Togakushi Shrine, Shinto shrine in Sōja, Ichihara, Chiba, Japan
Togakushi Shrine in Sōja, Ichihara, Chiba Prefecture, is a small village-level shrine (former village shrine) identified as the probable site of the sōja of Kazusa Province. It was founded on the first rooster day of the eighth month of 740 and is said to be a branch (tsuiji) of the Togakushi Shrine in Nagano. Its three enshrined deities are Omoikane-no-Mikoto, Ame-no-Tajikarao-no-Mikoto and Omoharu-no-Mikoto, and the grounds hold subsidiary shrines including a Sengen Shrine with a Fujizuka mound, a Kazusa Fushimi Inari and a Haraedo Ōkami.
Founded on the first rooster day of the eighth month of 740 (Tenpyō 12), this shrine is held to be a branch (suitei) of the Togakushi Shrine in Nagano Prefecture. It is presumed to be the sōja of Kazusa Province, largely because the surrounding district is named Sōja; the original site is thought to have stood near the former settlement of Jūnisho. The provincial Kokubun-ji and Kokubun-ni-ji temple ruins lie nearby.
The shrine's name comes from Togakushi Shrine in Nagano, of which this is considered a branch (tsuiseki). Its three enshrined deities are Omoikane-no-Mikoto, Ame-no-Tajikarao-no-Mikoto and Omoharu-no-Mikoto. In the grounds stand a Sengen Shrine with a Fujizuka mound, a Kazusa Fushimi Inari and a Haraedo Okami, among several small shrines.
Togakushi Shrine stands in the Sōja district of Ichihara, Chiba, near the sites of the former Kazusa provincial temple and nunnery, with the provincial capital also thought to lie nearby. The grounds hold several small subsidiary shrines, including a Sengen Shrine with a Fuji mound, a Kazusa Fushimi Inari and a Haraedo Ōkami.
The shrine is one of the candidate sites for the sōja, the provincial shrine where the kokushi of Kazusa gathered all the province's deities for worship. The identification rests on the surrounding place name Sōja, though the original site is thought to have stood near the former settlement of Jūnisho.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,759 contributors worldwide.