The Grove of Takakura Shrine
The grove is designated as a natural monument of Kagoshima Prefecture. There are huge Nageia nagi and red-bark oak. Nageia nagi is a tall evergreen tree of Podocarpaceae. It is often planted as a sacred tree in the precincts of shrines. The tree here is 25 m in height and 4.3 m in circumference, and its age is estimated between 800 to 1,000 years old. This is one of the most significant trees in Japan. Red-bark oak is a tall evergreen tree of the beech family. It is one of the giant trees in the prefecture, with a height of about 35 m, a circumference of 5.7 m at eye level, and an estimated age of 400–500 years old.
Recent measurements indicate that the Nageia nagi is 4.39 m tall, and the red-bark oak is 6.09 m tall, suggesting they are growing. According to the Ministry of the Environment’s database of big trees and extensive forests (https://kyoju.biodic.go.jp/), the Nageia nagi tree is Japan’s fourth most prominent tree, following the circumference of 780 cm in Bungo-Ono-cho Oita Prefecture.
Ashiya Shirasu Mining Gate
The cliffs of the shirasu mining site in Ashiya are set to be shirasu from bottom to top; downstream, there is Iwato pyroclastic flow, and the upper stream has Tsumaya/Irido pyroclastic flow. The eastern cliff of the shirasu mining site is flanked by pumiceous layers (Osumi Falling Pumice Deposits). Above these layers are deposits of the Tsumaya and Irido pyroclastic flows.
(Shirasu is a fine-grained pumice or volcanic ash that is distributed as a thick formation in the southern Kyushu region of Japan.)
Takaza Shrine
This is located in Kenashino. According to the Local History of Kiyomizu-mura, the shrine was originally the gate deity of Nakano Yashiki. In November 1888 (Meiji 21), it was transferred to the present location as the guardian deity of the communities of Kenashino and Ashitani.
The shrine’s prayer festival takes place on the closest Sunday to March 12 every year, and “yomogi dumplings” are made in the village. According to Hamada (born in 1973), the chief priest of Hokushin Shrine, who presides over the festival, the yomogi dumplings of Kenashino are sweet and delicious.
According to the Municipal Bulletin Kokubu issued in 1980 (Showa 55), as the shrine pavilion, the shrine building of Chinoo Shrine, located on the Kokubu Junior High School site and was gifted to the community was used. Furthermore, the Municipal Bulletin Kokubu issued in 1986 (Showa 61) states that the guardian shrine of Kenashino was a chinju shrine until 1871 (Meiji 4) and was merged with the chinju shrine located in Sumitoko. After that, the shrine is said to have been integrated with Oyamazumi Shrine in Kawahara. In July, a portable shrine procession will appear from the shrine to Ashitani Community Center as part of okudari. According to residents, they used to walk to Ashitani, but now they travel by light truck. The portable shrine for okudari is enshrined in the shrine pavilion. A harvest festival is held in October, and another celebration is held in December.
Bato Kannon (Goddess of Mercy) is also enshrined in the shrine’s precincts, whose annual festival is held on the first Sunday of May. Cucumber salad, onishime, and tofu are served on that festival day.
More than 80 other plant species grow wild in the precincts. The prefecture designated the 800+-year-old Nageia nagi (Japanese oak) and 300-year-old red-bark oak trees as cultural assets on March 23, 1989 (Heisei 1). The trees on the shrine grounds have been carefully tended, and there is a spring next to the torii gate, which is the water source for the Kenashino Reservoir. However, the amount of water has decreased.
Oyamazumi Shrine
This shrine sits on the riverbank. The deities are Oyamatsumi-no-Mikoto and Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto. A wooden statue of the god wearing a robe and a sash is enshrined there. Although there is no information regarding the shrine’s founding, it is said that there is a munefuda (a building tag) dated November 20, 1511 (Eisho 7) that names Hidenobu, Maruta Yataro, Maeda Saburo, Kuro, and the carpenter Fujiwara Ienoku as the chief movers (Local History of Kiyomizu-mura.
There was also a munefuda indicating the involvement of Kawahara village official Miyata Toemon and carpenter Nagata Shichirozaemon, among others, in constructing the treasure hall to commemorate its rebuilding on February 9, 1661 (Manji 6). There are also records indicating a rebuilding in 1625 (Kanei 2).
On July 8, 1909 (Meiji 42) and March 2, 1910 (Meiji 43), Chinju Shrine and Atago Shrine were enshrined with Oyamazumi Shrine. According to the chief priest Waki, the shrine’s parish covers the communities of Tachikawa, Nakaichi, Ichinono, Haginomoto, Kawachi, Matsugano, Kuroishi, and Usuki. The annual events are the Prayer Service on March 16, the Pilgrimage Service on July 16, and the yearly festival and the new harvest festival, which are held on November 16. During the July pilgrimage festival, portable shrines, flags, and drums used to travel around the community but are now transported by light trucks. Rituals are performed at community centers in each community. In Kawachi, there is a Tokumitsu Shrine behind the community center, and the ceremonies are performed there.
