Nutashi Shrine

 

On the shore of Lake Shinji, a substantial torii marks the route to Uchi Shrine, a couple of kilometers away up on the slope of Mount Hongu.

A little past the road heading up to the mountain is the entrance to Nutashi Shrine.

This enshrines Sarutahiko. It is mentioned in the Izumo Fudoki, but not in the Engi Shiki, as it was not under the control of the government shrine dept. It was an "unofficial" shrine.

According to the legend, when Princess Takahime descended to Mount Takano, Sarutahiko took the stern of the boat and guided her. She is now enshrined on the mountain, and Sarutahiko was enshrined here.

Sarutahiko is known as a guide. In the descent of Ninigi and his group from Takamagahara, they came to a complex junction with many routes and didnt know which way to go. Sarutahiko was waiting for them and offered to guide them down to earth. If you see a matsuri procession, you will often see a figure leading the procession wearing a red mask with a long nose. Many people believe it to be a tengu, but in fact it is Sarutahiko.

Because of the "saru" in his name (saru means monkey in Japanese ) monkeys have long been associated with him and so under the shrine are a variety of monkey statues.

The shrine has an unusual layout. It is a largish honden with no haiden or heiden, but a kagura den.

Standing next to the hinden is a shrine to Gozu Tenno, quite unusual, I think, as most shrines to Gozu Tenno are now Susano shrines.

There is also a small Inari shrine, no more than a small, stone hokora.

When I walk around other areas of Japan, I am struck by just how many interesting, ancient shrines there are in the Izumo region. No wonder it is known as the Land of the Gods!

The fact that the Izumo Fudoki was the only provincial gazetteer to survive intact also means we know so much about these shrines...

The previous post in this series on day 43 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on the walk along this north shore of Lake Shinji.

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Onotsu Shrine

 

While walking along the north shore of Lake Shinji, the first shrine of interest I visited was Onotsu Shrine.

This is yet another shrine that is listed in both the Izumo Fudoki and the Engi Shiki, indicating it is very old and important.

It enshrines Susanoo. After he slew the Orochi serpent, some of its bones and horns washed up on the shore here and are enshrined in the honden.

The shrine is known for a rain-making ritual, although it has not been performed since 1939. For three days the priests gather here and pray, and then the bones are taken out by boat to a spot offshore.

One source claims that the spot the boat goes out to is above a sunken torii that marks t where diagonal lines from the 4 sacred mountains around Lake Shinji cross.

Secondary shrines within the grounds include a Konpira, Shingu, Hiyoshi, Aragami, and  Himosaki shrines.

The dragon/serpent statue is the same style as some I have seen in the Izumo area representing Kojin, the land kami usually represented by a straw rope, yet here the statue has no altar in front of it which suggests it is not Kojin. Maybe it is just a nod to Yamata no Orochi.

The previous post was on the walk along the north shore of Shinji.

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Gongenjima & Uryu Harbour

 

Down below Cape Hinomisaki to the East is a small bay dotted with islets and a small island called Gongenjima.

The island, originally called Yamazakijima, protected the inner bay from inclement weather, and so the area became a safe haven for ships. In ancient times, it was the main harbour on the western half of the Shimane Peninsula and could accommodate 20 ships.

The island's name was changed due to the Kumano Shrine on the island, which derived from an ancient myth.

According to the myth, in AD 143, on the 5th day of the new year, a seagull repeatedly carried some seaweed, wakame, from the island and dropped it on the fence at Hinomisaki Shrine. Thde priest made the seaweed an offeringbto the kami.

In commemoration, every year a ritual is held at the Kumano Shrine on Gongen Island.

To reach the island the fishermen of the area line up all their boats so it forms a pontoon bridge for the priests to walk to the island over.

Traditionally, no one in the area harvests wakame until after this festival.

As well as operating as a fishing harbour, the village of Uryu now has plenty of lodgings, for hobby fishermen and other holidaymakers...

For my deep exploration of the Japan Sea Coast, there is no road from here to the next harbour, Sagiura, about 4k away as the crow ( or seagull) flies, so I have to backtrack a little and cut inland...

The previous post in this series on my walk along the coastline of the Sea of Japan was on Hinomisaki Shrine, an ancient and major shrine of Izumo.

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Saka Shrine Origin of Sake in Japan

 

Down below Ichibata Yakushi Temple, and not far from Ichibataguchi Station, is Saka Shrine, sometimes called Matsuo Shrine.

October 2nd, 2015, and this is where I start day 43 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage.

This is an ancient shrine connected to the production of Sake, and the areas around it all have names connected to sake.

The first time sake is mentioned in the ancient myth-histories published in the early 8th century is when Susanoo brews some sake to give to the Orochi serpent, which he then slays when they are in a drunken stupor. As sake is a word used for alcohol in general, it is suggested that the sake he brewed was made from fruit.

However, same books, plus the  Izumo Fudoki, published a few years later, has a legend from this area wherein 180 kami gathered together, built a kitchen and brewed up some sake, and had a 180-day feast.

About ten kilometers away up the Hi River is Mankusen Shrine, where a big group of kami gathers during Kamiarizuki, the annual meeting of almost all of Japan's kami in the Izumo area. The shrine has a unique ritual and ceremony wherein the kami are kind of pushed out of the shrine because they won't leave. The reason they won't leave is that they say the sake here is so good.

The primary kami of Saka Shrine is Kushinokami, believed to be another name for Sukunahikona, the sidekick of Okuninushi who settled and created the land of Izumo. He was also linked with medicine. Also enshrined here are 180 unnamed kami, obviously a nod to the myth-legend.

At some point before the 16th century, the kami of Matsuo Shrine near Kyoto was enshrined here. Oyamakui is also considered the kami of sake, and Matsuo Shrine in Kyoto is considered the main sake-brewers' shrine in Japan. Saka Shrine was known as Matsuo Shrine until the Meiji Period, when it reverted to Saka Shrine.

Researchers and historians believe that sake was introduced into Japan from Korea via Izumo. The Hata Clan created the Matsuo Shrine in Kyoto, and the Hata are known to be an immigrant clan from the mainland; some say China, some say Korea, some say even further west. Many historians suggest that the Hata spent some time in Izumo before moving on to Yamato. All this suggests that the area around Saka Shrine may well be the origin of Sake in Japan...

Sake brewers continue to support and pray at Saka Shrine. At the annual festival in mid October, at which the head priest has brewed sake for it, many sake brewers gather. The shrine has a special license to brew the sake.

In the grounds are numerous secondary shrines, notably an Inari.

There are also an Ekisha, a Takeuchi Shrine, and a Hoden Shrine. The most interesting is a Smallpox Vaccination Shrine.

The previous post in this series was on the 84,000 Yakushi statues at Ichibata Yakushi. Well worth a look!

If you would like to subscribe by email, just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published or made public. I post new content almost every day, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the last ten posts