Here are five incredible places to add to your itinerary on a visit to Shimane's Izumo City
Along with Mie Prefecture's Ise Jingu, Shimane Prefecture's Izumo Taisha ('Izumo Grand Shrine') is one of the two most ancient and important Shinto shrines in all of Japan. No one knows exactly when it was originally constructed, but since it was referenced in the Kojiki ('Records of Ancient Matters'), Japan's earliest surviving written work compiled in the 8th century CE, it was likely built well before then. As a place of incredible significance in Japan's mythological origin story, it's one of the most popular shrines in all of Japan to visit. However, not everyone is familiar with other attractions in the city of Izumo to plan alongside their visit, so we'd like to offer up these five recommendations of places and things to do that made our trip as enjoyable as possible. Enjoy this itinerary in the land of the gods!
1. Inasa Beach
We actually suggest beginning your visit not at Izumo Taisha, but instead at Inasa Beach, about a 20-minute walk away from the shrine's main entrance. Once you're there and see the stunning scenery in person, you'll understand why this land plays such an important role in so many Shinto myths. The rocky outcropping by the shore, known as Bentenjima, serves as a sort of entryway for the approximately eight million Shinto gods to descend upon the beach during the tenth month of the lunar calendar every year, when Shinto priests conduct rituals after sunset to then guide them safely to the nearby shrine.
We recommend starting here because there's a unique custom of taking a small scoop of sand from Inasa Beach and then exchanging it with sand in a place next to Izumo Taisha, which we'll cover shortly. A local guide advised us to take fully dry sand and not wet sand found next to the water.
Besides this custom, the beach is also a generally relaxing place to take a stroll while being accompanied by the gentle lapping of waves in the background. If you're someone who strives to always 'ground' yourself in the moment, there's no better place to do so than at this convergence of the mortal and spiritual worlds.
▼ Inasa Beach
Inasa Beach / 稲佐の浜 Address: Izumo-shi, Taisha-cho, Kizuki-kita Inasa / 出雲市大社町杵築北稲佐
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2. Izumo Taisha
Now it's time to move on to the 'gathering place of the gods' itself: Izumo Taisha. A short walk from Inasa Beach will take you to the main entrance of the shrine, which is dedicated to the Shinto god of marriage, good relationships, and connections (making it a popular destination for matchmaking). Indeed, it's in order to discuss the destinies of individual humans concerning these topics that the gods gather in Izumo for the weeklong stretch every year.
On the topics of 'matchmaking' and 'good relationships,' many people might tend to think of romantic love when they hear those terms, but that's not the only kind of connection-building that's happening here. Walking from Inasa Beach to Izumo Taisha, more than anything, we sensed a deeper connection to the natural world, the gods, and the country itself than we had ever felt. As a result, we felt like we were able to reset our spirits and focus on the important things in life.
After passing through the massive torii gate (please remember your shrine etiquette as you go), first cleanse your spirit at the purification shrine ('harae no yashiro') found shortly thereafter on the right-hand side and then your hands and mouth at the subsequent cleansing fountain before making your way to the innermost sacred space.
One important thing to note is that the custom for praying at Izumo Taisha differs from that of most other Shinto shrines throughout Japan where you typically bow twice, clap twice, pray, and then bow once in front of an alter. Instead, at Izumo Taisha, you should bow twice, clap four times, pray, and then bow once. At one of the major festivals held annually at the shrine, you actually need to clap eight times–but for the rest of the year, half of that number will suffice.
Once you've finished praying at the main hall, head off to the side to find a series of ancillary shrines. Locate the one directly behind the main hall called Soga Shrine ('Soga no Yashiro'). It's here where you should exchange the sand from Inasa Beach with the sand next to this shrine. This final sand that you take home with you can then be added to your garden or distributed to others for good fortune.
On a side note, there's also a rock surface behind Soga Shrine that's in a very quiet location and is cool to the touch. In fact, if you put your hand on it, you may even feel some kind of mystical energy welling up.
Izumo Taisha's shrine grounds are expansive, and you should take some time to explore everything to be found there. Many things you'll see are of a big scale, including Japan's largest shimenawa straw rope which functions as a protective barrier between the sacred and the mundane. It makes sense that this one needs to be large since a section of the grounds hosts such a massive meeting of all of the Shinto deities once per year.
Finally, to end on a fun note, you should also look for the various rabbit statues decorating the shrine grounds that are connected to the important myth of 'The White Rabbit of Inaba.' The mismatch between the overall solemn atmosphere of the shrine and the whimsical statues is somehow endearing.
