Koizumi Inari Shrine

Koizumi Inari Shrine, located in Koizumi-cho, Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture, is a major Inari shrine of the Joshu region. Tradition dates the founding to the reign of Sujin Tenno. The approach to the main hall, about 100 m long, is lined with several dozen vermilion torii gates, an arrangement compared with the Senbon Torii of Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto. The principal deities are Uka-no-Mitama-no-Mikoto, Omiya-no-Me-no-Mikoto, and Sadahiko-no-Mikoto, following the standard Inari configuration. The upper book of the Kojiki records Uka-no-Mitama-no-Kami as the child of Susanoo and Kamuoichi-hime. Together with Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto and Kasama Inari Shrine in Ibaraki, this shrine forms a regional pillar of Inari devotion in the Kanto region. From the medieval period onward it served as a local tutelary, and in the Edo period it grew with the silk industry of Joshu. The first horse festival in February features the traditional offerings of fried tofu and red rice.