Shinto shrine
Kumano Nachi Taisha
熊野那智大社（くまのなちたいしゃ）
Nachikatsuura, Wakayama Prefecture
An old shrine, one of the three Kumano shrines, regarded as the head shrine of the Kumano shrines throughout Japan. From the divine virtue of its enshrined kami, Kumano Fusumi no Ōkami, it has long been called "Musubi-no-miya," and it also enshrines the separate shrine Hirō Jinja, whose sacred body is the Nachi waterfall (Nachi no Otaki).
English pages are the site’s own translations of its Japanese pages. The sources cited are in Japanese. 日本語で読む
Prayers associated with this place
Enshrined kami: Kumano Fusumi no Ōkami
History and things to know
According to the shrine's tradition, it originated when, at the time of the eastern expedition of Kamuyamato Iwarebiko no Mikoto (Emperor Jinmu), his party found the Nachi waterfall and worshipped it as the sacred body in which Ōnamuchi no Kami had appeared, and it began when, in the 5th year of Emperor Nintoku (317), shrine buildings were set up halfway up the mountain and the Kumano kami and the kami of the waterfall were moved there. The Nachi waterfall is the sacred body of the separate shrine Hirō Jinja, and there is a story that Retired Emperor Kazan sank a sacred medicine in the basin of the waterfall.
Introduced by this site, based on materials from the shrine or temple and public bodies.
Before you visit
The separate shrine Hirō Jinja, whose sacred body is the Nachi waterfall, is in front of the waterfall, away from the main shrine buildings. The shrine's parking lot is below the shrine office; the lots in front of Hirō Jinja are paid parking run by souvenir shops.
Official website of the shrine or temple (may be in Japanese)
Sources (in Japanese)
- 熊野那智大社「御祭神・御本尊・由緒の公式案内」（2026-10-21 確認）
This site is independent of the shrines, temples, and other websites mentioned. No partnership or endorsement is implied.