According to the “Municipal Bulltien Kokubu” published in June 1986 (Showa 61), Tokumitsu Shrine is a branch of Tokumitsu Shrine in Yamakawa-cho, Ibusuki-shi, and is dedicated to Maeda Toshiemon, who introduced sweet potatoes to the Kagoshima mainland. The deity’s name was bestowed in 1879 (Meiji 12), and the local people called it “Totsubosaa.” Usuki is home to the Oyamazumi Shrine, where the okudari festival is held. According to Municipal Bulltine Kokubu, published in December 1985 (Showa 60), “The name of the deity is Usuyamanokami Daimyojin, and the deity’s title is Tsukuyomi Oyamazumi. This shrine was built by Miyata Shokenmotsu, who was asked to stand guard over the Shonai rebellion and also built the shrine.” It was probably built at the end of the Warring States period.
The shrine’s precincts are home to the Batou Kannon (Goddess of Mercy), erected in 1771 (Meiwa 8), as well as the stone lantern erected in November 1747 (Enryo 4) to commemorate Koshin worship. In the old days, people from the next village would come to pick them up, and children served as flag bearers.
According to the January 1986 (Showa 61) issue of the Municipal Bulletin Kokubu, the precincts were even more overgrown with trees until the road was widened in 1968 (Showa 43). Also on the grounds is a monument to the Russo-Japanese War with “Kunimitsu” inscribed on the front and a stone monument commemorating the road’s opening from Kamii to Zaibe via Usuki in 1926 (Taisho 15).
Kawahara Shinden Irrigation Ditch
According to the Local History of Kiyomizu-mura, there is no precise historical record of when the irrigation ditch was installed. Still, farmland was farmland along the right bank of the Kenshokawa River in the Ichinono, Nakama, and Honkawara villages of the Kawahara district. An oil merchant from the Shimobe area saw the advantageous location there and explained the promising water utilization project, which led to the construction. The construction also created beautiful rice paddies on the right bank of the river, resulting in the cultivation of more than 11 cho. The year-round drainage of the river made it more convenient to use the water for daily life. The water intake of the canal is located at Hagi-no-Moto. From there, it runs along the right bank of the mountain in front of the houses above Kawahara Elementary School.
Along this waterway is Kakegoshi, on the border between Ichinono and Nakama. A stone drum bridge has been built, and an irrigation canal has been devised to pass over it. According to the monument, the stone bridge was built in 1861 (Manen2), and the names of those involved in its construction are inscribed.
Kataeda Shinden
This used to be called Yasuda-shinden and was renamed Kataeda-shinden in the Meiji period (1868-1912). It dates back to 1790 (Kansei 2) when Yasuda Genzaemon of Deshimaru opened a rice field in Kataeda in Usuki. A stone monument to this effect is enshrined on the side of the road near the gate ball field in Shimousuki. According to the inscription, the shrine was built by Yasuda Genzaemon in March 1790 (Kansei 2) as “Omizukami (God of water), Otanokami (God of rice paddies), and Oyamanokami (God of mountains).”The irrigated area was about 8 chobu of rice paddies in Ikenoue, Kataeda, Kaimata, and Kamien.
Kenashino Reservoir
According to the Local History of Kiyomizu-mura, the date of establishment is still being determined. Still, it is said that before the Meiji Restoration, it needed to be better maintained in terms of repair and dredging. The reservoir is thought to have existed before the Meiji Restoration, as there is a spring by its side, considered one of the reservoir’s water sources. The local people used the pool not only for irrigation but also for fire protection and the care of cattle and horses.
Major renovations were carried out in 1934 (Showa 9) with the villagers’ consent and subsidized by the prefectural government.
Ogatama Tree
Located within the Miyata family compound in Kuroishi, the tree is estimated to be about 18 m tall and around 600 years old. It is a member of the magnolia family, and its flowers are purplish-white with a distinctive fragrance. According to the Miyata family, the Aza for this area is Hoshiaibara. It is said to be where warriors heading for Shonai (toward the Miyakonojo) gathered, using this tree as a landmark during the Shonai War in the late Warring States period. This would suggest that the tree was already there about 400 years ago.
The Origin of the “Amadon Earth Embankment”
The origin of the name “Amadon earth embankment” may not have been handed down in our area. According to the story of an elder, Nishida Nakazaemon (deceased) of Kamiba Makikamihara, Shigehisa, Kirishima-mura, there was an Ama (nun) of unknown age who was well-versed in agricultural matters at Daimyoji Temple in Kiyomizu (meaning Kamiyamanomichi). In addition to providing guidance and encouragement in farming, she later went to the Gokihara area to give advice and encouragement. Of course, from the standpoint of promoting industry, she built a levee to start developing the plains. This is why the name “Ama-dono-dotei” was coined for this dam.
Incidentally, Nishida also said there was a shrine dedicated to the deity of water with a width of 1 ken and depth of 1.5 ken near the barrier by the early Meiji period. The shrine was guarded by Tashiro Sukejiro, who moved to “Chonoda” in Kirishima-mura around 1872 (Meiji 5). The shrine’s only remains are an old cherry tree.
He also said there used to be an “Amadono Shrine.” It was located in Tashiro, Kawahara, and is mentioned in Sangoku Shrine Description Book. Jibe, the manager of Tashiro’s residence, was the shrine’s chief priest. It is said that three wooden statues of nuns are the shrine’s deities and that the mountain and land deities were also worshiped there. It is believed that the nun was a government official who led the region’s people in agriculture and farming as a saint. A wildfire broke out in the early New Year in 1690 (Genroku 3), and the shrine and its sacred object were destroyed by fire. For this reason, in February of 1696 (Genroku 9), the shrine asked Shin’o Shonin of Kongoji Temple in Kokubu to sculpt three nuns to serve as the shrine’s deities and also to build a shrine pavilion.