▼ Inasa Beach to Izumo Taisha
Izumo Taisha / 出雲大社 Address: Shimane-ken, Izumo-shi, Taisha-cho, Kizuki-higashi 195 / 島根県出雲市大社町杵築東 195
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3. The Gift Izumo
After walking around Izumo Taisha, you may be ready to take a small breather and grab something to eat. Luckily, a shop called The Gift Izumo–a short hop from the main entrance of the shrine–offers the chance to try making small, decorative shimenawa wreaths out of makomo wild rice plants (which are believed to house the gods). These function as talismans to purify your home and are also used in the rituals at Izumo Taisha.
Making one of these decorations is a great activity for anyone who likes using their hands. Better yet, it requires no prior knowledge to participate. The instructions are thorough and you get a decent amount of leeway in deciding how big you want your wreath and the extending rope to be. The rope was pre-woven in the workshop that we signed up for (30 minutes at 2,000 yen [US$13.98]), so the focus was mainly on customizing its look–but the store also offers another longer workshop in which you can experience braiding the rope as well.
By this point you'll have probably worked up an appetite, so you'll want to move on over to the on-site cafe with a menu that specializes in medicinal herbs native to the local region, Japanese and western herbs, as well as local seafood and mountain products. On this particular day, we enjoyed a salad topped with chicken and Izumo herb tea for lunch. Everything was delicious, healthy, and left us feeling very satisfied. We even ended up asking for extra hot water to brew more tea. All in all, it was a perfect place to relax after visiting the shrine.
▼ Izumo Taisha to The Gift Izumo
The Gift Izumo / ザ・ギフト・イズモ Address: Shimane-ken, Izumo-shi, Taisha-cho, Kizuki-minami 861-1, 2nd floor / 島根県出雲市大社町杵築南 861-1 2F
Website
4. Hakko Bunka Kenkyujo
Getting to our next recommended destination will likely require a car or another form of public transportation as it's located in downtown Izumo, only a five-minute walk from the main Izumo-shi Station. However, it's well worth a visit to continue building on the theme of forging new connections. Also–we hope you saved room for dessert!
Hakko Bunka Kenkyujo ('Fermentation Culture Laboratory') is a unique cafe and rental space with a concept of 'enjoying fermentation (chemical changes) from person to person.' The space from the entrance of the building to the cafe area is decorated in a modern Japanese style, while the area farther in the back transforms into a more traditional Japanese-style room from which you can view a lovely courtyard.
We were shown into the Japanese-style room on the day of our visit, but we could hear the happy chattering of voices coming from all around us. It seems to be a place where both the locals and tourists can enjoy a brief respite.
Hakko Bunka Kenkyujo's menu features small dishes including pastas and plenty of fermented foods such as sake lees (a by-product in the production of sake) cheesecake, amazake zenzai (read bean soup with fermented rice), and tea made from wild plants collected in Unnan, Shimane Prefecture. Everything we tried was delicious–especially the zenzai, with its gentle sweetness. We ended up buying two kinds of the wild plant tea as souvenirs.
▼ The Gift Izumo to Hakko Bunka Kenkyujo
Hakko Bunka Kenkyujo / 醗酵文化研究所 Address: Shimane-ken, Izumo-shi, Imaichi-cho 1374-1 / 島根県出雲市今市町 1374-1
Website
5. Asahi Shuzo
Our final itinerary item, a whole one-minute walk away from Hakko Bunka Kenkyujo, is Sake brewery Asahi Shuzo, which dates back to 1869. The mineral-rich water used in the production process here comes from the Kitayama Mountains in the north of Izumo. Furthermore, the brewery's 'Yachi-hoko' brand of sake is used as a sacred drink in ritual offerings to the gods at Izumo Taisha. By drinking it yourself, you can feel more connected than ever with the deities.
Tours of the facility may be reserved in advance, but we were happy simply visiting the brewery's store to check out all of the products on sale. Visitors can also sample six kinds of sake for a small fee from automated tasting machines.
Of special note is a sake called 'Wan Nyan Project' (pictured in the bottom right below) from which proceeds are donated to Izumo's animal rescue groups. There's no better way to end the day than with a smooth drink and an opportunity to help some local furry friends.
▼ Hakko Bunka Kenkyusho to Asahi Shuzo
Asahi Shuzo / 旭日酒造 Address: Shimane-ken, Izumo-shi, Imaichi-cho 662 / 島根県出雲市今市町 662
Website
We hope you've enjoyed this sample itinerary from Japan's 'gathering place of the gods' that's full of nature, ancient history, hands-on activities, and fermented delights. It's easy to see why the Shinto deities continue to gather in Izumo year after year when it has so much to offer.
Even so, we're still left with one major question: Which Starbucks do you think the gods prefer when visiting the most sacred of Shinto shrines? Is it the one near Izumo Taisha, or the one near Ise Jingu? We hope that they'll leave us some kind of sign to let us know.
All images © SoraNews24
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