is a Shinto shrine located on Uotsuri-jima in the

Senkaku Islands The are a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, administered by Japan. They are located northeast of Taiwan, east of China, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands. They are known in main ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The shrine is dedicated to

Amaterasu Amaterasu, also known as Amaterasu Ōmikami () or Ōhirume no Muchi no Kami (), is the goddess of the sun in Japanese mythology. One of the major deities (''kami'') of Shinto, she is also portrayed in Japan's earliest literary texts, the ''Kojik ...

. The shrine was founded on April 20, 2000 and serves to pray for the safe passage of all boats through the Senkaku Islands and the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

. Construction was led by

Nihon Seinensha Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, a right-wing organization affiliated with the

Sumiyoshi-kai The , sometimes referred to as the , is the second-largest yakuza group in Japan with an estimated 4,000 members. Outline Their territories mainly consist of upscale districts such as Kabukichō and Ginza. Shops operating in these territories ...

, and wooden ''

hokora is a miniature Shinto shrine either found on the precincts of a larger shrine and dedicated to folk ''kami'', or on a street side, enshrining ''kami'' not under the jurisdiction of any large shrine.Encyclopedia of ShintoHokora Accessed on De ...

'' were also constructed. When the shrine was founded, it was the first time since the

end of World War II End of World War II can refer to: * End of World War II in Europe * End of World War II in Asia World War II officially ended in Asia on September 2, 1945, with the surrender of Japan on the . Before that, the United States dropped two atomic ...

that a ''

kannushi A , also called , is a person responsible for the maintenance of a as well as for leading worship of a given .* ''Kannushi'' (in Japanese), Iwanami Japanese dictionary, 6th Edition (2008), DVD version The characters for are sometimes also re ...

'' had been on the island. Every year, the two lighthouses built by Seinensha on the island are inspected and serviced, and during this time a yearly festival occurs, and prayers are issued for safe passage. In 2006, Seinensha donated the lighthouses to the government and they are now a national property administered by the

Japan Coast Guard The is the coast guard of Japan. The Japan Coast Guard consists of about 13,700 personnel and is responsible for the protection of the coastline of Japan under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. Th ...

. In March 2004, several Chinese activists illegally landed on the island. Seinensha reported the incident to the

Okinawa Police is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

, who arrested the activists and made a damage report. Afterwards, Seinensha rebuilt the ''hokora'' and erected a plinth with the words "Senkaku Jinja" written on it. The ''hokora'' and plinth are built of solid granite.

References

Religious organizations established in 2000 Shinto shrines in Okinawa Prefecture Religious buildings and structures completed in 2000 Shinmei shrines {{Shinmei shrines