Naganoken-Gokoku-jinja

Naganoken-Gokoku-jinja is a Shinto shrine in Matsumoto featuring traditional wooden architecture, torii gates at the entrance, and a main prayer hall set on well-maintained grounds. The shrine includes a purification basin, a memorial statue, a kyudo dojo for archery practice, and belongs to a network of shrines across Japan dedicated to honoring the war dead.

The shrine was originally founded in the late 1800s as a small temple honoring soldiers from the Boshin War, then officially recognized as a Gokoku Shrine during the 1930s. After World War II, its name was changed to reflect a purpose centered on peaceful remembrance and reflection rather than military honors alone.

The shrine functions as a community space where visitors come to pray quietly and reflect on personal matters and shared memories. The traditional setting and peaceful surroundings invite a sense of connection to local history and family bonds.

The shrine is surrounded by trees that provide shaded paths and create a restful environment, making it comfortable to visit on warm days. Visitors can participate in purification rituals, collect traditional goshuin seals on paper or bookmarks, and explore the kyudo dojo if interested in archery practice.

The shrine displays a new zodiac animal painting each year that changes according to the Japanese zodiac calendar, for example a large tiger mural from 2022. During special ceremonies on June 30th, visitors can pass through a ring made of reed and use a ritual doll to symbolically brush away impurities from themselves.