葭原神社, Shinto shrine in Japan
Ashihara Shrine is a small Shinto shrine standing at the southern edge of Tsukiyomi-no-miya's grounds in Ise, reached near the rear approach. Its board-roofed Shinmei-zukuri hall faces south inside a single tamagaki fence, with one Shinmei torii before it and a large camphor tree beside the hall. The grounds cover about 238 square metres, and no offering box is set out.
The shrine is attributed to Yamatohime-no-mikoto and appears in the Engishiki-era Kōtaijingū Gishikichō, compiled in 804, so it existed before that year. The Nihon Montoku Tennō Jitsuroku records an entry for 858. The medieval shrine fell into ruin and its site was lost by the early Meiji period; in 1880 the shrine was rebuilt using old timber from the east and west storehouses of Mishiodono Shrine, and it was rebuilt again in 1918 and 1957.
The name Ashiwara means reed field, recalling the reeds that once grew around the shrine; the shrine is also called Iga-i no Mori by local residents, after the name of its deity. The three enshrined deities, Satsuhiko, Ukanomitama-no-Mioya and Ikarahime, are guardians of fields and grain. The shrine has no offering box.
The shrine sits near a main road and is easily accessible by car or bus, just minutes on foot from nearby stations, with parking available nearby. The small grounds with simple facilities allow visitors to spend time in a quiet space without crowds.
The shrine is one of the 16 subordinate shrines (massha) of the Inner Shrine of Ise, ranked third among them. It is also listed in the Engishiki Shrine Register as "Ogihara Shrine," and in the Meiji era the shrine administration concluded that the two names refer to the same place, adopting the reading "Ashihara."
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