Fuji Hongu Sengen Taisha Shrine

Fuji as the deity. It is the main shrine of more than 1,300 Sengen Shrines, including both subordinate and subordinate shrines. Fuji as its deity. It is famous as the center of Mt.

Fuji. The grounds of the shrine are vast, with the main shrine grounds alone covering approximately 17,000 square meters, and the area above the 8th station of Mt.

The main shrine is located at the southern foot of Mt. Fuji, while the Okumiya shrine is at the top of Mt.

Fuji erupted during the reign of the 7th Emperor Kokei, and the surrounding residents were dispersed and the land was devastated.

The grounds of the main shrine include the main hall, worship hall, and Sakura-mon Gate, which were built and donated by Ieyasu Tokugawa, the first great barbarian general of the Edo Shogunate. The main hall and worship hall are connected by a mint hall, the characteristic “Sengen-zukuri” style of shrine architecture. The main hall is designated as an important cultural property.

Also within the shrine grounds is Yushitama-ike Pond, designated as a special natural monument by the national government, which is fed by subterranean water from Mt.

About 500 cherry trees are planted as sacred trees in the precincts, and in spring, weeping cherry trees, someiyoshino cherry trees, hikan-zakura cherry trees, and fuji-zakura cherry trees all bloom at once, enveloping the surrounding area in a light red spring scene.

The Yabusame Festival in May and the Autumn Festival in November each year attract many worshippers.

This Mt. Fuji Hongu Sengen Taisha Shrine is registered as a World Heritage Site under “Mt. Fuji - Object of Belief and Source of Art. It also includes the Okumiya Shrine at the top of Mt. Fuji and the Kusushi Shrine at the end of the shrine.

Overview

Fuji Hongu Sengen Taisha is a shrine located in Fujinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It is a shiki-uchi-sha (Meishin-taisha) and the first shrine in Suruga Province.

It used to be a government mintage shrine and belongs to the Annexed Shrines of the Jinja Honcho. The family of the shrine is the Fuji clan, and it is positioned as the head shrine of the Sengen Shrines.

This shrine is enshrined as a Shinto shrine, and there are two shrines within its precincts. The main shrine is located at the southern foot of Mt. Fuji, and the Okumiya shrine is located at the top of Mt.

Sengen Taisha is the head shrine of all Sengen shrines in Japan and is famous as the center of Mt. The grounds of the shrine are vast, with the main shrine grounds alone covering approximately 17,000 square meters, and the shrine also owns approximately 3,850,000 square meters of the area above the 8th station of Mt.

The main hall of the main shrine was built by Ieyasu Tokugawa, and is designated as a National Important Cultural Property in Japan for its distinctive shrine architecture style called “Sengen-zukuri.

Also located within the grounds of the main shrine is Yushitama-ike Pond, which is designated as a national special natural monument, and is fed by spring water from Mt.

The deity of this shrine is Kibanosakuyabi-no-mikoto, and approximately 500 cherry trees associated with the deity are dedicated as sacred trees within the shrine grounds.

The shrine is also known as one of the three great shrines in Japan, with the Fuji clan serving as the grand chief priest since ancient times.

The shrine has long been revered by the Imperial Court and the warrior class, and has also been respected by mountaineering ascetic practitioners because of its location at the starting point of the Omiya-Murayama trail.

About the company name

Fuji Hongu Sengen Shrine” was the official name of the shrine during the Meiji era.

Since 1982, the shrine has been known by its current official name, “Fuji Hongu Sengen Taisha,” which is generally abbreviated to “Sengen Taisha.

There are several theories as to the origin of the word “Asama,” but it is believed to mean a volcano, as in the case of Mt.

It is believed that the name “Asama” was once used, and the current spelling “Sengen” has been in use since the Middle Ages. Honmiya” is also used as a designation for Shizuoka Sengen Shrine (Shingu).

Other names such as “Fujinomiya,” “Fuji Hongu,” and “Fuji Sengenomiya” were also used in the past as company names. The name “Fuji-no-miya” is also found in a waka poem composed by Hojo Yasutoki during a visit to Sengen Shrine.

The name “Fuji-no-miya” is the origin of the city name of Fujinomiya City.

About the Gods of the Shrine

The main deity is Konohana-no-Sakuyahime-no-mikoto. This deity’s name is also written as “Kihanasakuyahime-no-mikoto” in other historical books, but Sengen Taisha has adopted the name as it appears in the Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters) as the official name.

