Eda Shrine is a historic Shinto shrine located in Awagihara-cho, Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture. It has a long history and is recognized as a Shikinaisha, a shrine listed in the ancient Engishiki records. Under the former shrine ranking system, it held the status of a prefectural shrine.
Closely associated with Japanese mythology, Eda Shrine is regarded as a sacred place and continues to receive the devotion of local residents.
The principal deity of Eda Shrine is Izanagi-no-Mikoto. In Japanese mythology, he is an important deity associated with the creation of the world and is said to have created the Japanese islands and numerous other gods.
Izanami-no-Mikoto, the wife of Izanagi-no-Mikoto, is also enshrined here. She was added to the shrine’s enshrined deities in Juei 2 (1183).
The two deities are collectively known as the Yabo Futahashira Daimyojin and are affectionately called Ubosama by local people.
The Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, two of Japan’s oldest historical and mythological chronicles, describe how Izanagi-no-Mikoto returned from the Land of the Dead and performed a purification ritual known as misogi.
The Kojiki refers to the place as “Tsukushi no Himuka no Tachibana no Odo no Awagihara,” while the Nihon Shoki records the name as “Tsukushi no Himuka no Odo no Tachibana no Akinohara.” These locations are traditionally identified with the area around present-day Eda Shrine.
The site is also regarded as important in the opening passages of Shinto prayers, known as norito, which are recited at shrines throughout Japan. Because of its association with Izanagi’s purification ritual, Eda Shrine is known as the birthplace of the Shinto purification tradition.
Near the shrine is Misogi Pond, traditionally believed to be the place where Izanagi-no-Mikoto performed his purification ritual. The area was once an inlet, but it was later reclaimed and came to be known as Eda.
According to the mythology associated with this place, the Three Noble Children—Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo, who were born to Izanagi—originated here, as did the Three Sumiyoshi Deities.
The area around Eda Shrine contains numerous remains of ancient settlements. Important examples include the Aki Site, dating to the early Yayoi period approximately 2,400 years ago, and the keyhole-shaped Aki No. 1 Kofun burial mound, dating to the late 3rd century in the early Kofun period.
The Aki No. 1 Kofun yielded the remains of a wooden burial chamber and wooden outer coffin structure, described as the largest of their kind discovered in Japan. These archaeological finds demonstrate the area’s long history of human settlement.
The earliest known written reference to Eda Shrine appears in the Shoku Nihon Koki, an official historical chronicle. An entry dated the first day of the eighth month of Jowa 4 (837) records that several shrines, including Eda Shrine in Miyazaki District of Hyuga Province, were placed under official recognition.
Eda Shrine is also listed as “Eda Shrine” in the Engishiki Jinmyocho, the register of shrines included in the Engishiki, confirming its status as a Shikinaisha.
By Tenroku 1 (970), the shrine had attained the highest court rank of Shoichii, or Senior First Rank. In earlier times, it is said to have possessed a magnificent shrine building decorated with the imperial chrysanthemum crest.
However, the great tsunami caused by the 1662 Tono Earthquake destroyed the shrine buildings. After this disaster, the shrine declined in status and came to serve primarily as the tutelary shrine of a local village. In the early Edo period, the scholar and traveler Tachibana Mitsuyoshi introduced it as “Eda no Mi-yashiro” in his work Shokoku Ichinomiya Junkeiki.
In 1873, Eda Shrine was designated a prefectural shrine under the modern shrine ranking system. In 1907, it was designated a shrine eligible to receive offerings of food and cloth from the state.
Eda Shrine was officially recognized as a government shrine in 837. In 858, its court rank was raised from Jugoi (Junior Fifth Rank) to Jugoi-jō (Junior Fourth Rank), according to the historical record.
The main shrine and its sanctuary form the central place of worship within the grounds, where visitors come to offer prayers.
Northeast of the shrine is a pond known as Miike or Misogi Pond. It is traditionally believed to be the place where Izanagi-no-Mikoto performed his purification ritual. The pond remains a sacred site and is visited by many worshippers.
Near the pond stands Misogi Goten, a building associated with the importance of ritual purification. It maintains a sacred atmosphere connected with the mythology of the area.
The Kinensai is held every year on February 17. During this ceremony, prayers are offered for a good harvest and agricultural prosperity.
The Oharai Festival takes place on June 30 and includes a special purification ritual known as Chinowa Kuguri, in which participants pass through a large ring made of woven reeds.
In the past, people would perform a beach purification ritual on the shore on the evening before the festival. Today, after a mikoshi portable-shrine procession, priests, parishioners, and visitors take turns passing through the chinowa ring to pray for good health and protection from illness.
The annual grand festival is held on November 22 and is celebrated enthusiastically by local residents.
At the Niiname-sai, offerings of newly harvested rice and other produce are made to the deities. The ceremony expresses gratitude and celebrates the year’s harvest.
Eda Kagura is dedicated during the spring Shani Festival and the autumn annual grand festival. The tradition is very old, and a kagura mask bearing an inscription dated Keicho 17 (1612) has been preserved to the present day.
Eda Shrine is located at Ubo 127, Awagihara-cho, Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture.
Visitors can take Miyazaki Kotsu bus route 19, the Zoo Line, and get off at the Eda Shrine bus stop. The shrine is just a short walk from the stop.
Sumiyoshi Shrine is located near Eda Shrine. It enshrines the Three Sumiyoshi Deities, who are traditionally said to have been born during Izanagi-no-Mikoto’s purification ritual. Visiting both shrines offers another way to explore the mythology associated with this area.