In Misogi Shrine’s main hall, Amaterasu (the goddess of the Sun) and Gosaijin Masakane Inoue, the founder of the Shrine, are enshrined. An annual festival is held on August 4th to commemorate the birth of the deity, Gosaijin Masakane Inoue.
Masakane Inoue, who was also a doctor, cured many people of their illnesses and realized that even if he could cure diseases, he could not save people’s hearts. In the end, he came to the path of Shintoism.
In the Edo period (1603-1868), the only way to qualify as a Shinto priest was to be initiated into the Shirakawa or Yoshida families, so Masakane Inoue knocked on the door of the Shirakawa family. The Shirakawas were a prestigious family that had handed down the role of head of Shinto affairs from generation to generation for over 800 years, and they were in charge of court rituals and Shinto administration in Japan.
Masakane Inoue became a Shinto priest and continued on the path of saving the world until his death. After his death, his disciples made a request for the construction of Inoue Shrine in his memory, which was granted, and the shrine was built in 1879. The shrine was renamed Misogi Shrine in 1986, and relocated to Kobuchisawa, Yamanashi Prefecture, where it remains to this day.
To commemorate the birth of the deity Gosaijin Masakane Inoue (August 4, 1858), there is an annual festival day at Misogi Shrine. On the eve of the festival, a Noh play “Yatsugatake Takigi Noh” is dedicated to the god.
At this time of extreme turmoil throughout the world, walking the path that Gosaijin Masakane Inoue dedicated his life to will lead to the enrichment of our lives and ultimately to world peace. Let us be grateful for this precious opportunity and pray together for world peace and the prosperity of all nations.
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