Ube Shrine

Shinto shrine in Tottori, Japan From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ube Jinja (宇倍神社) is a Shinto shrine in the Kokufu-cho neighborhood of the city of Tottori in Tottori Prefecture, Japan. It is the ichinomiya of former Inaba Province. The main festival of the shrine is held annually on April 21.[1]

FestivalApril 21
Location651 Ichinomiya, Kokufu-cho, Tottori-shi, Tottori-ken
Quick facts Ube Jinja 宇倍神社, Religion ...
Ube Jinja
宇倍神社
Haiden of Ube Jinja
Religion
AffiliationShinto
DeityTakenouchi no Sukune
FestivalApril 21
Location
Location651 Ichinomiya, Kokufu-cho, Tottori-shi, Tottori-ken
Ube Shrine is located in Tottori Prefecture
Ube Shrine
Shown within Tottori Prefecture
Ube Shrine is located in Japan
Ube Shrine
Ube Shrine (Japan)
Interactive map of Ube Jinja
宇倍神社
Coordinates35°28′51″N 134°16′0.8″E
Architecture
Establishedunknown
Website
Official website
Glossary of Shinto
Close

Enshrined kami

The kami enshrined at Ube Jinja is:

  • Takenouchi no Sukune (武内宿禰), the legendary Japanese hero-statesman of the 1st century, who is also regarded as a deity of longevity.

History

5-Yen banknote with Takenouchi no Sukune and Ube Jinja

The origins of Ube Jinja are unknown. Although there is no documentary evidence, it is believed that it began as the family shrine for the Ifubuki clan of the Kofun period, who were the kuni no miyatsuko of Inaba, and who possessed sacred Japanese swords given to them by Emperor Seimu. According to the Heian period Engishiki, during the reign of the legendary Emperor Nintoku, Takenouchi no Sukune, who was over 360 years old at the time, went missing in Kamekinzan on the hillside of Mt. Ube in Inaba. There are two monoliths behind the shrine, which are part of a kofun said to be Takenouchi no Sukune's burial mound. The shrine is located near the site of the kokufu (provincial capital) of Inaba, and numerous archaeological sites are in the vicinity.

The shrine has been rebuilt repeatedly. During the Muromachi period, the shrine gradually lost its estates and declined. In 1581, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi attacked Tottori Castle, the shrine was reduced to ashes. It was reconstructed in 1633 with the assistance of Ikeda Mitsunaka, the daimyō of Tottori Domain under the Tokugawa shogunate.[2] During the Meiji era of State Shinto, the shrine was rated as a national shrine, 2nd rank[3] The current shrine dates to 1898. The haiden of Ube Jinja is depicted on the 5-yen bank note in circulation from 1899 to 1934.

The position of kannushi at the shrine has been a hereditary position of the Ifubuki clan since ancient times. The composer Akira Ifukube is the grandson of a 65th-generation kannushi.

The shrine is located a 20-minute walk from Tottori Station on the JR West San'in Main Line.[4]

See also

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

Notes

Related Articles

Wikiwand AI