Ise Jingu visit to go again. (Geku edition)

In the Edo period, people wished to visit Ise Jingu at least once in their lives, the “hometown of the heart” of the Japanese people. The locals call it “Oise-san” and have been familiar with it for a long time. Even today, it remains a place that every Japanese person wants to visit at least once.

This time, we visited Ise Jingu with gratitude for the peaceful era of "Heisei", so we will introduce it.

What kind of place is Ise Jingu?

Ise Jingu is affectionately called "Oise-san" or "Daijingu-san", but its official name is "Jingu". The "Naiku" (inner shrine) enshrines "Amaterasu Omikami", the ancestor of the imperial family, who is likened to the sun, and is worshiped from all over the country.

On the other hand, the "Geku" (outer shrine)  enshrines Toyoke-no-Omikami, the god of food and protection of industry, who is the deity of Amaterasu Omikami. In addition, there are 14 separate shrines, 43 auxiliary shrines, 24 subordinate shrines, and 42 jurisdictional shrines, and all of these 125 shrines are called Jingu.

The Naiku has a history of about 2,000 years and the Gegu has a history of about 1,500, making it the highest shrine in Japan.

The Ise visit begins at the outer shrine.

Since ancient times, it has been customary to go from the Outer Shrine to the Inner Shrine when visiting Ise. The event held in Ise Jingu is also called "Gekusensai" and is held in order from the Geku.

Since Toyouke-no-Omikami of the Outer Shrine is the goddess in charge of the food of Amaterasu Omikami, a meal for the god called Shinsen is offered before going to the Inner Shrine.

Surprisingly many people don't know this, but visiting either the Outer Shrine or the Inner Shrine is called "Kata-mairi" and is said to be avoided.

When you arrive at each location, the official order is to first visit the "Shogu" where the deities of the shrine are enshrined, and then visit the "Betsugu".

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