Introduction
Cats have been an integral part of Japanese culture for centuries. They are everywhere in Japan’s rich body of folklore: venerated as deities, decried as pests, feared as vengeful spirits, kept as mice catchers, and adored as pets. What better way to celebrate these wonderful felines than by worshipping them at a shrine or temple?
Prior to researching the subject, my initial impressions were that there wouldn’t be many shrines and temples dedicated to these felines. While there are relatively few in the final accounting — compared to thousands of existing Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples — I was pleasantly surprised to find that there were in fact a few dozen such institutions scattered throughout Japan, particularly in areas that practiced sericulture.
This six-part series introduces all the cat shrines and temples across Japan, excluding those already covered in the Tokyo list. From sleeping cats to stationmaster cats, these places celebrate kitties in all their forms. Here is Part 6.
Part 1 A–F: Akita to Fukushima
Part 2 G–K: Gunma to Kagoshima
Part 3 K: Kanagawa to Kyoto
Part 4 M–O: Miyagi to Okayama
Part 5 O–T: Osaka to Tochigi
Part 6 T–Y: Tokushima to Yamaguchi
Tokushima
Omatsu Daigongen Shrine
We’ve met several bakeneko (ghost or monster cats) throughout this series, such as the Nabeshima Bakeneko and the feline spirit associated with Shōzen-in. Omatsu Daigongen Shrine in Anan City introduces us to another supernatural cat seeking vengeance with the tragic tale of a woman named Omatsu and her quest for justice.
This tale takes place around the mid-17th century in the village of Kamo of the former Awa Province. The village had faced consecutive years of poor harvests, and Sobei, the village headman, borrowed money from a wealthy neighbour named Nogami Sanzaemon in order to save the village, using some of his own farmland as collateral. Sobei repaid Sanzaemon in full, but did not receive a receipt as proof of repayment, and passed away from illness before the matter could be resolved.
The debt fell to Sobei’s wife — or daughter, according to some versions of the story — Omatsu, and Sanzaemon continued to deny that payment had ever been made. Sobei’s rice fields were confiscated as a result. Omatsu appealed to the local magistrate’s office, but alas, he had already received a bribe from Sanzaemon, and was deaf to her pleas.
Omatsu then attempted a direct appeal to the feudal lord of Awa Province. On New Year’s Day, as the lord and his retainers passed by in a long procession, she threw herself in front of his palanquin, bearing a letter of appeal. But making such an appeal in public was a crime punishable by death. She was immediately thrown in prison, and released shortly after on bail.
Omatsu was scheduled for execution on 15 March that same year. That day, she was dressed entirely in white, her countenance calm as she faced her impending death. Some versions of the story say that a strong wind whipped her long, flowing black hair violently, and in the moonlight she appeared a veritable haloed bodhisattva to the officials as she prayed to Amida Nyorai for salvation. The officers hesitated, but carried out their task. Omatsu had no children, but she did have a calico cat named Sanke, who was the sole witness to her mistress’s sorrow. Sanke, too, was apparently beheaded with her mistress.
Not long after Omatsu’s execution, the corrupt magistrate who had refused Omatsu’s pleas was awakened by the sound of a cat. There was nothing in the darkness, although he was certain he had heard something. He heard another cry — was it a woman? Turning around, he saw a feminine figure lighting a lantern. The light illuminated her face, revealing a fierce, terrible cat. He fled his room and summoned his guards, but they found nothing but a lantern. The magistrate soon lost his job, and perished from illness.
The mysterious deaths didn’t stop there. Sanzaemon was the ghostly cat’s next target, followed by the rest of his family line. The locals knew these deaths to be the curse of Omatsu and her cat, and to appease their spirits, they built Omatsu Daigongen Shrine in honour of the both of them.
Today, the shrine — nicknamed Nekogami-san — draws worshippers who pray for the tenacity to triumph in their endeavours, whether in competitions or examinations. (The lesson: Omatsu never gave up, so neither should we.) At the entrance is a majestic two metre-tall beckoning cat statue with the words for ‘certain victory’ emblazoned on its belly, with more cat statues around the shrine grounds. The ema feature illustrations of Omatsu and her cat Sanke, and there is also a cat statue on the precincts called the Sasuri Neko, which visitors may rub to heal their own ailments in their corresponding body parts.
According to the shrine, visitors who make a wish here can take one of the beckoning cat figurines home. As and when their wish is fulfilled, they must then return this statue, and also dedicate an additional cat statue to the shrine. This has led to thousands of maneki-neko cat statues and figurines being donated over the decades. All of them are housed in a separate building; the sight of all of these cats in one place is quite staggering.
