Pilgrimage to the Three Shrines of the Eastern Provinces(Kanto region) ~FEB,2025~
The three shrines of Kashima Shrine, Katori Shrine, and Ikisu Shrine are known as the Three Shrines of the Eastern Region (Kanto Region), and pilgrimages to the three shrines were quite popular during the Edo period, with many writers and artists, including Matsuo Basho, Kobayashi Issa, Jippensha Ikku, and Watanabe Kazan, visiting. I foolishly thought I should go too. All of them have a long history that stretches back to ancient times, but the main reason why it has become easy to visit them from Edo is because of the development of river transportation through the Tone River Flood Control Project by the shogunate. Originally, the border between Shimousa and Hitachi was a vast inland sea (Katori Sea), which included what is now Lake Kasumigaura and Lake Kitaura.
The three shrines are located in a right-angled isosceles triangle with Ikisu Shrine at the apex and Kashima Shrine and Katori Shrine at the base. Ikisu Shrine, facing the ferry crossing of the Tone River, is located on low ground, but the another two shrines of Kashima and Katori are located on higher ground, facing each other across the Katori Sea. The main deities enshrined at Kashima Shrine are Takemikazuchi and at Katori Shrine are Futsunushi-no-kami, and in the Nihon Shoki, both deities pressured Okuninushi-no-mikoto to cede the country and played an active role in Emperor Jimmu's eastern expedition, while Kunado, the deity enshrined at Ikisu Shrine, gave directions of the pacification of the eastern provinces.
The locations of shell mounds and burial mounds allow us to estimate the coastline of the Katori Sea at that time, and the area surrounding the inland sea had abundant food and a large population, so there are many ruins from the Jomon, Yayoi, and Kofun periods.
About 8km in a straight line from Kashima Shrine, across Kitaura, is the Oo（大生） Tomb Group, with Oo Shrine nearby. Oo is believed to have originated from the （多）/（飯富） (Ofu) tribe who migrated from ancient Yamato, and the shrine enshrines Takemikazuchi-no-kami as its guardian deity (Oo Shrine), which is said to be the main shrine of Kashima Shrine. The Oo clan's home town was Ofu-go, Toichi-gun, Yamato Province, but part of Sodegaura was also named Ofu-go, Mochida-gun, Kazusa Province, so the Oo clan probably landed on the Boso Peninsula as well.
I digress, but the Inbe clan of Awa（阿波） migrated to the tip of the Boso Peninsula, and became the origin of the place name Awa（安房）. The Japanese are a maritime people, so perhaps we should not be surprised by the dynamics of migration. At Awa Shrine in Tateyama, human bones said to be those of the Inbe clan are enshrined as Inbezuka.
Now, Futsunushi-no-Mikoto, the deity enshrined at Katori Shrine, descended to Amaterasu Omikami under the command to pacify Ashihara no Nakatsukuni (the land of reed plains), i.e. the earthly world. The Nihon Shoki states that Takemikazuchi-no-Mikoto, the deity enshrined at Kashima Shrine, volunteered and followed this order. On the other hand, the Kojiki does not mention Futsunushi-no-Mikoto. The Kojiki was written down by O no Yasumaro from the dictation of Hieda no Are, and although Yasumaro was a branch of the Oo clan mentioned above, it is unclear as to the background to this, whether he favored the clan deity (Takemikazuchi-no-Mikoto) or whether it was an oversight on Hieda no Are's part.
Or perhaps Fujiwara no Fuhito had some intention to bias the compilation of the Nihon Shoki, praising the Nakatomi clan and belittling the Soga clan. Kasuga Taisha was founded in the Nara period by Fuhito or his grandson Nagate to enshrine four main deities, with Takemikazuchi (Kashima) enshrined in the first shrine and Futsunushi (Katori) enshrined in the second shrine. There is a theory that Nakatomi Kamatari was born in Kashima, but if we look at it cynically, the Fujiwara clan may have taken over the myth of the unification of Yamato to gain legitimacy for leading the imperial court.
7-8km down the Tone River from Katori Shrine, you will find the ruins of Omigawa Castle on a small hill. Over 20 ancient tombs from the 6th and 7th centuries have been identified here, and they are known as the Shiroyama Tomb Group. Among them, the excavated items from Tomb No. 1 (a keyhole-shaped tomb with a horizontal stone chamber) are rich in a triangular-rimmed mirror with divine beast motifs, swords, armor, and more, which suggest a deep connection with the Yamato kingship.
The triangular-rimmed divine beast mirror is a bronze mirror from the Wei (Northern Dynasty) in China, and while the same mirror has been excavated from another 3rd century burial mound, it is a mystery why it was found here in a 6th century burial mound. It is appropriate to assume that it was passed down from generation to generation without being buried for 300 years, but it is possible that it may have been connected to a chief deeply involved in the establishment of Katori Shrine, or to an influential person sent from Yamato.
From the ruins of Omigawa Castle, you can see the Tone River flowing towards the Kashima Nada Sea and the Kashima Petrochemical Complex beyond. In ancient times, the vast Katori Sea must have stretched out before your eyes.
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