| Fushimi Inari-taisha | |
|---|---|
伏見稲荷大社 | |
 Torii path with a hanging lantern at Fushimi Inari-Taisha Shrine | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Shinto |
| Deity | Uka-no-Mitama-no-Ōkami, et al. asInari Ōkami |
| Type | Inari shrine |
| Location | |
| Location | Fushimi-ku, Kyoto,Kyoto,Kyoto Prefecture,Japan |
  Shown within Kyoto city Show map of Kyoto city Fushimi Inari-taisha (Japan) Show map of Japan | |
| Coordinates | 34°58′2″N135°46′22″E / 34.96722°N 135.77278°E /34.96722; 135.77278 |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Kasuga-zukuri |
| Established | 711 |
| Website | |
| inari | |
 Glossary of Shinto | |
Fushimi Inari-taisha (Japanese:伏見稲荷大社) is the headshrine of thekamiInari, located inFushimi-ku,Kyoto,Kyoto Prefecture,Japan. The shrine sits at the base of a mountain, also named Inari, which is 233 metres (764 ft) above sea level, and includes trails up the mountain to many smaller shrines which span 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) and take approximately 2 hours to walk up.[1] It is unclear whether the mountain's name,Inariyama, or the shrine's name came first.[2]
The shrine was formally founded in 711 CE by theHata clan, an influential immigrant group from the Korean Peninsula. Inari was originally and remains primarily thekami of rice and agriculture, but merchants also worship Inari as the patron of business.[3] Each of Fushimi Inari-taisha's roughly 10,000torii were donated by a Japanese business, and approximately 800 of these are set in a row to form the Senbon Torii, creating the impression of a tunnel.[4] The shrine is said to have ten thousand such gates in total that designate the entrance to the holy domain ofkami and protect it against wicked forces.[2]
Owing to the popularity of Inari'sdivision andre-enshrinement, this shrine is said to have as many as 32,000 sub-shrines (分社bunsha) throughout Japan.[5]
.jpg)
The shrine's foundation is traditionally dated to 711 CE (the Wadō era), though its religious significance is deeply rooted in the migration of theHata clan (秦氏, Hata-uji).[6] The Hata were a prominent group oftoraijin (immigrants from the Korean Peninsula) who settled in theYamashiro Province during theKofun period. Historical and genealogical records, such as the Shinsen Shōjiroku, suggest the clan migrated from the Korean kingdom ofSilla orPaekche, bringing advanced continental technologies in irrigation, sericulture, and sake brewing to Japan.[7]
According to the Yamashiro-no-kuniFudoki, the shrine was established by Hata no Irogu (秦伊呂具). Legend states that Irogu, a wealthy landowner, shot an arrow at amochi, which then transformed into a white bird and flew to the peak of Mount Inari; rice grew where the bird landed, leading Irogu to enshrine the deity there. The Hata clan’s technical expertise in agriculture and their close ties to the Imperial Court allowed the Inari deity to transition from a private clan tutelary (ujigami) to a major national protector of the harvest and the state.[7]
The shrine gained imperial patronage during the earlyHeian period.[8] In 965,Emperor Murakami decreed that messengers carry written accounts of important events to the guardiankami of Japan. Theseheihaku were initially presented to 16 shrines, including the Inari Shrine.[9]
From 1871 through 1946, Fushimi Inari-taisha was officially designated one of theKanpei-taisha (官幣大社), meaning that it stood in the first rank of government supported shrines.[10]
Unlike most Shinto shrines, Fushimi Inari-taisha, in keeping with typical Inari shrines, has an open view of the main object of worship (a mirror).
A drawing in Kiyoshi Nozaki'sKitsune: Japan's Fox of Mystery, Romance and Humor in 1786 depicting the shrine says that its two-story entry gate was built byToyotomi Hideyoshi.
The shrine draws several million worshipers over theJapanese New Year, 2.69 million for 3 days in 2006 reported by the police, the most in western Japan.
The earliest structures were built in 711 on theInariyama hill in southwestern Kyoto, but the shrine was re-located in 816 on the request of the monkKūkai. The main shrine structure was built in 1499.[11] At the bottom of the hill are the main gate (楼門;rōmon, "tower gate") and the main shrine (御本殿;go-honden). Behind them, in the middle of the mountain, the inner shrine (奥宮;okumiya) is reachable by a path lined with thousands oftorii. On the way to the top of the mountain are tens of thousands of rock altars(otsuka お塚) for private worship. These rock altars are personalised Inari that have been set up there by citizens. Most of them have individual names for Inari engraved on them.[12]
The highlight of the shrine is the rows oftorii gates, known as Senbon torii (千本鳥居), "thousand torii". The custom to donate a torii began spreading from the Edo period (1603–1868) to have a wish come true or in gratitude for a wish that came true, with successive gates being added up to the present day by donors out of gratitude. Along the main path there are around 800torii gates.[4]
The shrine is just outsideInari Station on theNara Line of theWest Japan Railway Company (JR), a five-minute ride fromKyoto Station. It is a short walk fromFushimi-Inari Station on theMain Line of theKeihan Electric Railway.[13]
The shrine is open 24 hours with the approach to the shrine and theHonden (本殿,main hall) itself illuminated all night. There is no entrance fee.
In the approach to the shrine are a number of sweet shops sellingtsujiurasenbei (辻占煎餅), a form offortune cookie dating at least to the 19th century, and which are believed by some to be the origin of the American fortune cookie.[14][15][16]
 | This sectionis inlist format but may read better asprose. You can help byconverting this section, if appropriate.Editing help is available.(June 2017) |
A part of theNoh playKokaji takes place inFushimi Inari-taisha.[17]
The shrine inspiredNintendo game designer,Shigeru Miyamoto, to create the seriesStar Fox. In the series, players controlFox McCloud and fly starfighters through colorful rings inaerial combat. Miyamoto attributed these inspirations to the Fushimi Inari Shrine, which is within walking distance of the Nintendo Kyoto campus.[18]
.jpg)
Foxes (kitsune), regarded as the messengers, are often found in Inari shrines. One attribute is a key (for the rice granary) in their mouths.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
| Gods |
|  | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Places |
| ||||||
| Misc | |||||||
34°58′02″N135°46′22″E / 34.96722°N 135.77278°E /34.96722; 135.77278
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Other | |
