Imamiya Shrine Wakamiyasha Main Hall

A three-bay shrine with twin Kasuga roofs

The Imamiya Shrine Wakamiyasha Main Hall (今宮神社若宮社本殿, Imamiya Jinja Wakamiyasha Honden) is a sanctuary of 1694 facing east near the middle of the west side of Imamiya Shrine in Murasakino, Kita Ward, Kyoto City, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 2018/03/27. It is the main hall of the auxiliary shrine Wakamiyasha, worshipped for the blessing of children.

The shrine explains that the Wakamiya deity was originally enshrined alongside the plague god and was moved to a separate shrine when Imamiya was formed in 1001. In the Genroku rebuilding it was moved again, from north-west of the main sanctuary to its present spot facing the eastern main gate. The shrine links that move to Keishoin's hope for an heir for her son, the shogun Tsunayoshi.

Ridges joined in an H

The Imamiya Shrine Wakamiyasha Main Hall is a three-bay shrine with a building area of 9.6 square metres. Its roof is the point of interest: two kasuga-zukuri roofs, the gabled type with a front canopy seen at Kasuga Taisha in Nara, stand side by side, and their ridges are joined in the shape of the katakana character エ, rather like a capital H laid on its side. The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls this a distinctive roof form, and it is rarely seen elsewhere.

A veranda runs along the front and sides and ends at side screens. All three front bays of the sanctum have panelled doors. The canopy covers the whole front as a single bay, its eaves carried on a beam shaped like a rainbow tie beam.

The Agency values the hall for its unusual form and graceful design. Its worship hall in front and the gate and fence around it all date from the same year, so the Wakamiyasha enclosure keeps a compact piece of the Genroku shrine intact.

What to look for, and visiting

The Imamiya Shrine Wakamiyasha Main Hall is enclosed by its gate and fence and cannot be entered; prayers are offered at the gate. The joined roofs read best from a front corner rather than straight on.

A prayer service for children is held at 10:00 a.m. on one Day of the Dog each month, when the area fills with worshippers. Directions are on the Imamiya Shrine page.