The Oldest Building on the Grounds
The Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall (鹿島神宮摂社奥宮本殿, Kashima Jingū Sessha Okumiya Honden) stands in Miyanaka, Kashima City, Ibaraki Prefecture, was built in 1605, and was designated an Important Cultural Property on 27 March 1901. Tokugawa Ieyasu paid for its construction in thanks for his victory at Sekigahara, and no other building on the shrine grounds is older.
It did not begin life at the back of the precinct. In 1605 it stood on the spot the present main hall occupies, and it housed Takemikazuchi no Ōkami, the deity of Kashima. Fourteen years later, in 1619, the second shogun Tokugawa Hidetada commissioned a complete new set of sanctuary buildings. Rather than dismantle his father's hall, the shrine had it hauled bodily eastward along the approach and set down where it stands today. The deity honoured here now is the aramitama, the rough or active aspect of Takemikazuchi.
A single Munafuda, the wooden tablet recording a building's construction, is included in the designation. It is the source of the 1605 date.
Momoyama Carving, Left Unpainted
The hall is a three-bay Nagare-zukuri with a one-bay Kōhai canopy and a Hiwadabuki roof. Round columns carry the core; the front aisle uses square posts. The Kumimono are of the degumi three-block type, Kaerumata sit above the aisle, the eaves are double-layered with closely spaced Taruki, and the gable is finished with a scissors-brace truss.
What catches the eye is how little of the building opens. The core measures two bays deep and a veranda runs around all four sides, yet there is a single doorway, in the centre of the front. Every other face is closed with slatted windows and plank walling. The Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education reads that reticence as the survival of an older type of shrine hall, from a time before sanctuaries invited the eye inside.
Timbers are cut generously. Nothing is lacquered or polychromed; the wood is bare. Carving appears only on the kaerumata and on the column-end projections, and although there is little of it, the cutting is deep and forceful in the manner of the Momoyama period.
Not everything visible dates from 1605. The raised floor of the front aisle and the one-bay canopy in front of it are thought to be later repairs made in imitation of Hidetada's newer main hall. The move and the maintenance that followed it have layered two periods into one building.
Walking the Inner Approach
Reaching Okumiya means walking the okusandō, the inner approach that runs about 300 metres east from beside the main sanctuary. Enormous cedars close over the path from both sides, and even at midday the light arrives thinned. The hall waits at the far end, low-roofed and facing straight down the path.
The main hall of the principal sanctuary shares the same three-bay nagare-zukuri form, so the pair invites direct comparison. That hall is lacquered and brilliantly polychromed; Okumiya Main Hall is bare cedar and cypress. Fourteen years separate them, and the change in taste is visible without any specialist knowledge. Seeing the principal sanctuary first makes the contrast easier to read.
Re-roofing began in February 2021 and is finished, so the overlapping courses of cypress bark are currently fresh. Standing at the front and looking up under the eaves shows the cut ends of the double rank of rafters and the carving on the aisle kaerumata. Walk around to the side and the join between slatted window and plank wall can be followed along the flank.
Visiting
Nothing gates or fences the shrine grounds, so the front of Okumiya can be reached at any hour, and there is no admission charge. The interior is closed, and viewing is from outside only.
Photography is unrestricted. Anyone planning to use a tripod or a drone should ask at the shrine office first. The amulet counter and the reception desk for prayer rituals operate from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The treasure hall has been closed since 2018.
From Kashima Jingū Station on the JR Kashima Line and the Ōarai Kashima Line, the tower gate is a seven-minute walk, and Okumiya a further ten minutes beyond it. The Kashima-gō highway bus from the Yaesu south exit of Tokyo Station takes about two hours and costs ¥2,100 one way. The inner approach is flat and paved, though the paths onward to the Kaname-ishi stone and Mitarashi pond involve slopes and steps. Dogs are asked to be left outside, since the deer kept in the precinct are frightened by them.
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Q&A
- Who built the Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall, and when?
- Tokugawa Ieyasu had it built in 1605 in thanks for his victory at Sekigahara. The date comes from the ridge tablet included in the designation. The hall was designated an Important Cultural Property on 27 March 1901.
- Why does the Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall stand at the back of the precinct?
- It was originally the main hall of the principal sanctuary, on the site the present main hall occupies. When Tokugawa Hidetada rebuilt the sanctuary in 1619, the older hall was hauled intact along the inner approach and reinstalled as the main hall of the Okumiya sub-shrine.
- How does the Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall differ from the main hall of the principal sanctuary?
- Both are three-bay nagare-zukuri halls with a one-bay canopy and cypress-bark roof. The finish differs completely: the principal main hall is lacquered and polychromed, while Okumiya Main Hall is left as bare wood, with carving confined to the frog-leg struts and column-end projections.
- Can visitors see the Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall, and is there a fee?
- Yes. The grounds have no gate or fence, so the hall can be approached at any hour at no charge. The interior is not open, so viewing is from outside. The amulet counter and prayer reception run from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- How do I get to the Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall?
- It is a seven-minute walk from Kashima Jingū Station to the tower gate, then about ten minutes along the 300-metre inner approach. The Kashima-gō highway bus from the Yaesu south exit of Tokyo Station takes roughly two hours and costs ¥2,100 one way.
Basic Information
| Name | Kashima Shrine Sub-Shrine Okumiya Main Hall (鹿島神宮摂社奥宮本殿) |
|---|---|
| Location | Oaza Miyanaka, Kashima City, Ibaraki Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property (Structure), designation no. 00155; 1 ridge tablet designated with it |
| Year Designated | 27 March 1901 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Three-bay nagare-zukuri, one-bay canopy, cypress-bark roof |
| Owner | Kashima Shrine |
| Public Access | Viewable from outside at any hour, no admission charge; interior not open |
References
- National Designated Cultural Properties Database, Agency for Cultural Affairs: Kashima Jingu Sessha Okumiya Honden
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/253
- Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education, Cultural Properties of Ibaraki: Kashima Jingu Sessha Okunomiya Honden
- https://kyoiku.pref.ibaraki.jp/bunkazai/kuni-2/
- Kashima City Digital Museum: Kashima Jingu Sessha Okumiya Honden
- https://www.city.kashima.ibaraki.jp/site/bunkazai/50117.html
- Kashima Jingu official site: Sessha Okumiya
- https://kashimajingu.jp/keidai_annai/%E5%A5%A5%E5%AE%AE/
- Kashima Jingu official site: Frequently Asked Questions (hours and access)
- https://kashimajingu.jp/info/%e3%82%88%e3%81%8f%e3%81%82%e3%82%8b%e3%81%94%e8%b3%aa%e5%95%8f/
Last verified: 2026.09.05