is a

Shinto shrine A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion. The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...

in the Kibitsu neighborhood of

Kita-ku, Okayama is one of four Wards of Japan, wards of Okayama, Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The ward has an area of 451.03 km2 and a population of 295,312. The population density is 655 per square kilometer. The name means "North Ward." The wards of Okay ...

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture ...

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 ...

. It is the ''

ichinomiya is a Japanese language, Japanese historical term referring to the Shinto shrines with the highest rank in a Provinces of Japan, province. Shrines of lower rank were designated , , , and so forth.''Encyclopedia of Shinto'' ''Ichi no miya'' retr ...

'' (first shrine) of former

Bitchū Province was a province of Japan on the Inland Sea side of western Honshū, in what is today western Okayama Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Bizen and Bingo Provinces; those three provinces were settled in the late 7th Century, dividing form ...

. The shrine’s main festivals are held on the second Sunday in May and October 15th each year.

Overview

The Kibitsu Jinja is located in the western part of Okayama city, facing north at the northwestern foot of Mount Kibi-Nakayama (elevation 175 meters) on the border between former

Bizen Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area that is eastern Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of western Japan.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Mimasaka no Kuni''" in . Bizen bordered Bitchū Province, ...

and Bitchū Province. The mountain has been worshipped as a

sacred mountain Sacred mountains are central to certain religions, and are usually the subjects of many legends. For many, the most symbolic aspect of a mountain is the peak because it is believed that it is closest to heaven or other religious realms. Many reli ...

from ancient times, and both the Kibitsu Jinja and Kibitsuhiko Jinja are located at its northeastern foot. Kibitsu Jinja was originally the general guardian of

Kibi Province was an ancient province or region of Japan, in the same area as Okayama Prefecture and eastern Hiroshima Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kibi''" in . It was sometimes called . It was divided into Bizen (備前), Bitchū (� ...

, but due to the division of Kibi Province into three provinces, it became the ''

'' of Bitchū, and '' bunrei'' from this shrine created the ''ichinomiya'' of Bizen Province (Kibitsuhiko Jinja) and

Bingo Province was a province of Japan on the Inland Sea side of western Honshū, comprising what is today the eastern part of Hiroshima Prefecture. It was sometimes grouped together with Bizen and Bitchu Provinces as . The 備 ''bi'' in the names of these ...

(Kibitsu Shrine). The

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 ...

- Haiden, which was re-built by

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was the third '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate, ruling from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimitsu was Ashikaga Yoshiakira's third son but the oldest son to survive, his childhood name being Haruō (). Yoshimitsu ...

, is a

National Treasure A national treasure is a structure, artifact, object or cultural work that is officially or popularly recognized as having particular value to the nation, or representing the ideals of the nation. The term has also been applied to individuals or ...

and the sole exemplar of the '' kibitsu-zukuri'' style of

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

, although the Soshidō of Hokekyō-ji is now believed to have been modeled thereon. In addition, the three shrine buildings are designated as National Important Cultural Properties, and a special Shinto ritual "Narukama Shinto" is famous.

Mizuko and Sorei syncretism

The Shrine has a unique dual worship of Sorei or ancestral spirits alongside

Mizuko kuyō meaning "water child memorial service", is a Japanese Buddhist ceremony for those who have had a miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion. It is also practiced in Thailand and China. This practice has become particularly visible since the 1970s wi ...

or cults of miscarried babies. The shrine started as a place for the Kibi clan. It has the clan's ancestors as gods. This gives the shrine a pure and protective feel. The ancestors are seen as good and helpful spirits. This is how the shrine connects with mizuko. Mizuko means the souls of babies who died early or were not born. The shrine places the mizuko shrine next to the ancestor shrine. It also uses running water. This setup has several meanings: # The water purifies the souls of mizuko. Mizuko is linked to water. # Being near the ancestor shrine suggests these souls become kind and protective spirits. # As protective spirits, the mizuko guard those who remember them. This way, the Kibitsu Shrine uses its ties to the Kibi clan. It creates a respectful place for mizuko. It links them to the shrine's ancestral and protective gods.

Enshrined ''kami''

The ''

kami are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...

'' enshrined at Kibitsu Jinja are: * , the son of Emperor Kōrei and conqueror of the Kingdom of Kibi and founder of the Kibi clan * , descendant of Kibitsuhiko * , descendant of Kibitsuhiko * , elder sister of Kibitsuhiko * , elder sister of Kibitsuhiko * , elder brother of Kibitsuhiko * , brother of Kibitsuhiko * , brother of Kibitsuhiko * , brother of Kibitsuhiko

History

The origins of Kibitsu Jinja are uncertain. According to the shrine's legend, it is located at the site of Kibitsuhiko-no-Mikoto's residence, where he died at the age of 281, and was buried on the summit of the mountain. Afterwards, the residence was turned into a shrine, possibly by his fifth generation descendent Narumi Kaya, or by

Emperor Nintoku , also known as was the 16th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Due to his reputation for goodness derived from depictions in the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, he is sometimes referred to as the . While his existence ...

, who visited

where he built several shrines to commemorate Kibitsuhiko. However, the shrine does not appear in any historical documentation until 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 ...

, until entry in the ''

Shoku Nihon Kōki is an officially commissioned Japanese history text. Completed in 869, it is the fourth volume in the Six National Histories. It covers the years 833–850. Following the earlier national history ''Nihon Kōki'' (840), in 855 Emperor Montoku o ...

'' dated 847 and the '' Nihon Montoku Tennō Jitsuroku'' dated 852. In the ''

Engishiki The is a Japanese book of laws and customs. The major part of the writing was completed in 927. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Engi-shiki''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 178. History Emperor Daigo ordered the compilation of the ''Engishi ...

'' it was given the rank of and the rank of ''

'' of the province. From the

Kamakura , officially , is a city of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan. It is located in the Kanto region on the island of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 people per km2 over the tota ...

through the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

, was revered by the samurai, and there were frequent restorations of the shrine and donations of territory. During the

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

, the shrine's land became smaller. However, it still got a special land grant from the shogunate. This grant was for 160 koku of rice every year. There was a busy market near the shrine. People also visited teahouses and inns there. Inside the shrine area, there was a theater and a brothel. The shrine was a busy place along the San’yodō for travellers. This continued until the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

.. After the

in 1871, it was listed as a , and is 1914 was promoted to a . The shrine is a ten-minute walk from Kibitsu Station on the

JR West , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, ...

Kibi Line.

Cultural Properties

National Treasures

*''

'' and '' Haiden'',

Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...

, built in 1390 and relocated their present locations in 1425.The main shrine has a ''Kibitsu-zukuri'' style roof, which consists of two ''Irimoya-zukuri'' roof are lined up in front and behind. The influence of Buddhist architecture can be seen in many details of the structure.

Important Cultural Properties

, built in 1357. *,

, built in 1543. *,

, built in 1612. *, one pair, late

to Nanboku-cho period, Located to the east and west of the Honden.

Gallery

File:吉備津神社御釜殿.JPG, Okamaden（ICP） File:Kibitsu Jinja Corridor 03.JPG, Cloister File:吉備津神社北随神門.JPG, North Zuijinmon（ICP） File:Kibitujinja5024.JPG, Approach and Ni-no-Torii File:吉備津神社一の鳥居.JPG, Ichi-no-Torii

References

External links

Official home pageOkayama prefecture Official Tourism Guide
{{Kibi clan Shinto shrines in Okayama Prefecture Bitchū Province Buildings and structures in Okayama Ichinomiya National Treasures of Japan Beppyo shrines Myōjin Taisha Kanpei Chūsha * Kibi clan