is a

Shinto shrine A Stuart D. B. Picken, 1994. p. xxiii is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more kami, , the deities of the Shinto religion. The Also called the . is where a shrine's patron is or are enshrined.Iwanami Japanese dic ...

located in the

Bunkyō is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. Situated in the middle of the ward area, Bunkyō is a residential and educational center. Beginning in the Meiji period, literati like Natsume Sōseki, as well as ...

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Established in 1705, it is one of the oldest places of worship in the city, and several of the buildings on the shrine grounds have been designated as Important Cultural Property. It was built in the

Ishi-no-ma-zukuri , also called , and , is a complex Shinto shrine structure in which the '' haiden'', or worship hall, and the ''honden'', or main sanctuary, are interconnected under the same roof in the shape of an H.Encyclopedia of Shinto''Gongen-zukuri''acces ...

style of

Shinto architecture Some examples of Shinto architecture Shinto architecture is the architecture of Japanese Shinto shrines. With a few exceptions like Ise Grand Shrine and Izumo Taisha, Shinto shrines before Buddhism were mostly temporary structures erected t ...

, following the Tōshō-gū shrine in

Nikkō is a Cities of Japan, city in Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. , the city's population was 80,239, in 36,531 households. The population density was 55 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Nikkō is a popular destination for Japanese and ...

. It is famous for its

Azalea Azaleas ( ) are flowering shrubs in the genus ''Rhododendron'', particularly the former sections ''Rhododendron sect. Tsutsusi, Tsutsusi'' (evergreen) and ''Pentanthera'' (deciduous). Azaleas bloom in the spring (April and May in the temperate ...

Festival (Tsutsuji Matsuri) which is held on its grounds from early April until early May, and it has been described as "

’s most beautiful shrine" and as one of the city's "most spectacular spring scenes". It is one of the .

History

According to the legend, the Nezu shrine was founded in Sendagi, just north of the current location, in the 1st century by

Yamato Takeru , originally , was a Japanese folk hero and semi-legendary prince of the imperial dynasty, son of Emperor Keikō, who is traditionally counted as the 12th Emperor of Japan. The kanji spelling of his name varies: it appears in the ''Nihon Shoki'' ...

(also known as Prince Ōsu), the son of

Emperor Keikō , also known as and , was the 12th legendary Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Both the ''Kojiki'', and the ''Nihon Shoki'' (collectively known as the ''Kiki'') record events that took place during Keikō's all ...

. The chief deity of the shrine was

Susanoo-no-Mikoto __FORCETOC__ Susanoo (, ; Historical kana orthography, historical orthography: , ), often referred to by the honorific title Susanoo-no-Mikoto (), is a in Japanese mythology. The younger brother of Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and mythical an ...

, the

kami are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...

of the

sea A sea is a large body of salt water. There are particular seas and the sea. The sea commonly refers to the ocean, the interconnected body of seawaters that spans most of Earth. Particular seas are either marginal seas, second-order section ...

and

storms A storm is any disturbed state of the natural environment or the atmosphere of an astronomical body. It may be marked by significant disruptions to normal conditions such as strong wind, tornadoes, hail, thunder and lightning (a thunderstorm) ...

. In 1705 the shrine was relocated to Nezu by

Tokugawa Tsunayoshi was the fifth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the younger brother of Tokugawa Ietsuna, as well as the son of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the grandson of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the great-grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu.Nussbaum, Louis- ...

(1646–1709), the fifth ''

shōgun , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...

'' of the Tokugawa dynasty, on the occasion of him choosing his successor,

Tokugawa Ienobu (11 June 1662 – 12 November 1712) was the sixth ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa dynasty of Japan. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Tsunashige, thus making him the nephew of Tokugawa Ietsuna and Tokugawa Tsunayoshi, the grandson of Tokugawa Iem ...

(1662–1712). In turn, Ienobu chose it as the guardian deity. Nothing is left from the structures prior to the relocation, but it still is one of the oldest shrines in the city. When

Emperor Meiji , posthumously honored as , was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the List of emperors of Japan, traditional order of succession, reigning from 1867 until his death in 1912. His reign is associated with the Meiji Restoration of 1868, which ...

moved his residence from the

Kyoto Imperial Palace The is the former palace of the Emperor of Japan, located in Kamigyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan. Since the Meiji Restoration in 1869, the Emperors have resided at the Tokyo Imperial Palace, while the preservation of the Kyoto Imperial Palace was ordered ...

to the Imperial Palace in

in 1868-1869, he sent envoys to the shrine to have it intercede with the gods on his behalf.

Architecture

Torii

There is a multitude of surrounding Nezu Shrine. The two main entrances are marked by big red ''torii'' in the ''myōjin'' style, very common in

, characterized by curved upper lintels. A plaque on top of them reads ''根津神社'', the name of the shrine. They are flanked by lanterns. One of the most famous features of the shrine is the path of vermilion torii through the hillside left of the main hall. In the middle of the path there is a viewing platform over a pond of

koi , or more specifically , are colored varieties of carp ('' Cyprinus'' sp.) that are kept for decorative purposes in outdoor koi ponds or water gardens. Koi is an informal name for the colored variants of carp kept for ornamental purposes. ...

