Ashikaga Orihime-jinja Shrine — Attraction in Ashikaga

The shrine houses the revered guardian god of Ashikaga textile industry and has a history and tradition of 1,300 years. It is widely known to the people of Ashikaga as the God of industrial reconstruction and marriage. Recently the shrine has been recognized as a heritage of night scenery due to the beautiful night view from the shrine of Ashikaga city as well as a sacred place for lovers. The vermilion of the shrine harmonized with the green background is beautiful and from the grounds you can overlook the Kanto Plain. It is also the starting point for a Prefectural Nature Hiking Trail. Please do come and have a

The largest Shinto shrine in Ashikaga – Orihime Shrine – was originally built in 1704 but burned down in 1880. In 1937 the shrine was relocated and rebuilt on Mount Orihime right next to Orihime Park. Both the mountain, the park, and the shrine are named after the Shinto diety Orihime, who plays an important role in the origin story of Tanabata: a festival celebrated each summer in Japan.

Orihime was the daughter of the Sky King, Tentei, and used to weave clothes for him by the heavenly river, the Milky Way, when one day she met a herdsman called Hikoboshi who worked at the other site of the waters. The two fell in love and got married, but after the wedding they both neglected their work, so Tentei separated them and forbade them to see each other – except on the 7th day of the 7th month, which is now the date of Tanabata.

The city of Ashikaga has a long history of weaving and therefore Orihime Shrine was built and dedicated to Orihime. Because of the tale about Orihime and Hikoboshi, the Orihime Shrine is also a place that celebrates marriage and thus it is considered a sacred place for lovers. For this reason, many couples pay the shrine a visit to pray for their relationship.

In order to get to the shrine grounds, you have to climb some hundred stairs accompanied by dozens of lanterns, but it is worth the effort since you not only have a fantastic view of Ashikaga City from the top; Orihime Shrine itself is also breathtaking as it greets your vision with its vermillion painted buildings. The lack of traffic noise makes it possible for you to enjoy the spiritual atmosphere that characterizes this holy place, and if you visit the shrine in the late evening you will even get to see it stand out in the dark when the buildings are lit up.

GETTING THERE The foot of Mount Orihime is about 2 kilometers from Ashikaga station. On your way you may pass buy Ashikaga Gakko and...

A short stop will do, especially if you’re an international tourist. Shrines and temples are pretty much the same unless you’re a history or mythology buff.

Orihime was the daughter of the Sky King, Tentei, and used to weave clothes for him by the heavenly river, the Milky Way, when one day she met a herdsman called Hikoboshi who worked at the other site of the waters. The two fell in love and got married, but after the wedding they both neglected their work, so Tentei separated them and forbade them to see each other – except on the 7th day of the 7th month, which is now the date of Tanabata.

Highlights here would the rainbow tori gates but it’s a pity you can’t take a shot of them all at once.

At the bottom of the stairs (through the rainbow tori gates) is a metal box that plays music.

The night illumination is supposed to be good but it was difficult to fit it into...

I enjoyed this place. It's a beautiful shrine but if you don't like stairs make certain to take a taxi around the back way instead of walking the traditional path because it definitely took a chunk of energy out of me. There's a soba restaurant here but I didn't try it.

If you are in the Ashikaga area, then this is a nice place to visit but there's not much to do besides admire the shrine (which is fine unless you want to spend a lot of time here for some reason)

I also highly suggest taking a bit longer route to walking here (Orihime Jinja) and visit Banne-ji temple on the way. It's a nice temple and you can spend more time there and it even has a playground and walking paths through a...