Kihanasakuyahime-no-mikoto is described as a beautiful woman in the same book, which also describes the legend of her giving birth in a fire.

The deities enshrined at the shrine are Ninigi no Mikoto and Oyamazumi no Kami. Ninigi no Mikoto is the husband of Kikanosakuyabi-no-mikoto, and Oyamazumi-no-mikoto is the father of Kikanosakuyabi-no-mikoto.

Fuji and goddess beliefs have existed since ancient times, and in the Heian period (794-1185) they were represented as “Sengen-O-no-kami” (Great Goddess Asama) and in “Taketori Monogatari” as “Kaguyahime” (Princess Kaguyahime).

However, it was not until modern times that Konohananosakuyahime, who appears in “Kojiki” and “Nihonshoki”, was worshipped as the divine spirit of Mt. Before that time, she was generally believed to have been worshipped as the “Asama God.

The ancient name “Asama” is believed to refer to volcanoes such as Mount Aso, Mount Asama, and Mount Asahidake. Tsuraka’s writings also discuss the topic of eruptions, and it is believed that the name “Asama-gami” originated during this period.

In addition, in documents from the early Edo period, the expression “Konohana-no-sakuyahime” is found to refer to the divine spirit of Mt. This “Konohana (tree flower)” is an ancient name for cherry blossoms, and is said to derive from the beauty of the deity.

The legend of “Konohana-no-sakuyahime’s birth in the fire” is also believed to be a fire-related event. After the Edo period (1603-1867), the deity Mishima (Mishima-taisha) was regarded as the deity Oyamazumi, and the legend of a father-son relationship between Fuji and Mishima also appeared.

Today, Kibanosakuyabi-no-mikoto is regarded as the main deity at Sengen-taisha, with Ninigoki-no-mikoto and Oyamazuminushi as deities enshrined at the shrine.

History

Legend of the Founding of the Shrine

The origin of Sengen-taisha is described in detail in the “Fuji Hongu Sengen Sha Ki”, a shrine legend written by the Grand Priest Tamiji Tomiji during the Kansei era (1789-1801). According to this legend, Sengen Taisha was founded in Yamatogi, at the foot of Mt.

It is also said that during the reign of Emperor Keiko, Nihon no Musunon was attacked by bandits in Suruga Province and encountered difficulties, but he escaped by praying to the deity Sengen-taisho. Later, after he had pacified the bandits, Nihon no Musonin established a rockery in Yamamiya (present-day Yamamiya Sengen Shrine) and enshrined Asama-taijin.

Furthermore, in the first year of Daido (806), at the order of Emperor Heijo, Tamuramaro Sakagami built a shrine at the present Omiya site. Originally, the Omiya site was the shrine site of a deity called “Fukuchijin,” but when the deity Sengenjin was relocated, this site was also relocated and became the present Tomichi Shrine.

On the other hand, the first mention of an eruption of Mt. Fuji in the official history is found in the July article of the Ten’ogen (781) in the Shoku-nihongi (Chronicles of Japan). Fuji was described as a calm mountain in earlier documents, and no eruptions are believed to have occurred.

Sengen is worshipped as a god of fire, and in 853 (Ninju 3), he was given the rank of cousin (kami) and elevated to the rank of deity to quell the eruption of Mt. Fuji eruption, and the Asama-taisha was founded during the period between the eruption and the relocation of the shrine, i.e., between the first year of Ten’o (781) and the first year of Daido (806).

In addition, Tomichi Shrine, which was originally located in Omiya and is now located in the northern part of the Hongu precincts, has been deeply involved in the rituals of Sengen Taisha since ancient times. The deity’s name “Tomichi” is thought to be closely related to the name of the mountain “Fuji.

Furthermore, there is a theory that Yushitama Pond was used as a ritual site and that Mt. Fuji was worshipped as a god of water. This has led to the interpretation that the relocation of the Sengen deity was a symbolic event that marked the shift in Fuji worship from the belief in the water god “Fuchi Fuji” to the fire god “Asama”.

general history

The History of Asama-taisha Shrine from the Heian Period to the Edo Period

According to the Rikkokushi, Asama-taisha was anointed Meishin in the 3rd year of Ninju (853), and was later also anointed Shosan-nin. However, the origin of the Asama deity is believed to be much older.

Fuji erupted in the period from 864 to 866, and the Imperial Court interpreted this eruption as the result of ritual negligence on the part of the Asama Shrine. This led to the worship of the Asama deity in Kai Province and the spread of Asama worship to the Kai side of the mountain.

