Shinto shrine · Fuji

Juoji Shrine

AT A GLANCE

Why go?

Juoji Shrine (Jūōji Jinja, 十王子神社) is a compact, handsomely carved Shinto shrine tucked into the Imaizumi neighbourhood of Fuji City, Shizuoka. Far from a mountain pilgrimage site, it is a quiet ward shrine that rewards the attentive visitor with some of the finest wooden sculpture in the lower Fuji foothills, all set around a single great ginkgo tree.↗↗

Long venerated as the chief shrine, or sōja, of old Imaizumi village, the shrine enshrines the deity Jūōji Jinja (the 'Ten Princes') and is traditionally honored under the exalted title Shōi-ichii Jūōji Daimyōjin. Its main hall and worship hall were rebuilt in October 1940, carrying on an unbroken line of worship that a surviving bronze gong-mouth bell dates to at least 1658.↗

What makes a stop here worthwhile is the craftsmanship: every beam, gable and bracket of the worship hall is wreathed in intricate openwork carving by the master sculptor Itakura Seihō, whose dragons, phoenix and lions are among the highlights of shrine art in this part of Shizuoka.↗

A LITTLE INSPIRATION IS ON ITS WAY

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Shinto shrine · Fuji

Juoji Shrine

Fuji, JP 3.1 (8 Google reviews)

Photo: Google Maps

AT A GLANCE

Why go?

Juoji Shrine (Jūōji Jinja, 十王子神社) is a compact, handsomely carved Shinto shrine tucked into the Imaizumi neighbourhood of Fuji City, Shizuoka. Far from a mountain pilgrimage site, it is a quiet ward shrine that rewards the attentive visitor with some of the finest wooden sculpture in the lower Fuji foothills, all set around a single great ginkgo tree.↗↗

Long venerated as the chief shrine, or sōja, of old Imaizumi village, the shrine enshrines the deity Jūōji Jinja (the 'Ten Princes') and is traditionally honored under the exalted title Shōi-ichii Jūōji Daimyōjin. Its main hall and worship hall were rebuilt in October 1940, carrying on an unbroken line of worship that a surviving bronze gong-mouth bell dates to at least 1658.↗

What makes a stop here worthwhile is the craftsmanship: every beam, gable and bracket of the worship hall is wreathed in intricate openwork carving by the master sculptor Itakura Seihō, whose dragons, phoenix and lions are among the highlights of shrine art in this part of Shizuoka.↗

A village chief shrine of old Imaizumi

Imaizumi, where the shrine stands, was once a single village of many shrines, sitting on the spring-fed terraces below Mt. Fuji. Juoji Shrine served as its sōja — the principal deity to which the hamlet's other shrines were answerable — and the community has worshipped here for centuries. The founding year is no longer recorded, but a bronze gong-mouth bell (waniguchi) said to bear the date Manji 2 (1658) tells us the shrine was already established by the mid-seventeenth century, and a surviving roof-tile (munefuda) from Hōei 6 (1709) marks a later reconstruction.↗

The buildings you see today were raised in October 1940, in the gongen-zukuri style in which the worship hall, a connecting hall and the enclosed main shrine flow together under interlocking roofs. Bright red balustrades run around the front of the worship hall, giving the structure a warm, ceremonial glow that lingers in memory long after a brief visit.↗

Carving worth hunting for

The real reason to slow down here is the woodcarving, the work of Itakura Seihō, a sculptor trained in the famed Yūhara carving tradition of Kanagawa who settled in Fuji to decorate its shrines. Lean toward the worship hall and read the structure from the roof down.↗

In the small gable (chidori-hafu) over the entrance a phoenix swims through clouds. The load-bearing bracket block (gama-gashi) in front of the porch is carved with a parent dragon flanked by two playful children winding around it — a tender, almost affectionate take on an otherwise fierce theme, with a gentler expression than the dragon carvings of the sculptor's other Fuji shrines. Below it a curved tie-beam (karahashi) shows a crane among pines, and the projecting carved ends (kiri-fuda) on either side of the porch are turned-lion figures, one still clutching a cage-ball in its jaws, with an unusual baby lion clinging to the adult. The signature panel beneath the roof dates the work to the tenth month of Shōwa 15 (1940).↗

The great ginkgo of the precinct

Beyond the shrine buildings, the grounds tell their own story of how an urban shrine meets a modern road. A street now cuts across the south of the precinct, slicing the old approach path in two, but at the southern end still towers a single colossal ginkgo. So notable is this tree that the city has designated it a Natural Monument. Come in late autumn and the whole approach should turn brilliant gold — the one seasonal spectacle the shrine is famous for.↗

Visiting

This is an everyday neighbourhood shrine rather than a ticketed sight: you simply pass through the torii gate into the grounds and worship at the hall, at your own pace and usually free of charge. It sits in the Imaizumi district just east of Fuji City's Yoshiwara No. 2 Junior High School, and the nearest rail stop is Honyoshiwara Station on the Gakunan line, a short walk away. The area around it is residential and lightly industrial, so combine the visit with the spring-water streams and paper-making heritage of Imaizumi, or with the larger Sengen shrines that carry the Mt. Fuji faith across this same lowland.↗↗↗

What makes it special

01

Master woodcarvings by Itakura Seihō: a parent-and-child dragon bracket, a phoenix in clouds and a pine-and-crane beam, signed 1940.↗

02

A giant ginkgo designated a Fuji City Natural Monument anchors the south of the grounds.↗

03

Historic chief shrine (sōja) of old Imaizumi village, enshrining the 'Ten Princes' deity and rebuilt in elegant gongen-zukuri style with red balustrades.↗

A little planning goes a long way

Reach it on foot from Honyoshiwara Station on the Gakunan line (a few hundred metres), or look for it just east of Yoshiwara No. 2 Junior High School in the Imaizumi district.↗↗
It is an open, freely accessible community shrine — no admission, just pass the torii and worship at the hall; keep visits quiet, as the grounds sit within a residential area.↗
For a seasonal payoff, time a visit for late autumn when the city-protected ginkgo at the south of the precinct turns gold.↗

About this guide

Compiled with AI assistance from the sources below; this is not a first-hand visit. Place details collected October 5, 2026. Hours, access and ratings can change; confirm with the venue before visiting.

Finding your next place…

Juoji Shrine

Why go?

More of Japan: Kamakura

Finding your next place…

Juoji Shrine

Why go?

More of Japan: Kamakura

A village chief shrine of old Imaizumi

Carving worth hunting for

The great ginkgo of the precinct

Visiting

What makes it special

A little planning goes a long way

About this guide