Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate

What Is the Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate?

The Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate (大神神社三ツ鳥居, Ōmiwa Jinja Mitsu Torii) in Miwa, Sakurai City, Nara Prefecture, is a wooden triple torii standing behind the shrine's worship hall; the Agency for Cultural Affairs dates the present structure to 1883, and it was designated an Important Cultural Property on November 14, 1953.

A torii is the gateway that marks the entrance to Shinto sacred space. This one joins three gateways of the common Myōjin torii type side by side in a single row, which is why it is also called the Miwa torii. Because Omiwa Shrine has no main sanctuary, the Mitsu Torii has long been revered in its place. The shrine puts it this way: if Mount Miwa is the sanctuary, the Mitsu Torii is its door.

Form and Designation of the Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate

A central torii is flanked by a torii on either side, the three built as one. The central opening holds a pair of sacred doors, the mitobira. Unlike the torii on an approach path, this is not a gate to walk through. It is a gate to pray through.

From each side of the Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate runs a mizugaki, a sacred fence, separating the area behind the worship hall from the forbidden ground of the mountain, where even priests do not normally set foot. The designation covers the gate itself, with the mizugaki fence included as an appended item (Tsuketari).

Nobody knows when this form began. According to the shrine, its old records call the Mitsu Torii a mystery handed down within the shrine since ancient times and say nothing about its origin. The 1883 date in the national database refers to the gate standing today, not to the first appearance of the triple-torii form.

Why the Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate Matters

The Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate marks the line between the mountain of the deity and the human side. It stands directly ahead of anyone bowing in the worship hall, one building away, with the forest of Mount Miwa rising behind it. Worshippers pray through it without ever seeing it.

An ordinary torii stands at the start of a visit. This one stands at the end, where prayer is directed. Enclosing the sacred area with nothing but a gate and a fence, in place of a sanctuary building, is the heart of how Omiwa Shrine worships.

A gate of the same type stands at Hibara Jinja, one of Omiwa Shrine's auxiliary shrines, which has neither a main sanctuary nor a worship hall and is worshipped through its own triple torii. That gate stands in the open at Hibara Jinja, which makes it the easier place to see what the form looks like.

Can You See the Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate?

Because the Omiwa Shrine Mitsu Torii Gate stands behind the worship hall, it is not visible when you pray at the front. The shrine's website does not currently describe any viewing arrangement, so if you hope to see it, contact the shrine in advance or ask at the general reception desk in the Sanshuden hall.

The shrine refuses photography, filming, and recording inside its halls, including the worship hall, so assume that no photos will be possible even if a viewing is arranged. Directions and opening hours for the precinct are on the Omiwa Shrine page.