The shrine continued to be revered by the imperial court, court nobles, and samurai, and was listed as Meishin Taisha in the Engishiki Shinmeicho as “Meishin Dai, Asama Shrine, Fuji-gun, Suruga Province” and was also revered as the first shrine in Suruga Province.

Near the Suruga provincial capital, another Sengen Shrine called “Shingu” was also built, which was recommended by the Sengen Taisha Shrine. The Sengen Shrine in Kai Province was also listed as a Meishintaisha, indicating the depth of reverence for the deity Sengen.

From the Kamakura period to the Warring States period, the shrine was revered by powerful figures such as Minamoto no Yoritomo, Hojo Yoshitoki, Ashikaga Takauji, Imagawa Noriyoshi, Takeda Shingen, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who donated shrine territory and built the shrine buildings. Shingen Takeda dedicated yabusame (horseback archery), and this is believed to be the origin of yabusame (horseback archery) at Asama-taisha Shrine.

In the Edo period (1603-1867), the shrine was revered by Tokugawa Ieyasu and subsequent shoguns, and was granted red seal land and shrine buildings were constructed. Prayers were sometimes ordered by the shogunate, and the reverence for Sengen-taisha Shrine never ceased.

The History of Asama-taisha Shrine since the Meiji Era

During the Meiji period (1868-1912), the shrine was visited by members of the Imperial family, including Emperor Taisho and Prince Akihito Komatsunomiya in 1896, and later by Emperor Showa and Prince Yonin Chichibu when they climbed Mt.

In 1870, Shishino Han became the first government-appointed chief priest of the shrine, and in 1871, under the modern shrine ranking system, the shrine was upgraded to the status of “Sengen Shrine” under the national mintage system, and in 1896, it was elevated to the status of a government mintage shrine.

In 1907, the shrine was designated as a specially protected building under the Law for Preservation of Ancient Shrines and Temples, and in 1934, an otorii (grand gateway) was built in front of Fujinomiya Station.

After the war, the shrine was added to the attached list of shrines by the Jinja Honcho, and in 1981, the Otorii was removed in the name of the Gakunan Area Urban Planning. However, in 1982, as the head shrine of all Sengen shrines in Japan, the name was changed from “Fujiyama Hongu Sengen Shrine” to the current “Fujiyama Hongu Sengen Taisha”.

In 2006, the shrine celebrated the 1200th anniversary of its establishment and rebuilt the Otorii (Grand Gate), which was registered as a World Heritage site in 2013 as part of the “Mt.

About the precincts of the shrine and the main shrine pavilions

Main Shrine

The main shrine pavilion was built by Ieyasu Tokugawa in 1604. Although the main shrine building collapsed during the Hoei and Ansei-Tokai earthquakes, the main shrine building, worship hall, and tower gate still exist today.

The main hall, in particular, is designated as a National Important Cultural Property and is a rare example of a double-tiered rokaku-zukuri structure, with the sangensha-nagare-zukuri shrine building built on top of the yosemune-zukuri shrine building with a girder length of 5 ken and a beam length of 4 ken. The roof is of cypress bark, a characteristic form known as “sengen-zukuri.

The toadstools on the shrine grounds are decorated with a combination of the “chrysanthemum” and “hollyhock” crests. The family crests of the Fuji clan, such as “hemp palm crest,” chrysanthemum crest, hollyhock crest, and gozan-kiri crest, can also be seen on the toadstools.

These decorations were beautifully decorated with the chrysanthemum and hollyhock crests side by side, as is also noted in the Edo period records as “chrysanthemum and hollyhock crests”.

It is believed that Tokugawa Ieyasu built this shrine in order to fulfill his prayer for victory in the Battle of Sekigahara. The Shosengu ceremony was so grand that as many as 182 shrine workers alone are said to have participated in it.

In the past, Buddhist structures also existed on the temple grounds, indicating a form of Shinto/Buddhist syncretism. Buddhist structures such as the three-story pagoda, which cannot be seen today, are noted on a 1670 map of the shrine’s layout.

Other buildings on the grounds include a hall of worship and a tower gate, both of which are designated as cultural assets by Shizuoka Prefecture and are carefully protected.

About the Okumiya Shrine atop Mt.

Okumiya, located at the summit of Mt. Fuji, is perched atop the Omiya-Murayama-guchi trail. The grounds of Okumiya are designated as a “Special Protected Area” in the Fuji Hakone Izu National Park area of Mt.

