The is a Japanese Shinto shrine at Chichibu in Saitama Prefecture.Kotodamaya.com, "Chichibu Jinja"; retrieved 2013-1-26.
History According to text in the Sendai Kuji Hongi (Kujiki), Chichibuhiko-no-mikoto, the tenth-generation descendant of the Kuni no miyatsuko of Chichibu Province, established the shrine in the tenth year of Emperor Sujin to worship Yagokoro-omoikane-no-mikoto. The shrine contains
During the Kamakura period, the shrine merged with a neighboring temple, and was known as Myōken-gū until the separation of Shinto and Buddhism (Shinbutsu bunri) in the late-19th century. 社殿 ご由緒 at Chichibu-jinja.or.jp; retrieved 2013-1-26.
In the Edo period, it was one of 34 sacred sites of the old Chichibu ProvinceHarold Bolitho. (2003). "Tokugawa Japan's Tourist Revolution," Treasures of the Yenching: Seventy-fifth Anniversary of the Harvard-Yenching Library, p. 40. or Chichibu District. "Chichibu Shrine" at Sainokuni-kanko.jp ; retrieved 2013-1-26.
In the Meiji period it took the name Chichbu Shrine, with the characters 知知夫神社 appearing on the tablet of the torii.
In the system of ranked Shinto shrines, Chichibu was listed among the 3rd class of nationally significant shrines or .Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1963). The vicissitudes of Shinto, p. 288.
The shrine's grounds include a number of subsidiary shrines. A Tenjin Shrine, Tōshō-gū, and a Suwa Shrine are among them.
Events
The shrine hosts a number of events. The rice-planting festival takes place annually on April 4. The mid-summer Kawase Festival is celebrated on July 19 and 20. The Banba-machi Suwa Shrine festival is not annual, but occasional. It resembles the Onbashira festival of the Suwa Taisha.
Chichibu's annual night festival draws the biggest crowds. Celebrated in December, it spans the first six days of the month. The parading of floats is listed as part of the national cultural heritage.国指定文化財 データベース:検索結果一覧 Retrieved August 23, 2008国指定文化財 データベース 主情報詳細 秩父祭屋台 Retrieved August 23, 2008
The national government has also recognized the shrine's sacred dance (kagura) as an important cultural asset.国指定文化財 データベース:主情報詳細 秩父神社神楽 Retrieved on August 23, 2008 Similar honors have been awarded to its festival music, the floats, buildings and other possessions.
See also List of Shinto shrines in Japan Modern system of ranked Shinto Shrines
References
External links
秩父神社 (Chichibu Jinja) website]