, overlooking the main shrine precincts. The subsidiary Otome Inari Shrine is located here. Another shorter path of torii leads down some stairs from the subsidiary Komagome Shrine to the larger path of torii. File:Nezu jinja - Torii 1.jpg, red ''myōjin torii'' at one of the entrances File:Nezu jinja - Torii 4.jpg, a stone ''myōjin torii'' File:Nezu jinja - Torii 3.jpg, entrance to the path of ''torii'' File:Nezu jinja - Torii 2.jpg, a shorter ''torii'' path

Rōmon

A two-storied is a type of

mon Mon, MON or Mon. may refer to: Places * Mon State, a subdivision of Myanmar * Mon, India, a town in Nagaland * Mon district, Nagaland * Mon, Raebareli, a village in Uttar Pradesh, India * Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Canton of Grisons * A ...

characterized by an inaccessible upper floor. Originally an element of

Buddhist architecture Buddhist religious architecture developed in the Indian subcontinent. Three types of structures are associated with the sacred architecture, religious architecture of History of Buddhism, early Buddhism: monasteries (viharas), places to venerate ...

, this type of mon is also commonly found in

s. The one at Nezu shrine is located between the ''honden'' and a little bridge, which makes it a popular attraction of the shrine. A placque on top of the gate reads . It is guarded by two zuishin, statues of

warrior-guardians depicted holding bows and arrows. It was built in 1706, and it is designated an Important Cultural Property. File:Nezu jinja - Romon 2.jpg, front view of the ''rōmon'' File:Nezu jinja - Romon 3.jpg, placque with the name of the shrine File:Nezu jinja - Romon 1.jpg, detail of one side of the ''rōmon'' File:Nezu jinja - Romon 5.jpg, one of the two '' zuishin'' statue

Honden

The main building of Nezu shrine is a in the ''

'' style, a complex

structure in which the '' haiden'', or worship hall, the '' heiden'', or offertory hall, and the ''honden'', are all interconnected under the same roof. The whole structure dates from 1706. All three parts of the building (''honden'', ''haiden'' and ''heiden'') are separately designated as an Important Cultural Property. File:Nezu jinja - Honden 12.jpg, front view of the ''honden'' File:Nezu jinja - Honden 4.jpg, detail of the ''honden'' File:Nezu jinja - Honden 11.jpg, interior of the ''honden'' and ''haiden'' File:Nezu jinja - Honden 1.jpg, the ''honden'' seen from the viewing platform

Karamon and Sukibei walls

A is a type of ''mon'' found in

Japanese castle are fortresses constructed primarily of wood and stone. They evolved from the wooden stockades of earlier centuries and came into their best-known form in the 16th century. Castles in Japan were built to guard important or strategic sites, such a ...

Buddhist temples A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat, khurul and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in Buddhi ...

and

s. Connected to it in this case there is a , a 200 meter wall surrounding the ''honden''. A similar combination of ''karamon'' and ''Sukibei'' can be seen at the

Ueno Tōshō-gū is a Tōshō-gū Shinto shrine located in the Taitō Special wards of Tokyo, ward of Tokyo, Japan. First established in 1627 by Tōdō Takatora and renovated in 1651 by Tokugawa Iemitsu, the shrine has remained mostly intact since that time, ma ...

, another

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

closely associated to the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

. Both structures were built in 1706, and both of them are designated as Important Cultural Properties. File:Nezu jinja - Karamon 2.jpg, front view of the ''karamon'' File:Nezu jinja - Sukibei 2.jpg, the ''Sukibei'' senn from the outside File:Nezu jinja - Sukibei 4.jpg, the ''Sukibei'' senn from the inside File:Nezu jinja - Sukibei 6.jpg, ''honden'' seen through the ''Sukibei'' File:Nezu-jinja-4.jpg,

Mikoshi A is a sacred religious palanquin (also translated as portable Shinto shrine). Shinto followers believe that it serves as the vehicle to transport a deity in Japan while moving between main shrine and temporary shrine during a festival or when ...

File:AzaleaFestivalNezuJinja.jpg,

Rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; : ''rhododendra'') is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the Ericaceae, heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan ...

Access

There is no admission fee for visitors to enter the shrine precincts. The entrances are at a 5 minute walk from Nezu Station on the

Chiyoda Line The is a subway line owned and operated by Tokyo Metro in Tokyo, Japan. On average, the line carries 1,447,730 passengers daily (2017), the second highest of the Tokyo Metro network, behind the Tozai Line (1,642,378).Sendagi Station in the same line) and at a 6 minute walk from Todaimae Station on the Namboku Line.

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Shinto shrines in Tokyo Buildings and structures in Bunkyō Important Cultural Properties of Japan Tokyo Ten Shrines Ishi-no-ma-zukuri