Fujisan Hongū Sengen Taisha

• {{nihongo|Konohanasakuya-hime|木花咲耶姫}}, the daughter of {{nihongo|Ōyamatsu-no-mikoto|大山祇命}}. Mount Fuji was deified and its kami was named {{nihongo|Asama no Okami|浅間大神}}, also known as {{nihongo|Asama Daimyōjin|浅間大明神}}, {{nihongo|Asama Gongen|浅間権現}} or {{nihongo|Sengen Daibōsatsu|浅間大菩薩}}, and is associated with Konohanasakuya-hime.

• {{nihongo|Ninigi-no-mikoto|瓊々杵尊}}, husband of Konohanasakuya-hime
• {{nihongo|Ōyamatsumi-no-mikoto|大山祇神}}, father of Konohanasakuya-hime

The foundation of the Fujisan Hongū Sengen Taisha predates the historical period. Per shrine tradition, it was established in the reign of Emperor Suinin, with the shrine first built on its current location during the reign of Emperor Keikō. This was a period of intense volcanic activity on Mount Fuji, and the shrine was built in order to appease the kami of the mountain. The shrine is mentioned in accounts of the legendary hero Yamato Takeru, who prayed to the kami of Mount Fuji to help him escape from danger while in Suruga. During the reign of Emperor Heizei, Sakanoue no Tamuramaro was ordered to rebuild the shrine in its current location. {{cite book |last1=Yoshiki |first1=Emi |title=Zenkoku 'Ichinomiya' tettei gaido |date=2007 |publisher=PHP Institute |isbn=978-4569669304 |language=Japanese}}

Historical records, however, only exist as far as the early ninth century. The Shoku Nihongi records that Mount Fuji erupted in 781, and the Nihon Montoku Tennō Jitsuroku indicates that the Asama Jinja had become a third-rank shine by 853. As the kami of the shrine is the goddess of fire, it is logical that a shrine was erected to pray for the end of the eruption between 781 and around 806. The Heian period Engishiki records list the shrine as a {{nihongo|myōjin taisha|名神大社|}} and the ichinomiya of Suruga Province; however, the Shizuoka Sengen Shrine in the city of Shizuoka is located much closer to the provincial capital. For this reason, the shrine in Fujinomiya is styled as the "Hongū" and the shrine in Shizuoka is styled as the Shingū. The entire mountain was off-limits for religious reasons, except for Shugendō monks noted for their asceticism. Pilgrimages to Mount Fuji became common in the ninth century onwards, although women were forbidden from climbing.

During the Kamakura period, the Shōgun Minamoto no Yoritomo was a frequent visitor to the shrine during his hunting expeditions/war games at the base of Mount Fuji, beginning the tradition of yabusame during the shrine's festivals and association with the samurai class. Through the Muromachi period, the Ashikaga clan, Odawara Hōjō, the Imagawa clan, the Takeda clan and the Tokugawa clan were patrons of the shrine. Tokugawa Ieyasu made a large donation after his victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, and subsequent generations of the Tokugawa shogunate kept the shrine in good repair. During the Edo period, the shrine was the center of a cult worshipping Mount Fuji, and drew pilgrims from all over Japan. The Hongū Sengen Taisha was the place at which pilgrims would purify themselves in water before beginning the ascent.

From 1871, under the State Shinto's Modern system of ranked Shinto shrines, the Fuji Hongū Sengen Taisha was officially designated a {{nihongo|Imperial shrine, 2nd rank|官幣中社|Kanpei-chusha}}. It was promoted to a {{nihongo|Imperial shrine, 1st rank|官幣大社|Kanpei-taisha}} in 1896, meaning that it stood in the first rank of government-supported shrines.Bernstein, Andrew. [http://museweb02-pub.mse.jhu.edu/login?uri=/journals/monumenta_nipponica/v063/63.1.bernstein.html "Whose Fuji?: Religion, Region, and State in the Fight for a National Symbol,"]{{dead link|date=October 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Monumenta Nipponica, Vol. 63, No. 1, Spring 2008, pp. 51–99; Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, pp. 125.

