Hokkaido-jingu

Hokkaido-jingu in Chuo Ward, Sapporo, is the general tutelary shrine of Hokkaido. Four deities are enshrined: the three "pioneer deities" — Okunitama no Kami, Onamuchi no Kami (Okuninushi) and Sukunabikona no Kami — together with Emperor Meiji, added in 1964. Kojiki (712 CE) records Onamuchi in the kuniyuzuri narrative as the chief earthly deity, and Sukunabikona as the deity born of Kamimusubi who advanced the formation of the islands with Onamuchi. Shrine tradition records that the pioneer deities were brought from the Jingikan in Tokyo by Shima Yoshitake in 1869, and the shrine was founded in 1870 as Sapporo Jinja, then raised to a national shrine of the highest rank in 1899. After the 1964 addition of Emperor Meiji, the shrine was renamed Hokkaido-jingu. The original buildings were destroyed by fire in 1974 and rebuilt in 1978. The June 14-16 Sapporo Festival is among the largest summer festivals in Hokkaido.