Introduction
Rule 34 isn’t just for porn; it also applies to religious institutions. If you have a problem or fixation, there will be a specific shrine or temple that deals with it.
People of all cultures have prayed for good health and relief from disease since time immemorial, and it’s no different here in Japan. One can arguably do this at any place of worship. However, specific maladies require specific solutions, and in the field of medicine, there’s an otherworldly deity for each disease. (Many probably-overworked kami do take on multiple roles; godliness is a tough existence.)
Thus far, this series of strangely specific shrines and temples has covered food (twice), sports, cats (in six parts), body parts, phalluses (twice), and breasts. The next multi-part medical series will focus on places that offer relief from health problems of all kinds. As accurate and reliable English-language information on the following places is scarce to begin with, consider this series an attempt to bridge the linguistic gap. First up: institutions that help with skin and sleep issues.
Sleep
Hine Shrine, Osaka
Do you suffer from insomnia, nightmares, or sleep apnea? This one’s for you. Hine Shrine is the only one in Japan dedicated to getting a good night’s rest.
When it was first built is unclear, but it appears in the written record as early as 716. As with many places of worship, it began with women praying for fertility, good marriages, and safe childbirth. The main deities enshrined here are Ugayafukiaezu, who was the father of the first emperor, Jimmu; and the latter’s mother, Tamayorihime.
Japanese people used to believe that in pillows dwelled our souls; the word for pillow, ‘makura,’ is thought to derive from 真座 (true seat; where the gods seat) or 魂蔵 (tamakura; storage for the soul). Our souls, so it was believed, leave the body while we sleep, and what we see in wandering sleep becomes our dreams; what holds the soul as we roam is called a ‘tamakura.’ By dint of association with such, pillows were considered precious, so they were offered to the shrine. As such, Hine Shrine became a place of prayer for those suffering from sleep disorders.
Hine Shrine hosts the Pillow Festival every May. Their parade sees people carrying bamboo poles with colourful pillows attached; these pillows represent hopes and dreams for finding love (if you’re single), healthy babies, and good harvests. In the past, young brides who were unable to conceive sometimes stole these pillows to use as talismans.
Naturally, one can purchase all kinds of sleep-themed paraphernalia at the shrine. Pillow-shaped votive tablets, pillow-shaped omamori (lucky amulets) for peaceful sleep, pillowcases, and even pregnancy belly bands are available both on-site and through mail order. The priests carry out purification ceremonies for pillows, and visitors may also bring their own pillows that have outlived their purpose.
Skin problems
Masaki Inari Shrine, Tokyo
A small, understated shrine located a skip and a hop from Kiyosumi Shirakawa Station. Its name derives from the Japanese spindle tree (masaki; Euonymus japonicus) that once stood to the north of Mannen Bridge, and acted as a landmark for boats entering the Onagi River from the Sumida River. The shrine’s true origins are lost to the annals of time, but it has been mentioned in several written accounts over the centuries, such as an 1862 woodblock print from Edo Meisho Zue (Picture Book of Famous Places of Edo) and an 1834 illustration by novelist Tamenaga Shunsui. One document records that Okiku, the wife of Edo period novelist Takizawa Bakin, visited to pray for the healing of an unspecified skin eruption.
The banner in front of the shrine reads ‘the deity of odeki.’ ‘Odeki’ can be translated in a number of ways — boil, swelling, pimple, rash, eruption. Exactly when the shrine gained its association with healing these maladies is unknown. It is likely, however, that it was due to a belief that the leaves of the spindle tree were effective in treating swellings.
A curious custom associated with the shrine involves abstaining from eating soba noodles, from the moment one prays there until the swelling heals. Then, one makes an offering of soba as a token of gratitude. Why buckwheat noodles? This remains a mystery.
Inari-kiō Shrine, Tokyo
A quiet shrine in Shinjuku with a somewhat unusual history. It was originally a ‘branch’ shrine established in 1653, with the tutelary deity of Fukusa Inari Shrine as its principal. In 1831 or 1832, a triad of deities was ‘transferred’ in a similar fashion from Kumano in Wakayama by a local farmer named Tanaka Seiuemon, and the shrine’s name changed to reflect its new godly additions.
Tsukiyomi (the moon deity), Ōmononushi (the deity of nation-building, among others), and Ame-no-tajikarao (the deity of physical strength) are the three kami who make up the Kiōgongen. The latter word translates to ‘demon king incarnation.’ ‘Gongen’ is clear enough in that they were considered Shinto manifestations of their Buddhist counterparts, but ‘kiō’ remains a mystery, even to the priests who have run the shrine for generations, since one of these deities are canonical demons. Inari-kiō is the only remaining shrine in Japan dedicated to this triad.
Its association with miraculously curing skin ailments — eczema, boils, rashes, tumours, pimples, and more — seems to have arisen during the Edo period. Sufferers of skin ailments were supposed to make an offering of tofu to the shrine. Why tofu? No explanation is forthcoming, but the Inari foxes are reputedly rather fond of deep-fried tofu pockets. Whatever the case, tofu sellers were more or less permanent fixtures at the gates until the early Meiji period.
The tofu was used as a shrine offering, but some sources suggest that worshippers were also supposed to refrain from eating tofu, and also rub the affected parts of their body with the blessed tofu. Alternatively, one used a protective charm (sold by the shrine, naturally) called a ‘nademamori.’
Another cool feature at Inari-kiō Shrine is the stone washbasin with a pedestal depicting an ogre. Donated to the shrine in 1833, its original owner was a retainer of the then-shogun, who grew tired of the sound of running water every night. It seems to have vexed him enough to eventually strike the pedestal with his sword one night. But afterwards, several members of his family fell ill, forcing him to give the cursed washbasin to the shrine.
Kasamori Inari Shrine, Saitama
Gyōda Hachiman Shrine is a bit of a cure-all bonanza of a shrine complex. Here, visitors pray to be healed from maladies as varied as bedbugs, cancer, bad habits, incessant nighttime crying, senility, and incurable diseases. (Which would surely mean that they were curable in the first place?)
Those suffering from skin ailments like eczema and acne (or simply want beautiful skin) should hare over to Kasamori Inari Shrine, one of the sub-shrines on Gyōda Hachiman’s precincts. This one is dedicated to Ukanomitama, a deity of food and agriculture often associated with the Inari deity of rice. Some scholars think they are manifestations of each other, while others consider them to be separate kami. There also exists at least one cough shrine dedicated to her.
Few details on the shrine exist. However, it seems that there was a man named Ozawa Rihachi (a probable reading of 小沢利八) who lived in Tokorozawa, in present-day Saitama, who contracted smallpox. He attributed his recovery to his prayers to Ukanomitama, which is the supposed origin of Kasamori Inari Shrine.
Written by Florentyna Leow