Today, some 400,000 pilgrims climb Mount Fuji every year, and many of them stop at the shrine in order to wish for a safe climb. The shrine celebrated the 1200th anniversary of its foundation in 2006. In 2013, it was included in the World Heritage Site designation for Mount Fuji [https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1418 1418] (2013) iii, vi

The shrine is located about ten-minutes on foot from Fujinomiya Station on the JR Central Minobu Line.{{cite book |last1=Okada |first1=Shoji |title=Taiyō no chizuchō 24 zenkoku 'Ichinomiya' meguri |date=2014 |publisher=Heibonsha |isbn=978-4582945614 |language=Japanese}}

File:Rename me, please!Mt.jpg

• The Honden of the shrine is in the distinctive sengen-zukuri style with a two-story gate tower. It was built in 1604 per a donation by Tokugawa Ieyasu, but has been repaired several times, most notably after the Ansei Tōkai earthquake of 1854. It has been registered as a National Important Cultural Property since 1907.{{cite web |url= http://www.city.fujinomiya.lg.jp/citizen/llti2b00000014xn-att/llti2b0000005n0d.pdfll |title= 富士宮市内指定文化財等一覧 〈平成29年1月1日現在〉|language=Japanese |publisher=Fujinomiya City |accessdate=}}
• The shrine possesses a Muromachi period hanging scroll depicting the Fuji Mandala (絹本著色富士曼荼羅図 ). The scroll measures 180.2 x 117.8 cm and depicts an idealized view of Mount Fuji in gold, with three summits, each of which contains the image of divinity. A long line of white robed pilgrims is snaking up the slopes of the mountain, and the sun and moon are depicted to either side of the peak. This scroll was designated a National Important Cultural Property in 1977 {{cite web |url=http://bunka.nii.ac.jp/db/heritages/detail/127867 |title=Database of Registered National Cultural Properties |publisher=Agency for Cultural Affairs |accessdate=12 July 2019}}
• The shrine possesses a Kamakura period tachi Japanese sword (太刀 銘南无薬師瑠璃光如来), which is claimed to have been a donation from Takeda Shingen. The hilt of the sword is inscribed with the name "Kanemitsu", who was a noted wordsmith from Bizen active from 1306-1334. This sword was designated a National Important Cultural Property in 1912 {{cite web |url=http://bunka.nii.ac.jp/db/heritages/detail/203220|title=Database of Registered National Cultural Properties |publisher=Agency for Cultural Affairs |accessdate=12 July 2019}}
• The shrine also possesses a wakizashi dagger (脇指 銘奉富士本宮源式部丞信国) from the Muromachi period. This dagger is inscribed with the date of 1427 on its hilt and the name of "Nobukuni". It was a donation to the shrine by Anayama Nobutomo, the son-in-law of Takeda Nobutora in 1547. It has been registered as a National Important Cultural Property since 1912.

File:Wakutamanoike.JPG

• {{nihongo|Wakutama-ike|湧玉池}} is a large pond in the shrine grounds which contains a spring which is the headwaters of the Kanda river, a minor tributary of the Fuji River. It has been protected as a National Natural Monument since 1944.{{cite web |url=http://bunka.nii.ac.jp/db/heritages/detail/162841 |title=Database of Registered National Cultural Properties |publisher=Agency for Cultural Affairs |accessdate=12 July 2019}}

• List of Shinto shrines
• Ichinomiya
• Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi
• Chōkaisan Ōmonoimi Shrine

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book | last = Clark | first = Timothy | title = 100 Views of Mount Fuji | publisher = Weatherhill Books | isbn = 0-8348-0492-1 | year = 2001}}
• Plutschow, Herbe. Matsuri: The Festivals of Japan. RoutledgeCurzon (1996) {{ISBN|1-873410-63-8}}
• Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1962). [https://books.google.com/books?id=tjEvAAAAYAAJ&q=Studies+in+Shinto+and+Shrines Studies in Shinto and Shrines.] Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. [http://www.worldcat.org/wcpa/oclc/3994492 OCLC 3994492]
• ____________. (1959). [https://books.google.com/books?id=SLAeAAAAMAAJ&q=The+Imperial+House+of+Japan The Imperial House of Japan.] Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. [http://www.worldcat.org/wcpa/oclc/194887 OCLC 194887]

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• [http://www.fuji-hongu.or.jp/sengen/english/index.html Official site of the shrine]
• {{cite web | title = Japan-Guide.com | url = http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2059.html | accessdate = 2006-10-09}}
• {{cite web | title = Shizuoka | publisher = Japan National Tourist Organization | url = http://www.jnto.go.jp/eng/location/regional/shizuoka/fujisan.html | accessdate = 2006-10-09}}
• {{cite web | last = Yasunari | first = Wada | title = Mount Fuji: A Trek to the Top | date = 2005-12-15 | work = Nipponia | publisher = Web Japan | url = http://web-japan.org/nipponia/nipponia35/en/feature/feature06.html | accessdate = 2006-10-10}}

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Category:Shinto shrines in Shizuoka Prefecture

Category:World Heritage Sites in Japan

Category:Fujinomiya, Shizuoka

Category:Ichinomiya

Category:Suruga Province

Category:Natural monuments of Japan

Category:Kanpei Taisha

Category:Beppyo shrines

Category:Myōjin Taisha

Category:Taisha

Category:Asama shrines

Category:Sengen-zukuri

{{Asama Faith}}