Ujigami Shrine: Japan's Oldest Extant Shinto Main Hall and Sacred Springs

Why is it significant?

Step through the modest vermilion wooden torii gate of Ujigami Shrine into a tranquil, deeply serene gravel courtyard enclosed by towering cryptomeria pines and natural mossy rock faces.

Key Facts

Open the walk

Step through the modest vermilion wooden torii gate of Ujigami Shrine into a tranquil, deeply serene gravel courtyard enclosed by towering cryptomeria pines and natural mossy rock faces. Before you stands the Honden, or Main Sanctuary, a low, understated wooden pavilion that carries an extraordinary distinction: scientific dendrochronological timber testing confirmed in two thousand four that this structure was erected around ten sixty, making it officially the oldest original Shinto shrine building surviving in all of Japan. Its unpainted cypress timber has weathered into a soft silvery-grey patina over ten centuries.

Notice the ingenious architectural layout of the Honden. Built in the ancient nagare-zukuri flowing style, the structure conceals three separate internal shrine chambers under one single continuous curving cypress-bark roof. The central chamber enshrines Prince Uji no Wakiiratsuko, while the left and right sanctuaries enshrine his father, Emperor Ojin, and his brother, Emperor Nintoku, uniting the royal family in eternal peace.

Just inside the entrance stands the Kamakura-period Haiden, or Worship Hall, constructed in the graceful Shinden-zukuri palace style. In the courtyard beside it, pause before the Kiriharasui, a sheltered natural spring flowing from a stone basin beneath a wooden pavilion. This crystal-clear mountain aquifer is the sole surviving water source among the historic Seven Famous Springs of Uji, providing water for tea ceremonies since medieval times.

In front of the Haiden, notice two conical mounds of white sand called kiyome-no-suna, which represent sacred mountain peaks and are used by shrine priests for ritual purification. The sand gleams brightly in the shaded courtyard, contrasting with the dark moss-covered boulders surrounding the sacred spring.

Walk down the peaceful forested path beneath the cryptomeria trees and stroll toward the Uji riverbank to conclude your journey at the historic Tsuen Tea House.