Shinto shrine
Ōmi Jingū
近江神宮（おうみじんぐう）
Ōtsu, Shiga Prefecture
A shrine at the foot of the mountains on the western shore of Lake Biwa, in Ōtsu, Shiga Prefecture, that enshrines Emperor Tenji, the 38th emperor, who founded the Ōmi Ōtsu-no-miya palace. It is one of the chokusaisha (imperially attended shrines) of Japan, and is also known as the kami of time, connected with the water clock, and as the ancestral kami of uta-karuta (poem cards).
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: Emperor Tenji
History and things to know
According to the official guide, from the mid-Meiji period a movement grew among the people of Shiga Prefecture to found a shrine to Emperor Tenji, and with the permission of Emperor Shōwa and the support of the prefecture's people and worshippers across Japan, the kami was enshrined on November 7, Shōwa 15 (1940). The shrine buildings are in a style called Ōmi-zukuri (Shōwa-zukuri), with the main sanctuary and the inner and outer worship halls surrounded by a corridor on the slope at the foot of the mountain, and in Heisei 10 they became Registered Tangible Cultural Properties of the nation as a representative example of modern shrine architecture.
Introduced by this site, based on materials from the shrine or temple and public bodies.
Before you visit
Opening hours, access, areas open to visitors, and events can change. Please check the latest guidance from the shrine or temple itself before you go.
Official website of the shrine or temple (may be in Japanese)
Sources (in Japanese)
- 近江神宮「御祭神・御本尊・由緒の公式案内」（2026-10-21 確認）
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