Fuji Koho-ji Temple, but the Buddhist statues were removed due to the Shinto/Buddhist Separation Order, and the site is now managed as the Okumiya Shrine of the Sengen Taisha Shrine.

A stone monument with the inscription “Fujiyama-top Asama-taisha Okumiya” was erected in the Okumiya precincts and has become a symbol of the summit of the mountain.

The Yakushido Hall of the Okumiya Shrine used to serve as a collection point for Yamayaku sen (mountain tax), but due to the abolition of Buddhism, the Yakushido Hall was made a subsidiary shrine of Asama-taisha Shrine and administered as Kusushi Shrine (Tohoku Okumiya Shrine).

On the Okumiya’s main door is written in large gold letters “Kuni-jin-nujotake” (国鎭無上嶽), and inside the building there is a “senior citizen’s bookkeeping office”.

An opening ceremony is held on July 11, and priests are stationed at the shrine until the end of August to conduct rituals and award amulets. The Okumiya Shrine’s annual festival is held on August 15.

After the Closing Ceremony in September, the temple is uninhabited until it opens the following year.

History of Okumiya precincts

During the Edo period (1603-1868), under the patronage of Tokugawa Ieyasu, Sengen Taisha gained control over the summit of the mountain, with the privilege of building the main shrine and other structures on the mountain top. 1779, the shogunate officially granted control over the area above the 8th station, and this has continued since then.

The land donated to Okumiya was temporarily nationalized, but due to the application of the law, it was returned to the Sengen Taisha side. 2004 saw the return of this land, but since the prefectural boundary has not yet been determined, the land has not been registered.

The mountaintop religious site had been a sacred place since ancient times, and many religious facilities existed there, but many of them were removed due to the movement to abolish Buddhism. Today, some of the religious sites still remain on the summit of the mountain.

The special red seal of the inner shrine contains sand from the lava of Mt. Fuji, and a commemorative gift is given to those who make a notation on the list of elderly worshippers. This bookkeeping has been in place since 1960 and is handled at Okumiya Shrine and Kusushi Shrine, the terminal shrine of Sengen Taisha.

Important Cultural Properties (National Designation)

Honden (main hall) (structure): Constructed in Keicho 9. Designated on May 27, 1907.
Fuji Mandala (Paintings): Muromachi Period. Designated on June 11, 1977.
Tachi Sword, Namin Nan-no-yakushi Ruriko-nyorai, Bizen Province, Nagafune Sumi Kagemitsu (Artifact): Muromachi Period. It is said to have been dedicated to Takeda Shingen. Designated on February 8, 1902.
WAIKISHI (Waki-zashi), Gen no Shikibujo Nobukuni, Fuji Hongu, one period, one hip, Oei thirty-second year, second month day (crafted): Muromachi period, made by the Nobukuni school. This sword was made by the Nobukuni school and is said to have been made in the 34th year of Oei (1427). Designated on February 8, 1902.

Special Natural Monument (National Designation)

Yutama-ike Pond: Designated on March 29, 1952.

Shizuoka Prefecture Designated Cultural Property

Tangible Cultural Assets

Shrine (buildings): The hall of worship, the hall of offerings, and the open wall were built in Keicho 9. The tower gate was built in Keicho 19.
Fuji Sengen Mandala (painting): Designated on October 23, 1981.
Celadon glazed large jar with lotus petals design (handicraft): designated on March 18, 1977.
Celadon glazed incense burner with floating peony design (Crafts): designated March 18, 1977.
Large celadon bowl with carved design of lotus petals in celadon (handicraft): designated on March 18, 1977.
Five-piece Gusoku (Armor of five pieces) with red thread on iron plate tag (object of craftsmanship): said to have been dedicated by Katsuyori Takeda. Designated on March 18, 1977.

Intangible Folk Cultural Assets

Fujinomiya Hayashi (music): Designated on March 20, 1995.

Designated by Fujinomiya City.

Tangible Cultural Assets

Large naginata sword by Minamoto Yoshisuke (handicraft): Designated on May 10, 1965.
Two statues of Zuijin (sculpture): Designated on May 25, 1993.
Emperor Goyozei’s Imperial Letter (calligraphy and calligraphy): Designated on May 10, 1965.

Intangible Folk Cultural Assets

Mt. Fuji Hongu Sengen Taisha Yabusame (horseback archery): Designated on September 8, 2006.

Other Cultural Properties

Armor: Various Vigilant Armor (DOMARU), Various Vigilant Armor (OOSODE).
Handicrafts: 2 koto (Japanese harps).
Books: Mt.