Yuki Shrine, Shinto shrine in Sakyō-ku, Japan
Yuki Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Kurama, Sakyō-ku, Kyoto, built on a slope with its main hall raised on a dark timber framework above a stone base. A broad, low-pitched shingled roof covers the hall, and a curved projecting gable shelters the entrance. A large torii of pale unpainted wood stands on the terrace in front, with stone steps rising behind it to the hall.
The shrine was established in 940 and relocated from the Imperial Palace following a major earthquake. This move led to its role as a protective guardian structure for the surrounding Kurama region.
The name Yuki Myōjin comes from yuki, a quiver offered before the deity during imperial illness or national crisis. The shrine shares its deities with Gojō Tenjin in Kyoto, where officials once hung a quiver on the shrine door to close it. The October 22 fire festival reenacts villagers welcoming the deity with torches in 940.
The shrine sits close to Kurama Station and welcomes visitors throughout the year with no entrance fee required. Walking through the grounds is straightforward, with natural pathways that guide you through the sacred areas.
The shrine keeps a pair of stone guardian dogs, now deposited at the Kyoto National Museum, where they are displayed as "stone lions". The shrine also honours a cedar about 800 years old and roughly 53 metres tall, a Kyoto City Natural Monument known as "Osugi-san" and used for vow-making.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 94,328 contributors worldwide.