Oji Shrine
There’s another shrine not so far away from Omatsu Daigongen that’s also affectionately known as Nekogami-san. Located inside the lush Bunka-no-Mori Park in Tokushima City, Oji Shrine seems to have been founded during the Kamakura period (1185-1333), and was officially named thus some 500 years ago. The primary deity venerated here is Amatsuhikone-no-mikoto, the third son born of the sun goddess Amaterasu’s jewels. However, its feline nickname derives from the story of Omatsu and her cat as outlined above.
The Tokushima clan’s retainers, the Hawegawa family, had been patrons of Oji Shrine for generations. It is unclear as to precisely why they built an additional row of shrines at the back of the main worship hall to pacify the spirits of Omatsu and her cat (who is known as Otama here, rather than Sanke). One theory suggests that the magistrate was a member of the Hasegawa family. (It is also possible that these hokora were added at different times over the centuries.) Nevertheless, their spirits have been worshipped at Oji Shrine since the late 17th century, and praying here is said to bring success, good fortune, good relationships, and prosperity in business. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for the kitties who live there.
Tottori
Tenporin-ji Temple
Deep in the mountains of Tottori is Tenporin-ji, a Tendai sect temple said to have been founded between 834 and 848. According to temple legend, the itinerant monk Kūya visited in 971 and supposedly died here the following year, prompting the then-Emperor to build a worship hall to enshrine a statue of him.
More importantly, there’s a wooden carving of a cat at the entrance to Tenporin-ji. This is a nod to the legend of Ofuji, which itself is a variant of the ‘neko no ongaeshi’ or ‘cats repaying kindnesses’ stories. Examples of this kind of story include Hōzōji Temple in Nagano, Shonen-ji in Kyoto, and Minokoshi Nekosha Shrine in Kochi. In fact, the legend of Ofuji is a combined version of the stories associated with Hōzōji Temple and Minokoshi Nekosha Shrine.
There was once a cat by the name of Ofuji at this temple, a cat much loved and well-cared for by the monk. One night, the monk noticed that the hem of his robes was wet; the same thing happened a few nights later. Some time later, he heard a voice calling for his cat. It turned out to be another cat inviting Ofuji to go out dancing at night.
The monk followed his cat out on the appointed night to see what would happen. What should he see, but dozens of cats from all around the area gathering in a circle, preparing to dance! He spotted Ofuji among them, dressed in his robes and dancing along. The hem of the monk’s robes had been soaked in nighttime dew. Ofuji was no ordinary cat; it was a bakeneko, a monster cat.
The next morning, the monk sent Ofuji away from the temple, saying that he could no longer have it here, now that he knew its true identity as a bakeneko. With that, the cat left the temple, never to be seen again.
The years passed. Ten years later, the monk received unexpected visitors: he was being summoned to a wealthy household far away from the temple. On asking why they had chosen to call on a monk from such a remote temple, the family explained that they had been unable to continue with a funeral due to the constant rain. A fortune teller appeared to them, and recommended that they call on the monk of Tenporin-ji to pray for them.
The monk went with them to the household; the thunderstorm immediately stopped. While he was puzzling over this curious turn of affairs, Ofuji, his old cat, appeared, visible only to him. It had disguised itself as a fortune-teller, and arranged the situation in order to thank the monk for his past kindness. After he finished chanting the sutras, the sky cleared up, and the household were able to complete the funeral rites. This story spread far and wide, and Tennporin-ji prospered as a result.
Wakayama
Tama Shrine
Here’s how you bring a railway line back to business from the brink of bankruptcy: install a cat as your stationmaster. Strange, but true.
Kishi Station, along with the rest of the Kishigawa Line in Wakayama, had been experiencing financial difficulties due to a lack of ridership. This changed in January 2007, when a calico cat named Tama became the stationmaster of Kishi Station, attracting thousands of cat-loving passengers to an otherwise remote and fairly obscure part of Japan. This was the brainwave of cat-loving Wakayama Electric Railway Co. president Mitsunobu Kojima, but can also be viewed as part of a wider trend of ‘nekonomics’ (‘cat economics’) in Japan, which is to say, cat + business = profit.
Unfortunately, cats don’t live forever, and Tama the Super Stationmaster (a title she was awarded in 2008) passed away on 22 June 2015 at the age of 16. Not only was she honoured with a Shinto-style funeral, she was given a posthumous title (“Honorary Eternal Stationmaster”) and deified at a nearby cat shrine as Tama Daimyōjin. The regular calico cat-themed train along the Kishigawa Line was redecorated for mourning, which lasted fifty days.
