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Izumo
Izumo is a city on the Sea of Japan coast of Shimane Prefecture, in the Chugoku region, home to Izumo Taisha, one of the oldest and most revered Shinto shrines in Japan, about an hour from Matsue.
The bronze torii of Izumo Taisha
- Prefecture
- Shimane
- Region
- Chugoku
- Journeys
- The Custom Tour of Japan
overview
The land of the myths, where the gods of Japan are said to gather once a year.
Izumo is the setting of many of the oldest stories in Japan. The Kojiki, the chronicle of 712, tells of the god Susanoo slaying the eight-headed serpent Yamata no Orochi in the mountains of Izumo, and of Okuninushi, the great god of the land, who ruled here until he gave the country to the descendants of the Sun Goddess. In return a great hall was built for him, and that hall is Izumo Taisha, the Grand Shrine of Izumo.
The shrine is dedicated to Okuninushi as the god of en-musubi, the binding of people together in marriage, friendship and good fortune, and couples come from all over Japan to pray here. In the tenth month of the old lunar calendar the gods of Japan are said to leave their own shrines and gather at Izumo to decide the fates of the year ahead, so that elsewhere the month is called Kannazuki, the month without gods, and in Izumo alone Kamiarizuki, the month with gods.
The main hall, rebuilt in 1744 and a National Treasure, is twenty-four metres high, the tallest shrine sanctuary in Japan. In 2000 the bases of three giant pillars, each made of three cedar trunks bound together, were found in the precinct, supporting the old tradition that the hall once stood forty-eight metres high on a long stair. Around the shrine are the beach where the gods come ashore, a fine museum of ancient Izumo and the white lighthouse of Hinomisaki over the sea.
Our tours stay overnightOur tours visit for the dayOn a Custom Tour of Japan
see and do
What to see in Izumo
Izumo Taisha
The Grand Shrine of Izumo, approached down a long avenue of pines to the main hall in the oldest style of shrine architecture, taisha-zukuri. Here visitors bow twice, clap four times and bow once, rather than the two claps of other shrines.
The great shimenawa of the Kaguraden
The hall for ceremonies and weddings is hung with a sacred rope of rice straw some thirteen metres long and weighing over five tonnes, among the largest in Japan.
The Shimane Museum of Ancient Izumo
A museum beside the shrine, showing the 358 bronze swords found together at Kojindani in 1984 and the 39 bronze bells of Kamo-Iwakura, all National Treasures, with a model of the shrine as it may have stood at forty-eight metres.
Shinmon-dori
The approach to the shrine from the old Taisha station, lined with shops of Izumo soba, sweets and good-luck charms, beneath a great concrete torii.
Inasa no Hama
A beach a short walk west of the shrine where, by tradition, the gods of Japan come ashore for their annual gathering. A rock called Bentenjima rises from the sand with a small shrine on its top.
Hinomisaki Lighthouse
A white stone lighthouse of 1903 on the cape north-west of the city, about forty-four metres high, the tallest stone lighthouse in Japan, over a coast of cliffs and blue water.
Hinomisaki Shrine
A vermilion shrine at the foot of the cape, rebuilt in the seventeenth century by the third Tokugawa shogun, dedicated to the Sun Goddess and to her brother Susanoo.
The old Taisha Station
A wooden station building of 1924 in the style of a shrine hall, with high ceilings and lanterns, preserved after the line closed in 1990 and an Important Cultural Property.
Iwami Ginzan
About an hour south-west, the old silver mine of Iwami Ginzan, inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 2007, with its tunnels in the wooded hills and the merchant town of Omori in the valley below.
experiences
The best of Izumo
The shrine with a priest's eye
A visit to Izumo Taisha with a guide who knows its myths and its rituals, the story of Okuninushi and the gathering of the gods, so that the bows and claps carry their meaning.
Warigo soba
Izumo soba, buckwheat noodles ground with the husk, dark and fragrant, served cold in a stack of round lacquered dishes with broth poured over each layer: the lunch of the shrine town.
Sunset at Inasa
The evening light over the Sea of Japan from the sand of Inasa no Hama, where the gods are said to land, with the rock of Bentenjima dark against the sky.
The silver mine town
A day at Iwami Ginzan and the old street of Omori, with its samurai and merchant houses, and the small onsen town of Yunotsu on the coast nearby, its port once used to ship the silver.
plan your visit
Izumo on a journey through Japan
- How long to stay
- Izumo is usually seen in a full day from Matsue, or with a night nearby to include Hinomisaki and Iwami Ginzan.
- Getting there
- Izumo Enmusubi Airport has flights from Tokyo Haneda of about one hour twenty, and the shrine is half an hour from it by car. From Okayama the Yakumo limited express reaches Izumoshi in about three hours; from Matsue a car takes about forty-five minutes. The Sunrise Izumo sleeper runs overnight from Tokyo.
journeys
Izumo on a private journey
We bring guests to Izumo on the Custom Tour of Japan, created around your party alone, on your dates, with your own Tour Director.
questions
Izumo: questions answered
Why is Izumo Taisha famous?
It is one of the oldest and most important shrines in Japan, dedicated to Okuninushi, the god of marriage and good relationships, and by tradition the place where all the gods of Japan gather once a year.
How do you get to Izumo Taisha?
Fly from Tokyo Haneda to Izumo Enmusubi Airport, about one hour twenty, then drive half an hour; or take the Yakumo limited express from Okayama, about three hours, to Izumoshi.
How do you pray at Izumo Taisha?
Bow twice, clap four times and bow once. Elsewhere in Japan the custom is two claps; the four claps are particular to Izumo.
Can you visit Izumo and Matsue together?
Yes. They are about forty-five minutes apart by car, and most journeys stay in Matsue or at Tamatsukuri Onsen and spend a day at Izumo.
How long should you spend at Izumo Taisha?
Allow two hours for the shrine and its approach, and another hour for the Museum of Ancient Izumo next door.
Can Izumo be part of a private tour of Japan?
Yes. The Custom Tour of Japan is created around your party alone, on your dates, with your own Tour Director, and it can go anywhere in the country, Izumo included. If you would rather travel independently, the Expert Japan Itinerary plans every day for you.
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Izumo, planned for you.
Tell us when you would like to travel and what draws you to Izumo, and we will answer with a Custom Tour of Japan created around your party alone, or, if you would rather travel independently, an Expert Japan Itinerary that plans every day for you.