Bushu Kakio Kotohira Jinja, located in Kawasaki City, Kanagawa, is known as an energy spot where you can receive great benefits. The temple attracts many worshippers, including people praying for delivery and Omiyamairi (baby’s first shrine visit). During the Shichigosan season in October and November, the shrine is crowded with local families with children.The shrine is about 15 minutes by bus from Kakio Station on the Odakyu Line. If you walk it takes about 40 minutes, but on a mild sunny day a walk around the temple is very nice. The best time to visit the temple is in early summer when it is lush with fresh greenery, mid-summer when the greenery is beautiful, and autumn when the leaves are changing colors. The temple grounds, which are always clean and tidy, is a popular place for local people to relax.
History of Bushu Kakio Kotohira Jinja-Shrine
Kotohira Shrine has a long history. It is said that the Shinmeisha shrine, dedicated to Amaterasu, was enshrined here from 1570. Later, in 1826, the deity from Kotohiragu in Shikoku was transferred and the shrine was rebuilt as a combination of Shinmeisha and Kotohirasha. This is said to be the beginning of ‘Kotohira Shrine’.
Therefore, Amaterasu is enshrined on the right side and Kotohira-no-Okami (Ō-mono-nushi-no-mikoto) on the left side. The two deities are seated separately.
In 1980, the shrine was renamed ‘Kotohira Shrine’ due to the growing number of people who revere the god Konpira.
Highlights of Bushu Kakio Kotohira Jinja-Shrine
Main Shrine
Behind the vermilion-lacquered torii gate is not the main shrine but the ceremonial hall. The architecture style is rather unusual, with the main shrine located on the right side of the torii gate, at the top of a small hill and up a flight of stone steps.
The main shrine was burned down by arson in 2007. Since the main shrine was built in the kura-zukuri style, the sacred body and treasures were protected and temporarily moved to the ceremonial hall. After that it was reconstructed, and a brand new main shrine was completed in 2011.
The sixty-three paintings on the ceiling of the former main shrine were lost in a fire, but were restored from photographs during the reconstruction. The oil paintings, which were painted by the current head priest himself on golden canvases, are housed in the ceiling of the main shrine.
The Fountain of Gaman-san
The main shrine’s washing basin is supported by four hermits called ‘Gaman-san’. It is said that in the old days when famine or sickness struck, or when people were sent to work as migrant workers or apprentices, they would look at Gaman-san and endure their own suffering.
Also, girls who were sent off to marry and soldiers going to war also prayed to this statue before leaving their hometown.
Vermillion Torii
The vermilion-lacquered torii gate in the ceremonial hall was rebuilt in 1991 to commemorate the Emperor’s (the current Emperor Emeritus) accession to the throne. With a width of about 14 meters and a height of about 13 meters, it is quite large and shows a strong presence.
Ceremonial Hall
The main shrine is located on a small hill across the road from the main shrine, and visitors have to climb steep stairs to get there. So the ritual hall was built so that people with difficulty visiting the main shrine can pay their respects too. This is where prayers are offered for Hatsumiya-mode (first visit to the shrine) or warding off evil spirits, and amulets and goshuin (seal stamps) are given.
Zeniarai Benzaiten
At the back of the ceremonial hall is the Zeniarai Benzaiten. Originally a river god, Benzaiten, as can be seen by the letter ‘zai (wealth)’ in here name, is the god of money and wealth. She is often seen with her musical instrument, a biwa, and is also worshipped as a god of performing arts.
It is said that if you wash your money in the water of the Benzaiten shrine, your wealth will increase. At the Bushu Kakio Kotohira Shrine, there is a stream flowing next to it where you can actually wash your money.
Gazebo
In the precincts of Kotohira Shrine, there is a gazebo where you can relax. Wisteria trellises and weeping cherry trees are planted around and they bloom beautifully. It is a popular place to relax on the way to the shrine.
Access to Bushu Kakio Kotohira Jinja-Shrine
5-46-15, Ozenji-Higashi, Asao-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa, Japan
TEL：044-988-0045
Take a bus from the south exit of Kakio Station on the Odakyu Line and get off at Kotohirashita bus stop.
Parking around Bushu Kakio Kotohira Jinja-Shrine
Bushu Kakio Kotohira Jinja-Shrine Official Website
Official Site：https://www.kotohirajinja.com/