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Yoshino Kumano NP, Mie
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There is no shrine hall: Hana-no-Iwaya’s 45-meter cliff is the sacred object, worshipped as Izanami’s resting place. Visitors can approach and touch the rock—an unusually direct form of shrine worship.
The 720 Nihon Shoki says Izanami was buried at Arima and locals honored her with seasonal flowers, drums, flutes, banners, song and dance. Hana-no-Iwaya identifies this passage with its origin and name.
A Heian-era travel diary tells of sutras sealed in a hollow in Hana-no-Iwaya’s rock for Maitreya’s future arrival, with heavenly beings said to descend and worship them—a vivid Buddhist layer to the shrine’s history.
Twice a year, participants carry the roughly 170-meter sacred rope from the cliff across the road to Shichiri Mihama beach, then back to a pine in the shrine grounds. The shoreline becomes part of the rite.
At the nearby Otsuna Chaya, regional ancient rice called “Izanami rice” is used in udon and rice balls, as well as limited-edition mitarashi dumplings and Otsuna mochi. The goddess’s name is on the local menu.
The festival rope starts with about 800 bundles of locally grown glutinous-rice straw. Residents and volunteers spend 2 days twisting 7 ropes into a single 170-meter cord—a striking piece of community handiwork.
At Hana-no-Iwaya, the Iseji pilgrimage trail split in two: one branch followed Shichiri Mihama’s shoreline to Kumano Hayatama Shrine; the other turned inland to Kumano Hongu. This sacred rock stood at a real crossroads.
Festival ropes are not cut down afterward; they are left until they fall naturally. If one lasts, a new rope is hung too, so visitors may see more than one giant cord on the cliff at once.
Beneath the rope hang 3 flower-decorated banners called Minagare no Hata. They represent Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi and Susanoo, bringing the sun, moon and another of Japan’s great deities into the seasonal offering.
The rock opposite the main cliff is about 12 meters high and called Oji no Iwaya. It enshrines Kagutsuchi, the fire god whose birth burns his mother Izanami in the myth honored across the way.
In a separate autumn procession, residents bring white stones from Shichiri Mihama to the shrine on a flower-decorated cart. Children and neighbors help pull it through Arima before the stones are offered.
