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Wakasahiko Jinja
若狭彦神社
Wakasahiko Jinja ; 若狭彦神社
	Wakasahiko Jinja Shrine
Religion
Affiliation	Shinto
Deity	Hoori; Toyotama-hime
Festival	October 10 (upper shrine); March 10 (lower shrine)
Location
Location	Obama-shi, Fukui-ken
	Shown within Fukui Prefecture Wakasahiko Shrine (Japan)
Geographic coordinates	35°27′57.9″N 135°46′42.5″E / 35.466083°N 135.778472°E
Architecture
Date established	c.714
	Glossary of Shinto

Wakasahiko Jinja (若狭彦神社) is a Shinto shrine in the city of Obama in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. It is the ichinomiya of former Wakasa Province. The main festivals of the shrine are held annually on October 10 and March 10.^[1] The shrine is actually a twin shrine, consisting of the Wakasahiko Shrine (若狭彦神社, Wakasahiko jinja), or "upper shrine", and the Wakasahime Shrine (若狭姫神社, Wakasahime jinja), or "lower shrine". It is also sometimes referred to as the Onyu Myōjin (若狭彦神社)

Enshrined kami

The kami enshrined at Wakasahiko Jinja are:

Upper shrine: Hikohohodemi no Mikoto (彦火火出見尊), the son of Ninigi and grandfather of Emperor Jimmu
Lower shrine: Toyotama-hime (豊玉姫命), the daughter of the sea deity, Watatsumi.

Overview

The shrine is located at the foot of Mt. Tadagadake in the southeast from the center of Obama city. Wakasahiko Shrine was formerly worshipped by seafarers, as Hoori is said to have obtained magical beads with which he could manipulate the tides while residing at Ryūgū-jō; however, today he is regarded as the god of tatami mats, and is now also worshiped by people involved in interior decoration. Wakasahime Shrine is said to have a spiritual power for easy delivery and childcare. Currently, most of the festivals are held at the lower shrine, Wakasahime Shrine, and the priesthood is also resident only at the lower shrine.^[2]

History

The origins of Wakasahiko Jinja are unknown. According to the shrine's legend, the two kami appeared in the guise of people from Tang at Shiraishi hamlet in Shimonegori village, Onyu County and the Wakasahiko Jinja was built in 714. It was related to its present location in 715. The lower shrine, Wakasahime Jinja was built in 721. The shrine first appears in historical documentation in the Nihon Sandai Jitsuroku in an entry dated 859, when the upper shrine was promoted to senior second rank, and the lower shrine to junior third rank. In the Engishiki records of 927, the shrine is listed as a Myōjin Taisha. By the Kamakura period, the Wakasahiko Jinja was named the ichinomiya and the Wakasahime Jinja as the ninomiya of the province. Originally the upper shrine was the center of rituals, but this shifted to the lower shrine in the Muromachi period.^[2] During the Meiji period era of State Shinto, the shrine was rated as a national shrine, 2nd rank (国幣中社, kokuhei-chūsha), under the modern system of ranked Shinto shrines.^[3]

Precincts

Wakasahiko Jinja (Upper shrine)

Honden – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property
Rōmon (Zuishin-mon) – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property
Gate – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property

Rōmon
Gate
Yin-Yang stone

Wakasahime Jinja (Lower shrine)

Honden – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property
Romon (Zuishin-mon) – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property
Gate – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property
Noh Stage
Shaso – Fukui Prefectural Tangible Cultural Property

Romon
Gate
Noh stage

The Wakasahiko Jinja is located a 30-minute walk and the Wakasahime Jinja a ten-minute walk from Higashi-Obama Station on the JR West Obama Line.^[4]

References

Plutschow, Herbe. Matsuri: The Festivals of Japan. RoutledgeCurzon (1996) ISBN 1-873410-63-8
Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. OCLC 194887

External links

Media related to Wakasa-Hiko-jinja at Wikimedia Commons Media related to Wakasa-Hime-jinja at Wikimedia Commons

Notes

^ Shibuya, Nobuhiro (2015). Shokoku jinja Ichinomiya Ninomiya San'nomiya (in Japanese). Yamakawa shuppansha. ISBN 978-4634150867.
^ ^a ^b Yoshiki, Emi (2007). Zenkoku 'Ichinomiya' tettei gaido (in Japanese). PHP Institute. ISBN 978-4569669304.
^ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, pp. 125.
^ Okada, Shoji (2014). Taiyō no chizuchō 24 zenkoku 'Ichinomiya' meguri (in Japanese). Heibonsha. ISBN 978-4582945614.