Tama was succeeded by calico cat Nitama (Tama II), who officially became the new stationmaster at Kishi Station in August 2015, and later, the chief priest of Tama Shrine. (The latter ceremony took place on Super Cat Day, or 22 February 2022. Nitama looks terribly disgruntled with the whole affair.) Yontama (Tama IV), another calico, was inducted in January 2017 as Nitama’s subordinate and the new stationmaster of Idakiso Station along the same railway line. Gotama (Tama V) was recently introduced as Nitama’s second subordinate, and splits her time between Kishi Station and Idakiso Station.
What about Sun-tama-tama (Tama III)? As mentioned here, the third stationmaster-in-training ended up staying in Okayama, as the PR representative taking care of her refused to let her go. But while she won’t be at any station along the Kishigawa Line, this does mean that there are two branches of Tama Shrine to visit — one near Kishi Station, and one in Okayama City — effectively extending the cat shrine pilgrimage.
Yamagata
Nekonomiya Shrine
Loyal cats go down in history — at least, if the story attached to Nekonomiya in Yamagata is anything to go by. Located in the Okitama region in southern Yamagata, the shrine is said to have been established somewhere between 781 and 805. It honours a cat who is said to have protected its owner from a dangerous snake. The shape of its origin story is similar to the tale associated with the Nekozuka Kofun (‘Cat Mound’) on the grounds of Shōrin Shrine in Miyagi, and varies only in its details.
Shoemon and Omine lived in the village of Takayasu. The couple had no children, but kept several cats whom they loved dearly. However, their beloved cats kept dying of mysterious illnesses one after the other, and so they prayed to the kami for a healthy cat. One night, a bodhisattva appeared in their dreams and fulfilled their wish.
The next morning, they found a calico cat in their garden. They named her Tama, and loved her just as much as they would a human child. Tama in turn was very attached to the couple, and was also well-loved by the rest of the village for her rat-hunting prowess.
One day, Tama began acting strangely, following Omine everywhere she went — even to the bathroom. She stared at the ceiling and growed, flattening her ears, as though she was about to pounce. Omine was troubled by Tama’s behaviour, and told her husband about it. Shoemon disguised himself as Omine, and experienced the same — Tama followed him everywhere, including to the bathroom. In a fit of anger and suspicion, he lopped the cat’s head off with a sword. Tama’s head flew into the air, and her jaws clamped around the neck of a hitherto hidden serpent.
The couple realised that Tama had in fact been protecting them from a dangerous death, and were deeply saddened by their actions. Along with the villagers, they carefully buried Tama’s remains and built a shrine in her honour. Today, many visitors to Nekonomiya hang photographs of their cats that have passed on outside the building, in memory of their beloved pets.
Bonus: Nekonomiya is located opposite Inunomiya, a similar shrine dedicated to dogs.
Yamaguchi
Unrinji Temple
Unrinji is one of Japan’s most well-known cat temples, thanks to the presence of some 600 cat statues on the grounds and in its main hall. From the phalanx of wooden cats that greet you at the gate to the fantastic meditating cat Buddha statue, this temple is a cat lover’s dream come true — one could easily spend hours looking at these charming sculptures.
Why is this Rinzai Zen temple so obsessed with cats? It has to do with a legend about Lord Mōri Terumoto and his loyal retainer, Nagai Motofusa. When Mōri passed away in 1625, Nagai followed his lord into the afterlife by committing ritual suicide, leaving his pet cat behind. The cat refused to leave Nagai’s grave at Tenjuin Temple for 49 days and 49 nights, seemingly mourning for its dead master. Finally, it bit out its own tongue in grief, taking its own life.
That same night, or so the legend goes, the cats in the area cried in grief. Hearing their cries, the priest of Tenjuin carried out a memorial service to pacify the cat’s spirit, after which the neighbourhood cats ceased their caterwauling.
Although Tenjuin no longer exists, Unrinji (which was located nearby) took up the mantle of offering animal memorial services — or so the story goes — and Unrinji’s reputation as a cat temple strengthened after the cat-loving Sumida Jisei became head monk in 1996. Either way, the main building doesn’t just have the statues, but also has cat-themed art, cat photographs, cat-themed ema (votive tablets), cat masks, lucky amulets, beckoning cats, and even a copy of the Lotus Sutra with cat-themed illustrations. And yes, if you’re lucky enough, you’ll spot some of the cats that live on the temple grounds.
Written by Florentyna Leow