7.Fukura Tenmangu Shrine

A shrine where you can see red cats
that you’ll want to visit in every season

　Fukura Tenmangu Shrine is dedicated to Michizane Sugawara-no-Michizane, the deity of learning. During examination season, many people visit the shrine to pray for success in their entrance exams, but the shrine is also believed to have many other virtues, such as prayers for protection from bad fortune, safe childbirth, and the fulfillment of one’s wishes. Its origins date back to around the year 1600 when Saint Enyo founded Shomyoji Temple in Onoji, Fukura Village. Later, Michizane Sugawara-no-Michizane was also enshrined there, and it became a syncretic temple for both Shinto and Buddhism. It was relocated to its current place in 1608, and in 1868, its name was changed to “Tenma-jinja Shrine” following a government order separating Shintoism and Buddhism. It was not until the early Showa Era (1926-1989) that its name was changed to “Fukura Tenmangu Shrine.” The places and ways people pray have changed over time, but the essence of praying for people remains the same. Ogatama Akanekosha Shrine (“Spirit-Beckoning Red Cat Shrine”) is symbolic as a place of prayer in the modern age. The red Manekineko beckoning cat statues at Akanekosha Shrine have attracted many people, and in recent years, the shrine has become even more well-known via social media, attracting visitors from far and wide. The shrine is full of fun, with stamps that change with the seasons, making you want to visit again and again.