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Shichi-Go-San Shrine/Hatsumiya Shrine/
Shrine visits, groundbreaking ceremonies, etc.
TEL:042-665-6288
*Reception hours 10:00-16:00
■Parking, stamps, amulets, bills, etc.
Click here for inquiries
TEL:042-673-6641
*Reception hours
●Winter time: 8:00-14:00
●Summer time: 8:00-16:00
Shichigosan
Shichi-Go-San is a traditional Japanese event that celebrates the healthy growth of children at their 7th, 5th, and 3rd birthdays.
First visit
Hatsumiyamairi (first visit to the shrine) is an event to thank and report to the birth deity that the baby has safely reached the first month of life.
Setsubun
Setsubun is one of the seasonal festivals and is the day before the beginning of each season. Setsubun also means "separating the seasons."
Prayer for Safe Delivery
When the pregnancy reaches a stable stage after five months, a belt called an "Iwata obi'' (belly band) is wrapped around the pregnant woman's belly, and she and her relatives visit a shrine to pray for a safe delivery.
About Hikawa Shrine
Site of the shrine 2258 Takao-cho, Hachioji City
Enshrined deity 素盞鳴尊(Susano-ono-mikoto)
history
During the Oei era (1391-1427), the lord of Katakura Castle, Mouri Bicchu no kami Morochika, commissioned Hikawa Shrine in Musashi Ichinomiya. It was rebuilt in July of the second year of Kanbun (1662) and became the general guardian of Takao. The lion dance ritual dedicated at the annual festival was performed by the shrine parishioners of Hazama in 1872, but now it is performed by the shrine parishioners of Hara (designated as an intangible cultural property by the city in 1962).
The enshrined deity of this shrine, Suenarison, turned the strange Inadahime no Mikoto into a comb and inserted it into her hair, which was about to be sacrificed, to defeat Yamata no Orochi, and later took her as his wife. Marriage: It is said to have divine virtues such as good harvest, good luck, safe mountain climbing, and warding off evil spirits.
annual festivalThird Saturday and Sunday in August
◆Hikawa Shrine History
Hikawa Shrine, located near Takaosanguchi Station, is said to have its origins in the Oei era (1394-1428), when the lord of Katakura castle, Oue Bichu-no-Kami Morichika, solicited the enshrined deity of Musashi Ichinomiya Hikawa Shrine.
It is said that it used to be located in Omaki, Shimonugidamura-Oomaki (Kunugida-cho), and was rebuilt in 1662.
Currently, it is revered by the locals as the guardian deity of the Takao area, and during the festival on the third Saturday and Sunday in August, a mikoshi parade and a lion dance are held.
Hikawa Shrine is said to be blessed with good luck in matchmaking and rich harvests thanks to its divine virtues. A stamp rally raffle is held on the grounds of the shrine by collecting stamps from the Nine Town Association's festival venue.
◆Hikawa Shrine Shishimai (Lion Dance) Preservation Society
The Three Shishimai, a dance performed by groups of three people wearing masks called lions or dragons, is currently being performed at eight locations in Hachioji.
One of these, the Hikawa Shrine's Shishimai, was separated from the Hazama Shishimai in 1871 due to administrative division changes, and is still performed today to pray for rich harvests and peace.
Shishimai is dedicated on the third Saturday and Sunday of August at Kumano Shrine in Higashi Asakawa-cho and the following Sunday at Hikawa Shrine.
Shishimai at Hikawa Shrine was designated as an intangible folk cultural property of Hachioji City in 1960, along with other lion dances in the city.
◆Explanation of Shishimai (Lion Dance)
This is the "Hikawa Shrine Shishimai" preserved by the Hara Neighborhood Association in Higashiasakawa-cho, Hachioji City. I will explain the Shishimai.
The origin of "Hikawa ShrineShishimai" is that due to the change of administrative division in 1888, the Higashi Asakawa area became a district, so it was branched off and inherited from the previous "Hazama Shishimai", and a new type of lion dance began.
According to the old documents of the Hara Neighborhood Association, Hikawa Shrine has been the guardian of the Asakawa area since the second year of the Meiji era (approximately 140 years ago), and since then, dances have been held at the shrine's festival to pray for a rich harvest and peace. It's something that continues. We also participate in the annual spring festival of Takao Yakuo-in Temple every year.
Shishimai is centered around a total of 3 lions, 2 male lions and 1 female lion, as well as 2 Kanabou(gold bars),4 Boutsukai (stick users), 1 Horagai (blow the conch shell), 1 Gunpai (command), 1 Nusaoi (an offering), 6 sasara (Bamboo musical instruments), 5 Fue (flutes), and 5 Riyou. (singers), and several Mandou (lanterns), totaling more than 35 people.
As for the flow of the dance, the sound of the conch shell prepares theShishimai for its departure, and the procession begins with the sound of the "Toori-bue".
At the performance area, the flute plays "iriha", and the male lion and female lion dance, switching places on the left and right, and after a while, the "Okazaki no shirabe" begins and they form a circle. Finally, the lioness is hidden and the 2 male lions fight for the lioness. And, as the song says, in the end, the 3 lions are reconciled by Aizen Myoo (the god of love), and the 3 lions return to being friends as before, and the lions leave side by side.
〈Public-service corporation Hachioji Tourist Association〉
Reference
① Designated name: “Shishimai of Hikawa Shrine”
② Date of designation: October 28, 1960
③Hikawa Shrine Shishimai Preservation Society
<Hikawa Shrine precincts floor plan>
