Yonomiya Shrine

Shinomiya Shrine is a shrine in Chuo Ward, Kobe City, and one of the Ikuta Lineage Shrines (Ikuta Ejin Hassha). It enshrines Ichikishimahime-no-Mikoto, the third of the three Munakata goddesses. Ichikishimahime-no-Mikoto is widely known as Benzaiten (Benten-sama), revered as a deity of good fortune, the performing arts, wisdom and virtue, wealth and treasure, and matchmaking. Access to Shinomiya Shrine is about a 9-minute walk from Motomachi Station on the JR Kobe Line or the Hanshin Railway. Throughout its history, the shrine has been repeatedly affected by conflicts and disasters—including wartime destruction in the Sengoku period, a fire in the Meiji era, the Kobe air raids during World War II, and the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake—but each time it was restored. Today, its beautiful vermilion-lacquered buildings stand with a dignified presence. The Ikuta Ejin Hassha are also associated with the “Eight Shrine Pilgrimage” (Hassha Meguri), a pilgrimage popular since the Edo period and still practiced today by many people collecting goshuin (temple/shrine stamps). Located in the heart of the government district, Shinomiya Shrine is cherished by many Kobe residents as an “urban oasis” and a relaxing place to unwind.