Chichibu Shrine

Chichibu Shrine is the head shrine of the Chichibu region and is an ancient shrine with a history of 2000 years. The shrine is known for its sculptures by Jingoro Left, especially famous for his sculptures of “Tsunagi no Ryu” and “Kosodate no Tora” (a tiger raising a child).

The shrine pavilions were rebuilt by Tokugawa Ieyasu in the Gongen-zukuri style, combining the main hall, the hall of offerings, and the hall of worship into one building. The Chichibu Night Festival is held every year on December 2 and 3, and this festival is known as the Chichibu Shrine’s annual festival.

Chichibu Shrine is the chief deity of the Chichibu region and is known as one of the three Chichibu shrines. Located on the river terrace of the Arakawa River, it is situated in the center of the Chichibu urban area. The shrine is famous for its December festival called “Chichibu Night Festival,” which is registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage event as “Yama, Hoko and Yatai events.

According to legend, the festival began during the reign of Emperor Chishin, when the first Chichibu Kunizo, Chichibuhiko-no-mikoto, enshrined Yashimikane-no-Mikoto. Chichibu Shrine is considered one of the six great deities of Bushu and is also enshrined at Okunitama Shrine in Fuchu City, Tokyo. During the Ookunitama Shrine’s annual festival, the Chichibu Shrine’s portable shrine is also paraded.

In the Edo period (1603-1867), the present shrine pavilion was built by order of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and was decorated with sculptures such as “Tiger of Child-rearing and Child-care” and “Dragon of Tsunagiri” said to have been made by Left Jingoro. These sculptures are displayed in the shrine pavilion.

The Chichibu Night Festival, held every December, is one of Japan’s three major Hikiyama festivals, along with Kyoto’s Gion Festival and Hida’s Takayama Festival, and one of the three most beautiful festivals in Japan. This festival is popular among tourists and attracts many visitors.

Founding of Chichibu Shrine

To the south of the Chichibu Shrine’s main hall and approach is Mount Mukou (also known as Mount Takekou, Mount Chichibudake, or Mount Myoken, depending on the era). In the past, this area was considered a sacred place to worship Mount Bukou as Kannabi.

According to the “Kokuzuki-Honki” in the “Shonai Choki Honki,” Chichibuhiko-no-mikoto was appointed the first Chichibu Kokuzukuri during the reign of Emperor Sojin (the 10th Emperor), and is said to have “worshipped Ojin” (a deity). This “Ookami” is believed to refer to Yashimikane-no-Mikoto, the ancestor of Chichibu-hiko-no-mikoto. Chichibu Shrine considers this to be the founding of the shrine. It is also said that Chichibu-no-Sateo, a ninth-generation descendant of Chichibu-hiko-no-mikoto, enshrined Chichibu-hiko-no-mikoto together with him during the reign of Emperor Yunkyo.

It is not clear when the local name “Chichibu” came to be given to the area, but it is said that the notation “Chichibu” was first seen in 708.

Brief History
Ancient to Modern Period

With the collapse of the Ritsuryo system, the power of the powerful families that had supported Chichibu Shrine weakened, and the shrine gradually declined. Myokensha appeared later.

According to the shrine chronicle and the Fudoki Manuscript, during the Tenkei period (938-947), when Taira no Shogun and Taira no Kunika, a general of the Jochiku Daisho and Chinjuu, fought at Someya River in Ueno Province, Taira no Yoshifumi, who supported Kunika, defeated Shogun’s forces with the blessing of Myoken Bosatsu in Hanazono Village. Since then, Yoshifumi deeply worshipped Myoken Bosatsu, and when he later moved to Chichibu, he invited Myokensha from Hanazono Village. This is said to be the origin of Myokensha in Chichibu.

Yoshifumi then moved to Shimousa Province. His descendants in Shimousa built the Chiba Shrine dedicated to Myoken Bosatsu. Meanwhile, his descendants who settled in Chichibu formed a warrior clan called the Chichibu Heishi.

During the Kamakura period (1185-1333), the shrine building was destroyed by lightning, and when it was rebuilt, Myoken Bosatsu was enshrined together with Chichibu Shrine. At that time, the former 15th temple of the 34 Chichibu temples, Mosuzan Zafukuji Temple (now closed), managed the temple as a separate temple of Chichibu Shrine. From then on, the temple flourished as “Myokomi-gu” and became better known as “Chichibu Omiya Myokomi-gu” than the original “Chichibu Shrine” mentioned in the Engi-shiki.

According to an Edo period map, Myokensha was located in the center of the shrine grounds, surrounded by four shrines: Amaterasu Shrine, Toyoke Shrine, Jinguji Shrine (also written as Chijihiko), and Himizaki-jinja Shrine. The Jinguji Shrine was a diminished form of the Chichibu Shrine, and in his “Musashino-wa” (Musashino stories), Saito Tsuruso, a Confucian scholar of the mid-Edo period, wrote of this Jinguji Shrine, “This Jinguji is a landowner and the Myokenomiya Shrine must be a land lease. （The Myokenomiya Shrine is a large shrine, and the Chichibu Shrine is a small shrine. The Myokenomiya Shrine is a large shrine and the Chichibu Shrine is a small shrine. It is akin to the saying that a rented house is leased and the landlord is taken, which is a common practice among temple deities.

After the Modern Era

With the separation of the Shinto and Buddhist religions in the Meiji period (1868-1912), the shrine was renamed Chichibu Shrine, and the name of the shrine was changed back to Chichibu Shrine. The name of the shrine was changed back to “Chichibu Shrine”. Even today, traces of the Myoken faith can still be seen in the protective talismans and other religious objects.

In 1884, during the Chichibu Incident, the Chichibu Shrine was the scene of a massacre of the Chichibu Shrine grounds by the forces of the People’s Liberation Party (PFP).

Tenjin Jigion Shrine, which enshrines the deities of Ichinomiya and equivalent shrines throughout the country, exists as a regent shrine, and was recognized as the “Chichibu Province New Ichinomiya” in 2006 by the National Ichinomiya Association, an association of Ichinomiya shrines throughout the country.