first name was ''Toranosuke''. He was one of Hideyoshi's Seven Spears of Shizugatake. Biograph ...

(1562–1611) is enshrined. Alongside Ōki Kaneyoshi and Kin Kan, who made

junshi refers to the medieval Japanese act of vassals committing seppuku (a voluntary suicide) for the death of their lord. Originally it was only performed when the lord was slain in battle or murdered. Background The practice is described by Chines ...

, are enshrined.

History

*In 1868, Shinto style ceremony started at Jōchibyō which was the grave of

in Honmyōji, proposed by Nagaoka Moriyoshi. *In 1871, Nishikiyama Shrine was built within

at the separation of

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and

Shintoism Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...

. Enshrined are Katō Kiyomasa, Ōki Kaneyoshi and Kin. *In 1874, the Nishikiyama Shrine was moved to Kyōmachi because the

belonged to the Japanese Army in 1873. *In 1875, the rank of the shrine was made the prefectural shrine. This system discontinued in 1946. *In 1877, the Nishikiyama Shrine was burned in the battle of

Satsuma Rebellion The Satsuma Rebellion, also known as the was a revolt of disaffected samurai against the new imperial government, nine years into the Meiji Era. Its name comes from the Satsuma Domain, which had been influential in the Restoration and be ...

Shintai In Shinto, , or when the honorific prefix ''go''- is used, are physical objects worshipped at or near Shinto shrines as repositories in which spirits or ''kami'' reside.''Shintai'', Encyclopedia of Shinto ''Shintai'' used in Shrine Shinto (Jinj ...

was moved to Kengun Shrine. *In 1884, reconstruction was started. *In 1886, the shrine was reconstructed. *In 1909, the name of Nishikiyama Shrine was changed to Katō Shrine. *In 1911, a Katō Shrine was built in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only ...

. **Closed later. *In 1914, a Katō Shrine was built in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

. **Closed after the war. ***

is enshrined in about 90 shrines; about a half in

Kumamoto Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Kumamoto Prefecture has a population of 1,748,134 () and has a geographic area of . Kumamoto Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the north, Ōita Prefecture to the northeast, Miyaza ...

. *In 1952, Katō Shrine was designated as

Religious corporation A religious corporation is a type of religious non-profit organization, which has been incorporated under the law. Often these types of corporations are recognized under the law on a subnational level, for instance by a state or province governme ...

. *In 1962, Katō Shrine was moved to the present site in

. *In 1981, the Sūkeikai, an association of Katō Shrine goers, was started.

Festivals

*Spring festival: April 24 *Summer festival: July 24 *Katō Kiyomasa festival: the 4th Sunday of July *Monthly ceremonies: 1st, 15th and 24th of every month

Ōki and Kin

*Ōki Kaneyoshi (1552–1611) was a

karō were top-ranking samurai officials and advisors in service to the ''daimyōs'' of feudal Japan. Overview In the Edo period, the policy of ''sankin-kōtai'' (alternate attendance) required each ''daimyō'' to place a ''karō'' in Edo and anoth ...

of Sassa Narimasa. After the fall of Sassa, he became a karō of Katō Kiyomasa. During the Japanese invasion of Korea, his services, or merits were great. At the Sekigahara battle, he made the wife of Katō Kiyomasa escape from the Osaka house. 　 *Kin Kan was a Korean who was captured in the Japanese invasion of Korea. His real name was 良甫鑑, and Kin Kan was the name of his position. He became a fan of Katō Kiyomasa and followed his master and became a page.

Features and Memorials

Katō Shrine is located best to view the three high buildings of

Memorials

*Taiko bridge, placed within the campus of the shrine, was brought from Korea as a memorial, and served as the model of stone bridges. *A large washbasin belonged to Ooki Kaneyoshi who is enshrined. *A flag-holding stone was brought from Nagoya,

Saga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. Saga Prefecture has a population of 809,248 (1 August 2020) and has a geographic area of 2,440 km2 (942 sq mi). Saga Prefecture borders Fukuoka Prefecture to the northeast and Nagasa ...

, in connection with the invasion of Korea.

Small shrines

*Enshrined are Sarutahiko-kami, Sugawara Michizane, Ookuninushi-kami and Ebisu-kami.

References

*Pamphlet of Katō Shrine obtained on Nov. 18, 2010. *''Kumamoto Castle and Castle Town Kumamoto seen in old photographs'', Tomita Kouichi, Higo-Joudaibunka-Kenkyuukai, 1999.

External links

Official site

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kato Shrine Shinto shrines in Kumamoto Prefecture Buildings and structures in Kumamoto