Sending the gods away at Mankusen Shrine

 

It's that time of the year again,... in Izumo known as Kamiarizuki, the month with the gods, and in the rest of the country Kannazuki, the month without the gods. Often repeated that ALL the gods of Japan visit Izumo Taishi at this time, in fact only most of the gods visit, and they visit a wide range of shrines scattered across the old province of Izumo.

Many years ago I visited Mankusen Shrine on the banks of the Hi River not too far from Izumo Taisha to see a unique ceremony that sends the kami away at the end of their AGM. A youn priest eplained it to me that the kami are particularly fond of the sake made in the area around the shrine, and were therefore reluctant to leave. It very much reminded me of closing time in an English Pub when the landlords have to try and get everyone out of the premises. He asked if I would like to observe the ceremony, nd of course I said yes as the public are not allowed to watch.

First, a camera crew from the local TV station and myself were given the white vest that signifies that we were temporary "staff" of the shrine, and then he performed a purification for us. The first part of the ceremony to send the kami home takes place in the usual part of the shrine and involved purification and reading of norito etc.

It then moves to an adjacent building purpose-built for the ceremony. Here, hidden from public view, is a kind of altar with two big, heavy doors, open while the kami are in residence.

At the end of the ceremony/ritual, the heavy doors are closed. Interestingly the building for the ritual is a Meiji-period creation. Prior to that, the ceremony took place in a grove of trees.

Sada Shrine

Sada Shrine, located north of Matsue, was once the most important shrine in the Izumo region. Enshrined in the central honden are 5 kami, the main one being Sadano Okami, along with Izanagi and Izanami, and the pair Hayatamano and Kotosakano. Izanagi and Izanami are well known, and in Izumo, Hayatamano and Kotosakano, 2 kami associated with the "divorce" of Izanagi and Izanami are also fairly common. Little is known of the main kami though except he is known as the protector of the Shimane Peninsula. He was born in a nearby sea cave called kaganokukedo and some posts on that can be found here.

The right (north) honden enshrines the Imperial kami: Amaterasu, and her grandson Ninigi. The left honden enshrines Susano, and something called Hisetsu Yonchu, which I think means "hidden four poles", about which I can find no information.

Sada Shrine is one of the many shrines where the mass kami of Japan arrive in November during kamiarizuki, though it is widely reported that they all go to Izumo Taisha.

Sada Shrine is also home to the UNESCO registered Sada Shin Noh. a form of Noh-influenced kagura that is believed to have influenced satokagura nationwide.

When I first explored this area many years ago I found it interesting to klearn that the earliest known yayoi site in Izumo was found in this valley indicating perhaps that this is where the proto-Japanese first settled in the region which would explain Sada shrines importance.

Karinomiya Shrine

The second temple on the Izumo 33 Kannon Pilgrimage is close to the first so on my way I took a short cut through the back roads to visit a shrine I had not yet been to.  Fairly unpreposing, karinomiya (or kaminomiya) shrine looks like many other small village shrines, but is in fact quite unique. It is a sessha of Izumo Taisha and two names are listed as enshrined kami, Susano and Yaoyorozu. Yaoyorozu literally means 8 million kami, and is the word used to collectively describe all the kami of shinto, and they inhabit this shrine once a year during kamiarizuki, the time when all the kami meet up in Izumo. They hold a conference here in the early days of kamiarizuki. Why Susano is listed seperately is a mystery, though an interesting one. This area of Izumo is certainly Susano country, and records conveniently ignored by most say that Susano is the original kami of Izumo taisha.

Across the road is a massha of the shrine, named "lower" shrine. It enshrines Amaterasu. If this shrine was established in fairly modern times I would not be in the least surprised.