Ushioe Tenmangu

Ushioe Tenmangu, located in Tenjin-cho, Kochi City, Kochi Prefecture, is the principal Tenmangu of the former Tosa Province, with a tradition that Michizane's eldest son Takami brought his father's relics here and enshrined them. It stands south of the center of Kochi City on the south bank of the Kagami River. The principal deity is Sugawara no Michizane (845-903), with attendant deities Takami Ason (Michizane's eldest son) and Amenohohi-no-Mikoto. It follows the configuration of the Tenmangu lineage radiating from Kitano Tenmangu in Kyoto and Dazaifu Tenmangu in Kyushu, but is distinctive for its tradition that Takami, exiled to Tosa during his father's demotion, brought his father's relics here. According to tradition, after Sugawara no Michizane died at Dazaifu in 903, his eldest son Takami, exiled to Tosa, enshrined his father's relics at this site. From the medieval period the shrine was the center of Tenjin devotion in Tosa, and in the early modern era it was patronized by the Yamanouchi lords of Tosa. It received the kensha rank in the Meiji era. The January uso-kae rite and the March annual festival continue the Tenmangu ritual calendar.