Hitachi Province Ichinomiya
Kashima Jingu
鹿島神宮
Kashima Jingu is the ichinomiya — the leading shrine — of the former Hitachi Province, in present-day Ibaraki. It has a car park (about 265 spaces), paid. Opening hours end at 16:30 (charm counter and prayer-rite desk). Without a car, the local authority gives 1 route from a station (on foot), one of them a walk of 10 min; the station names are listed below. Its principal annual festival (reisai) falls on September 1 every year. We found 8 entries for the shrine in Japan’s national database of designated cultural properties, 1 of them National Treasure. The nearest other ichinomiya is Katori Jingu, 13 km to the south-west in a straight line.
Getting there
茨城県鹿嶋市宮中2306-1
The address is given in Japanese on purpose. Show it to a taxi driver, or copy it into a car navigation system — an English transliteration will not be recognised.
For a car navigation system
- Phone
- Japanese car navigation searches by phone number. This is the fastest way to enter a destination.
- Coordinates
- From OpenStreetMap, as 鹿島神宮. Not checked on the ground
- Address
How to rent and drive a car in Japan →
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By train and bus
- From 鹿島神宮駅JR鹿島線
- On foot, 10 min.
The source, word for word (bus stop names included):
●鹿島神宮 JR鹿島神宮駅から徒歩10分、またはタクシー3分
Taken from the local authority (交通アクセス - 鹿嶋市ホームページ, checked 2026-10-08). Station and stop names stay in Japanese so you can match them to signs. Fares and timetables are not given — they change.
Parking
It has a car park (about 265 spaces), paid.
4か所で料金体系が異なる。第一駐車場（表参道大鳥居脇）60台＝通常日 7:00-17:00 は2時間毎500円、夜間17:00-翌7:00 は2時間100円・最大100円、12/31〜1/15は3時間1,000円、中型大型は2時間毎1,000円／第二駐車場（徒歩5分）55台＝無料だが土日祝・繁忙期は有料になることあり／宮中地区駐車場（徒歩3分）150台＝平日無料、土日祝は普通車500円・中型700円・大型1,000円・バイク200円／御手洗池駐車場＝無料だが正月・祭礼時のみ有料
The note above is in Japanese; it usually records dates when the car park is closed, and the fee.
Shrine office hours
Opening hours end at 16:30 (charm counter and prayer-rite desk).
The full note from the source, in Japanese:
8:30-16:30（神符守札授与所・御祈祷受付）
Closing times of every ichinomiya, earliest first →
Combining it with the 2 other ichinomiya within 80 km? Work out an order that reaches each office before it closes →
History in brief
- Founding
- The shrine traces its founding back to the reign of the first emperor, Jimmu.
- Buildings
- The present main buildings were dedicated by the second shogun Tokugawa Hidetada, the inner shrine by Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the gate by Tokugawa Yorifusa, first lord of Mito.
- History
- From the medieval to the early modern period, warlords such as Minamoto no Yoritomo and Tokugawa Ieyasu revered the shrine as a god of war.
Summarised from the shrine's own website (鹿島神宮 御由緒・御祭神, checked 2026-10-08). Traditions are given as the shrine tells them, not as established history.
Enshrined deities
- Takemikazuchi-no-Mikoto 武甕槌大神 3 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
The shrine's website says that in the age of the gods its deity went down to Izumo with Futsunushi, the deity of Katori, on Amaterasu's orders, negotiated the handing-over of the land with Ōkuninushi, and devoted himself to founding the country.
Our English summary of the Japanese description. Spelling as given by the shrine's own website.
Goshuin (shrine seal)
- Available
- Yes
- Hours
- 8:30-16:30
Nationally designated cultural properties
- 鹿島神宮
-
Important Cultural Property
三間社流造、向拝一間、檜皮葺
designated 1901-03-27 · early Edo period - 鹿島神宮仮殿
-
Important Cultural Property
桁行三間、梁間二間、一重、入母屋造、向拝一間、檜皮葺
designated 1976-05-20 · early Edo period - 鹿島神宮摂社奥宮本殿
-
Important Cultural Property
三間社流造、向拝一間、檜皮葺
designated 1901-03-27 · Momoyama period - 鹿島神宮楼門
-
Important Cultural Property
三間一戸楼門、入母屋造、銅板葺
designated 1966-06-11 · early Edo period - ｛直刀／黒漆平文大刀拵｝
- National Treasure
- 梅竹蒔絵鞍
- Important Cultural Property
- 鹿島神宮境内 附 郡家跡
- Historic Site
- 鹿島の祭頭祭
- Intangible Folk Cultural Property selected for recording (folk performing arts)
Source: the national register. All of them together →
Festivals
- Principal annual festival
-
9月1日 例祭
source
Other festivals and rituals
- 祭頭祭
- 3月9日
- 神幸祭
- 9月1日 午後8時
- 提灯まち
- 9月1日 午後4時半頃
- 白馬祭
- 1月7日 午後6時
- 煤払い神事
- 12月1日 午後1時半
Nearest ichinomiya
The closest is Katori Jingu, about 13 km to the south-west in a straight line, the ichinomiya of Shimosa Province. After that come Tamasaki Jinja (70 km south) and Hikawanyotai Jinja (85 km west).
Straight-line distances between the shrines, not road distances. Across mountains or water, the drive is much longer.
Why this shrine is called an ichinomiya
Listed by the pilgrimage association
It appears on the map published by the Ichinomiya Pilgrimage Association. We have not yet checked other primary sources.
- 全国一の宮巡拝会『全国一の宮神社所在地』（平成30年5月・改訂版 第4版） (checked 2026-09-09)
More on how the shrines of this province relate to one another is on the Hitachi Province page.
Historical rank
- Province
- Hitachi Province (Tōkaidō)
- Prefecture
- Ibaraki
- Engishiki (927)
- Myōjin Taisha
- Former state rank (1871–1946)
- Kanpei Taisha
Sources
- https://kashimajingu.jp/info/アクセス・駐車場/ (checked 2026-09-09)
- https://kashimajingu.jp/hatsumoude/御朱印/ (checked 2026-09-09)
- https://kashimajingu.jp/about/%e5%be%a1%e7%94%b1%e7%b7%92%e3%83%bb%e5%be%a1%e7%a5%ad%e7%a5%9e/ (checked 2026-09-10)
How we handle spellings, festival selection, former ranks and map accuracy is set out once on the About page.