Kotohira Shrine Asahi no Yashiro

What Is the Kotohira Shrine Asahi no Yashiro?

The Kotohira Shrine Asahi no Yashiro (金刀比羅宮旭社, also read Asahisha) is a two-tiered sanctuary dated 1837, in the late Edo period, standing at step 628 of the main stairway of Kotohira Shrine in Kotohira Town, Kagawa Prefecture; it was designated an Important Cultural Property in 1982 together with 2 ridge tablets.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs reads the name Asahi no Yashiro, "the Shrine of the Morning Sun", though many visitors say Asahisha. The building is five bays square, with two tiers of hip-and-gable Irimoya-zukuri roofs sheathed in copper tiles, a three-bay entrance porch under a cusped gable at the front, and a projecting section at the center of the back. The Kagawa Prefecture Tourism Association gives its height as about 18 meters and notes that it is built entirely of zelkova.

It began as the Golden Hall (Kondō) of Konpira Daigongen. According to the shrine, donations were gathered from across Japan over some forty years; the upper frame went up in 1837, the year the Agency uses, and the hall was finished in 1845.

Why the Asahi no Yashiro Is an Important Cultural Property

The Agency describes the Asahi no Yashiro as a large two-storey Buddhist hall, built as the main hall of the shrine's former temple. Its lower tier is five bays square. In the Meiji era the Buddhist altar was removed and replaced with a seat for the kami, so a Buddhist structure now houses a Shinto sanctuary, and the change brought by the separation of Shinto and Buddhism can be read in a single building.

The detail is what earned the designation. The tail rafters (odaruki) of the upper tier have been turned into carvings, the eaves are boarded, and carved panels are set into the building throughout. The Agency calls these features typical of the very end of the Edo period.

The scale of the fundraising is part of the story too. The donor register for the Golden Hall lists about 30,000 contributions, from Sanuki and from as far away as Musashi, the province around present-day Tokyo. The shrine calls the Asahi no Yashiro the largest wooden religious building in Shikoku.

What to Look For at the Asahi no Yashiro

Arriving on the terrace at step 628, you face the double roof head-on. The shrine notes swirling clouds carved under the upper roof and people, birds, beasts and flowers on the panels between the pillars and on the doors. Look up under the eaves of the upper tier first and follow the row of carved tail rafters.

The name plaque on the front reading "Asahisha" was written by the court noble Ayanokōji Arinaga, and the plaque on the upper level is attributed to the Qing scholar Wang Wenzhi. The deities enshrined here today include Ame-no-Minakanushi, Takamimusubi and Kamimusubi.

The Reiwa Restoration of the Asahi no Yashiro

In 2024 the shrine launched a major restoration of the Kotohira Shrine Asahi no Yashiro. Termite damage was found in the upper roof timbers and some pillars had been crushed, so the building needs to be partly dismantled. The shrine plans to build a construction road, put up a protective cover building, dismantle, repair and reassemble over 18 years, at a cost of about 5 billion yen.

A survey of the structure came first, and the first public report on it was held on May 21, 2026. Once the cover building goes up, the exterior will be hidden, so check the shrine's website for progress before you go.

Visiting the Kotohira Shrine Asahi no Yashiro

The Asahi no Yashiro stands on the main stairway, and there is no charge to visit during the shrine's worship hours (6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., according to the Kagawa Prefecture Tourism Association). Climb past the Great Gate and the shoin halls to the terrace at step 628. The route splits here into separate up and down paths, and the upward one continues to the Main Shrine.

Worship takes place in front of the building. The upper floor is not normally open; the shrine has introduced a digital display that lets visitors explore it in 3D instead. The website gives no special rule on photography, so follow the signs on site, especially near any work areas. Directions to the shrine are on the Kotohira Shrine page.