Naka Homan Shrine

Climbing out of the Fukuoka Plain on a small road that leads over to the next pilgrimage temple I spied a torii and went to investigate and found Naka Homan Shrine.

Less than a kilometer away is Homan Shrine, and I'm guessing this was built as a branch of it in 1675.

The three kami listed are Tamayorihime, Okinagatarashihime, and Homuda Wake. The latter two are more commonly known as Empress Jingu and Emperor Ojin, but this is not called a Hachimangu. According to the myth Jingu gave birth to Ojin not too far from here in Umi.

Exactly who Tamayorihime is remains a mystery. There are several famous kami with the same name as it really just means a woman who lies down with a kami and bears his child. However, Mount Homan is not far away and on it is Kamado Shrine, built to protect Dazaifu from the NE direction. A female kami appeared and said she was Tamayorihime and protected this mountain. The main Homan shrine near here, that this shrine is a branch of, is near a tomb that local legend says contains Tamayorihime. 

The previous post in this series exploring my walk along the Kyushu pilgrimage was on Chiroku Shrine.