Hikawa Shrine

Located in Takahana-cho, Omiya-ku, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture. It is an Engishiki Myojin Taisha, the Ichinomiya of Musashi Province, and a former Kanpei Taisha. The deities enshrined are Susanoo-no-Mikoto, Inadahime-no-Mikoto, and Onamuchi-no-Mikoto. There were originally three shrines called Nantai-sha, Nyotai-sha, and Hioji-sha, and there was some controversy over the ranking and the deities enshrined, but now they are one shrine. Hikawa is said to be connected to Hinokawa in Izumo, and since the Musashi Kuni no Miyatsuko is from the same family as the Izumo Kuni no Miyatsuko, the development of this area was done by the Izumo clan, and this shrine is said to have been enshrined as a descendant of Kitsuki Taisha. Hikawa Shrines are widely distributed with the Moto-Arakawa and Tama Rivers as the east-west borders, and even today there are 162 in Saitama Prefecture and 59 in Tokyo. When the capital was moved to Tokyo in 1869 (Meiji 2), this shrine was chosen as the northern guardian shrine of the capital, following the example of Kamo Shrine in Kyoto, and became an imperial festival shrine. The annual festival is held on August 1st, and includes the attendance of an imperial envoy and the dedication of the Azuma Asobi. The Daito Festival on December 10th is famous for a special offering called the Hyakumizen, but it is also crowded with people for the Tokaichi market, where visitors can receive the divine portraits of the main deity Okuninushi-no-Mikoto (Daikoku-sama) and the sub-deity Sukunahikona-no-Mikoto (Ebisu-sama), as well as rakes for good fortune and good luck.

[Minoru Sonoda]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

埼玉県さいたま市大宮区高鼻町に鎮座。延喜式名神大社(えんぎしきみょうじんたいしゃ)で武蔵(むさし)国一宮(いちのみや)、旧官幣大社。祭神は須佐之男命(すさのおのみこと)、稲田姫(いなだひめ)命、大己貴(おおなむち)命の三柱。もと男体(なんたい)社、女体(にょたい)社、簸王子(ひおうじ)社と称する三神殿があり、順位と祭神をめぐる論争もあったが、現在は一社殿となっている。氷川は出雲(いずも)の簸川(ひのかわ)に通じるとされ、武蔵国造(くにのみやつこ)は出雲国造と同族のため、当地方の開拓が出雲一族によるもので、当社も杵築(きづき)大社を勧請(かんじょう)したものという。氷川社は元荒川と多摩川を東西の境にして広く分布し、現在でも埼玉県に162社、東京都に59社を数える。1869年（明治2）の東京遷都にあたり、京都の賀茂(かも)神社に倣って首都の北方鎮守に当社が選ばれ勅祭社となった。例大祭は8月1日で勅使参向と東遊(あずまあそび)の奉納がある。12月10日の大湯祭(だいとうさい)は、百味膳(ひゃくみぜん)と称する献供の特殊神事で有名だが、また本社祭神の大己貴命（大国(だいこく)様）と摂社祭神の少彦名(すくなひこな)命（恵毘寿(えびす)様）の神影や開運福徳の熊手(くまで)も授かる十日市でにぎわう。

［薗田　稔］

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