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Ise-Shima NP, Mie
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In 2004, marathoner Mizuki Noguchi ran the Athens Olympic marathon with an Ishigami-san charm sewn into her racing shorts—and won gold. News of the charm helped lift annual shrine visits from a few thousand to 250,000 by 2013.
Osatsu ama rest on the 7th and 17th of each month; May 7 is a no-fishing day even in fine weather. At Ishigami-san’s spring feast, men serve the women—2019’s local-lobster miso soup was cooked in a pot sized for 400.
For generations, Osatsu’s ama prayed here for safe dives and good catches. Local legend says a goddess with a Shimada-style coiffure appeared beside the stone on a New Year’s night—a story behind Ishigami-san’s one-wish reputation for women.
The charm’s star and grid come from marks ama traditionally used on diving gear. Seiman’s unbroken star returns to its starting point, a sign of safe return; Doman’s lattice leaves no opening for evil to enter, according to local belief.
Ishigami-san’s sacred body is literally a stone. The kami enshrined is Tamayori-hime, described in Japanese myth as the sea god Watatsumi’s daughter and the mother of Emperor Jimmu.
The present Ishigami-san hall was built at its current site in May 2002. Before then, the little shrine stood beside the first torii; earlier still, it was near Hirodo Elementary School.
On the wider Shinmei Jinja grounds—not inside Ishigami-san’s own hall—stands Asafukuji’s Buddhist Yakushi Hall. It survived Meiji-era anti-Buddhist demolitions, and its Kannon image is said to be about 800 years old.
Look for the shrine grounds’ “House of Longevity,” which preserves remains of a once-mighty camphor tree. A local record described its trunk as 14.7 meters around; villagers kept the remains as a symbol of long life.
Since December 2019, Osatsu has held candlelit evening visits to Ishigami-san around selected full and new moons. The community-created “Kamiakari” pilgrimage lets visitors meet the shrine—and the town—after dark.
