Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine

An Edo-period shrine that survived the fire

Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine (長田神社月読社, Nagata Jinja Tsukuyomi-sha) is a late Edo-period subsidiary shrine east of the worship hall of Nagata Shrine in Nagatacho, Nagata Ward, Kobe, moved to its present site in 1928 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on February 14, 2002. It is a one-bay Nagare-zukuri shrine with a copper roof and a building area of 1.0 square meters.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the late Edo period, giving a range of 1751 to 1829. When fire destroyed the main halls in 1924, the Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine was one of the small shrines that escaped. It honors Tsukuyomi, the moon god, whom the shrine describes as Amaterasu's younger brother and a guardian of the night.

Why the Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine was registered

Registered as a model of form under number 28-0084, it measures 2 shaku 4 sun by 2 shaku 3 sun, with a porch (Kōhai) 1 shaku 9 sun deep. Its eaves are double-layered with closely spaced rafters, and a railed veranda runs around three sides.

The rebuilding left its mark. The shrine was originally bare wood; in 1928 it was moved onto a new stone platform inside a low fence and painted red to match the new halls. Compared with the Amaterasu Shrine built new in 1928, with its single-layer eaves, the Edo-period carpentry here is the more elaborate.

What to look for at the Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine

You can see the Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine close up from the path east of the worship hall. Look closely at the two tiers of eaves and the dense rafters underneath, and at the tiny railing running around three sides. The stone platform is newer than the shrine on top of it, a quiet record of the 1928 replanning. The Matsuo Shrine stands just to the south, and across the worship hall the Hiruko and Izumo Taisha shrines face back.

Visiting the Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine

Visitors can pray at the Nagata Shrine Tsukuyomi Shrine from outside its fence and view the exterior freely; the interior is not open. Its festival is held around the mid-autumn full moon, when the shrine also holds a moon-viewing tea gathering in its assembly hall. Access and general visiting details are on the Nagata Shrine page.