Hakusan Shrine, shrine located in Ichibanhoridori-cho, Chuo-ku, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture
Hakusan Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Ichibanboridōri-chō, entered through a traditional torii gate that leads along a stone path to a central prayer hall. The grounds are enclosed by tall trees that separate the space from the surrounding streets.
The founding date is unknown because records were lost in fires in the Eiroku and Tensho eras, though tradition dates it to either the Engi or Kanji era. In 1570 the monk Kenkai of Hōki-in installed a sacred sword, mirror and eleven-headed Kannon statue here. Uesugi Kagekatsu donated to the shrine after victories, and in 1873 the Meiji government ordered Hakusan Park, merging subsidiary shrines into the main hall. It became a prefectural shrine in 1924 and a Beppyō shrine in 1981.
The shrine is decorated with seasonal lanterns and paper streamers that change depending on the time of year. Visitors can write personal wishes on small wooden tablets called ema and hang them on wooden racks near the main hall.
The shrine is free to enter and can be visited throughout the year. Going in the early morning gives you a quieter visit, as the grounds tend to be more lively later in the day.
The shrine appears in Shinji Mizushima's manga "Abusan", where the protagonist Yasutake Kageura marries his wife at the shrine. Mizushima was born in Niigata. Another shrine of the same name in Nuttari Higashi is called "Nuttari Hakusan" to distinguish it from this one.
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