Sanko Shrine
Sanko Shrine is located in Tennoji Ward, Osaka City.
The enshrined deities are
Amaterasu-omikami, Tsukuyomi-no-mikoto, and Susanoo-no-mikoto.
It was founded during the reign of the 18th
Emperor Hanzei and was formerly known as Himeyama Shrine (a name derived from
the ancient "Hime no Matsubara" pine grove).
The shrine has been served for 86
generations by the Takekawa clan, descendants of Takeuchi no Sukune, who was
the shrine's priest at the time of its founding.
It is known nationwide as a shrine
dedicated to a deity that wards off “chufu” (paralysis or stroke-like
ailments), and a grand prayer festival is held there from June 1st to 7th.
It enshrines Jurojin (identified here as
Takeuchi no Sukune), one of the Seven Lucky Gods, and is a stop on the Osaka
Seven Lucky Gods pilgrimage, which takes place on the 7th of every month.
This site is said to have housed an outpost
(Sanada-maru) of Osaka Castle; during the Winter Siege of Osaka in 1614, Sanada
Yukimura reportedly constructed an outpost here—which he named Engetsu-jo
(Crescent Moon Castle)—and ordered the digging of a secret tunnel connecting it
to the main castle.
Beside the stone steps leading to the main
hall, there is a statue of Sanada Yukimura and a stone-chamber-style horizontal
tunnel known as the "Historic Site: Sanada's Secret Tunnel"; this
tunnel is opened to the public on the first Sunday of November.
Access: A 3-minute walk from Tamatsukuri
Station on the Osaka Municipal Subway Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line, or a
5-minute walk from Tamatsukuri Station on the JR Osaka Loop Line.
