is a type of Shinto shrine where the kami of a region are grouped together into a single sanctuary. This "region" may refer to a shōen, village or geographic area, but is more generally referred to as a whole province. The term is also occasionally called "sōsha". The sōja are usually located near the provincial capital established in the Nara period under then ritsuryō system, and can either be a newly created shrine, or a designation for an existing shrine. The "sōja" can also be the "ichinomiya" of the province, which themselves are of great ritual importance.
Whenever a new kokushi was appointed by the central government to govern a province, it was necessary for him to visit all of the sanctuaries of his province in order to complete the rites necessary for ceremonial inauguration. Grouping the kami into one location near the capital of the province greatly facilitated this duty,
The first mention of "sōja" appeared in the Heian period, in the diary of Taira no Tokinori, dated March 9, 1099 in reference to the province of Inaba.
The name "Sōja" is also found in place names such as the city of Sōja in Okayama Prefecture.
Rokusho shrine (six place) is a very common Soja shrine name.
Provincial Soja shrines RegionProvinceShrineLocationEngishiki JinmyochoModern system of ranked Shinto shrinesBeppyo? Kinai Yamashiro unknown Yamato unknownTakatori, Nara Kawachi Fujiidera, Osaka Shikinai TaishaSon-sha Izumi Izumi, OsakaFuken-sha Settsu Fuken-sha Tōkaidō Iga Province unknown Ise Suzuka, Mie Shikinai ShoshaKen-sha Suzuka, Mie Shikinai ShoshaSon-sha Shima Shima, MieSon-sha Owari Inazawa, Aichi Shikinai ShoshaKokuhei ShōshaYes Mikawa Toyokawa, AichiKen-sha Tōtōmi Iwata, Shizuoka Shikinai ShoshaKen-sha Suruga (Kambe Junja) Shizuoka, Shizuoka Shikinai ShoshaKokuhei ShōshaYes Izu Mishima, ShizuokaKanpei Taisha Kai Fuefuki, Yamanashi Shikinai ShoshaSon-sha Fuefuki, Yamanashi Shikinai ShoshaSon-sha (3rd location) Kōfu, YamanashiKen-sha Sagami Ōiso, KanagawaGō-sha Musashi Fuchū, Tokyokanpei-shōshaYes Awa Tateyama, ChibaUnknown (2nd location)Tateyama, ChibaKen-sha Kazusa Ichihara, ChibaSon-sha (2nd location) Ichihara, ChibaKen-sha Shimōsa Ichikawa, ChibaSon-sha Hitachi Ishioka, IbarakiKen-shaTōsandō Ōmi unknown Mino Nangū Otabi Shrine Tarui, GifuSetsumatsusha Hida Takayama, GifuKen-sha Shinano Ueda, NaganoKen-sha (2nd location) Matsumoto, NaganoSon-sha Kōzuke Maebashi, GunmaKen-sha Shimotsuke Tochigi, Tochigi Shikinai ShoshaKen-sha Mutsu Tagajō, MiyagiSon-sha Dewa Tsuruoka, YamagataGō-shaHokurikudō Wakasa Obama, FukuiSon-sha Echizen Echizen, FukuiKen-sha Kaga Komatsu, IshikawaShikinai ShoshaGō-sha Noto Nanao, IshikawaSon-sha Etchū Keta Shrine Fuken-sha Echigo Jōetsu, NiigataUnknown Sado Sado, NiigataUnknownSan'indō Tamba Nantan, KyotoUnknown Tango Kono ShrineKokuhei Chūsha Tajima Toyooka, Hyōgo Shikinai ShoshaGō-sha Inaba unknown Hōki (Sōja-daimyōjin) Kurayoshi, Tottori Ken-sha Izumo Matsue, ShimaneKen-sha Iwami Hamada, Shimane Shikinai ShoshaSon-sha Oki (Sōja-daimyōjin) Okinoshima, Shimane Shikinai ShoshaKen-sha Araki Shrine Okinoshima, ShimaneSon-shaSan'yōdō Harima Itatehyōzu Shrine Himeji, Hyōgo Shikinai ShoshaKen-shaYes Mimasaka Tsuyama, OkayamaKen-sha Bizen Okayama, OkayamaGō-sha Bitchū Sōja, OkayamaKen-sha Bingo Fuchū, HiroshimaUnknown Aki unknown Take Shrine Fuchū, Hiroshima Myojin TaishaKen-sha Suō Hōfu, YamaguchiKen-sha Nagato Sōsha-gū (subshrine of Iminomiya Shrine) Shimonoseki, YamaguchiSetsumatsusha Shimonoseki, YamaguchiUnknownNankaidō Kii Wakayama, WakayamaSon-sha Awaji Minamiawaji, Hyōgo Son-sha Awa Tokushima, TokushimaSon-sha Tokushima, Tokushima Shikinai ShoshaKen-sha Sanuki Sakaide, KagawaGō-sha Iyo Imabari, Ehime Shikinai ShoshaSon-sha Tosa Nankoku, KōchiGō-shaSaikaidō Chikuzen unknownChikugoKurume, FukuokaKokuhei TaishaBuzenMiyako, FukuokaGō-shaBungounknownHizenunknownHigoKumamoto, KumamotoFuken-shaHyūgaSaito, MiyazakiShikinai ShoshaKen-shaŌsumiKirishima, KagoshimaSon-shaSatsuma subshrine of Nitta ShrineSatsumasendai, KagoshimaSetsumatsushaIkiIki, NagasakiSon-shaTsushimaunknownHokkaidoHakodate HachimangūKokuhei Chūsha
Regional Soja shrines Regional Soja Shrines are Soja shrines dedicated to a specific region rather than a whole province. These include
Nagao Shrine (may have historically been a provincial one)
Hotaka Shrine Washinomiya Shrine
See also List of Shinto shrines Ichinomiya Kokubun-ji Notes
References