Sapporo Fushimi Inari Shrine

Sapporo Fushimi Inari Shrine, located in Fushimi, Chuo Ward, Sapporo City, Hokkaido, was invited from Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto and is the principal Inari shrine of central Sapporo. It stands on the eastern slope of Mt. Moiwa, near Hokkaido Jingu and the Sapporo Museum. The approach is lined with multiple vermilion torii in the visual idiom of Fushimi Inari. The principal deities are Uka-no-Mitama-no-Kami, Sadahiko-no-Okami, Omiya-no-Me-no-Okami, Tanaka-no-Okami, and Shi-no-Okami, the five Inari deities. The shrine completely follows the configuration of Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto, the head shrine of all Inari devotion; the upper book of the Kojiki records Uka-no-Mitama as the child of Susanoo and Kamuoichi-hime. According to tradition, the shrine was founded in 1884 when the deity was invited from Fushimi Inari Taisha. It became the center of Inari devotion for settlers in Sapporo from Honshu provinces during the Meiji development era. Together with Hokkaido Jingu it stands among the principal shrines of Sapporo. The first horse festival in February and the September annual rite continue the Inari calendar.