Suwa Shrine & Mikiinari Shrine Kobe

 

Suwa Shrine is located on the lower slope of the mountains behind Kobe and is reached up a steep slope.

Though ostensibly a Suwa Shrine, as one approaches it appears to be an Inari Shrine, and the local nickname for the shrine is Suwayama Inari.

According to the legend the shrine was founded in the year 400 as protection of the detached palace of Princess Hatta or Yatta. She was the half-sister and consort of Emperor Nintoku.

As a Suwa shrine the main kami is Takeminakata, son of Okuninushi who was exiled to what is now Nagano after the transfer of the land from Onuninushi to Amaterasu.

Suwa Taisha is a major shrine with branches nationwide.

Later the mountain became named Suwayama.

However, in 1778 a branch of Fushimi Inari Shrine was established here, now known as Miki Inari.

For whatever reason the Inari identity overshadows the Suwa identity, with fox guardians guarding the Suwa shrine as well as all the numerous Inari shrines now scattered around the grounds.

One ceramic kitsune was particularly impressive.

Theer are several other shrines in the grounds other than the numerous Inari shrines, and they include a Sarutahiko Shrine.

I visited very early in the morning on day 4 of my walk along the Kinki Fudo Myoo Pilgrimage.

From here a trail leads up the mountain to the next temples on the pilgrimage.

The previous post in the series was on Ninomiya Shrine in Kobe that I visited the evening before.