Buzen Province Ichinomiya
Usa Jingu
宇佐神宮
Usa Jingu is the ichinomiya — the leading shrine — of the former Buzen Province, in present-day Oita. It has a car park (about 570 spaces), paid. Opening hours end at 16:00 (prayer-rite desk). Without a car, the local authority gives 2 routes from a station (by bus, by taxi); the station names are listed below. Its principal annual festival (reisai) falls on March 18 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 Yusuhara Hachimangu, 36 km to the south-east in a straight line.
Here it is two bows, four claps, one bow
At most shrines you bow twice, clap twice and bow once. At this one the number of claps is different. In Japanese: 二礼四拍手一礼.
The shrine calls four claps its old rite. Visit the three halls in order — left, centre, right — and go to both the upper and lower shrine; stopping at the upper one only is called a “half visit”.
Getting there
大分県宇佐市南宇佐 2859
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.
Before you drive here
There is a notice about reaching this shrine by car — it may concern road closures at New Year, vehicle size limits, which way you can turn into the car park, or satellite navigation giving the wrong place. The Japanese text reads:
表参道駐車場は大型車が入れません（宇佐市公式）。外苑駐車場は「幅 2.5mを超える車」「長さ 5mを超える車」は駐車できません（宇佐神宮公式）。大型車・バスは宇佐八幡駐車場を利用してください。
For a car navigation system
- Phone
- Japanese car navigation searches by phone number. This is the fastest way to enter a destination.
- Coordinates
- Derived from the address down to the street number, via Japan's national mapping agency. Not a survey of the hall itself
- Address
How to rent and drive a car in Japan →
Car hire Ad
Search rental cars on Tabirai (English)
Opens the English site of Tabirai, a Japanese car rental booking service. We have not compared its prices or cars. This is an affiliate link (A8.net): if you book, the site earns a commission at no extra cost to you.
By train and bus
- From 宇佐駅
- By bus.
- From 宇佐駅
- By taxi, about 15 min.
The source, word for word (bus stop names included):
JR宇佐駅で「四日市方面バス」に乗車、「宇佐八幡バス停」下車／JR宇佐駅から約15分
Taken from the local authority (宇佐神宮／宇佐市, 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 570 spaces), paid.
駐車場は3か所。(1) 宇佐八幡駐車場（宇佐市南宇佐2181-1）大型車・中型車・マイクロバス20台／普通車・二輪車200台。(2) 宇佐神宮表参道駐車場（普通車200台、大型車不可）。(3) 外苑駐車場（普通車150台）。料金は2025年12月1日（令和7年12月1日）改定で、宇佐八幡駐車場が大型・中型車2,000円／マイクロバス1,300円／普通車500円／二輪車200円、表参道駐車場が12時間500円（いずれも宇佐市公式、2026年9月10日確認）。外苑駐車場は宇佐市公式が12時間500円・正月期間中は変更としているのに対し、宇佐神宮公式の外苑駐車場ページは「300円/12時間 (但し、野球場利用者を除く)」と記載しており食い違いがあるため、現地の表示を確認してください。外苑駐車場は24時間利用可、自動精算機は千円紙幣・500円・100円・50円・10円硬貨のみ（1万円札・5千円札・2千円札は使用不可）。
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 16:00 (prayer-rite desk).
The full note from the source, in Japanese:
祈願祭受付 9:00-16:00（毎日）。参拝は上宮のみ 6:00-18:00 常時開放（正月期間を除く）
Closing times of every ichinomiya, earliest first →
Visiting the 3 ichinomiya in Oita in one day? Work out an order that reaches each office before it closes →
History in brief
- Moved
- The shrine moved to its present site in 725, when Miroku-ji temple was built at Hiashi.
- History
- Miroku-ji moved west of the shrine buildings in 737 and built its main and lecture halls the next year.
- History
- In 749 the Hachiman deity and Ooga no Morime travelled to Nara in a purple palanquin to venerate the Great Buddha, said to be the origin of mikoshi.
- History
- In the 12th century the shrine held over a third of the private estates in Kyushu.
Summarised from the local authority (宇佐神宮, checked 2026-10-08). Traditions are given as the shrine tells them, not as established history.
Enshrined deities
- Hachima-no-Kami 八幡大神 2 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
- Hime-Okami 比売大神 3 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
- Jingu-Kogo 神功皇后 10 ichinomiya enshrine this deity →
The shrine's website says Hachiman Ōkami (Emperor Ōjin), Hime-Ōkami and Empress Jingū are enshrined, one in each of the three main halls.
Our English summary of the Japanese description. Spelling as given by the shrine's own website.
Nationally designated cultural properties
- 宇佐神宮本殿
-
National Treasure
内院 桁行三間、梁間二間、一重、切妻造、檜皮葺 外院 桁行三間、梁間一間、一重、向拝一間、檜皮葺 造り合を含む
designated 1952-11-22 · end of the Edo period - 宇佐神宮造営図
- Important Cultural Property
- 木造大鷦鷯命坐像 木造大葉枝皇子坐像 木造小葉枝皇子坐像 木造雌鳥皇女坐像 木造隼総別皇子坐像（若宮鎮座）
- Important Cultural Property
- 白鞘入剣〈銘為将軍宮御代官（以下不明）奉施入／八幡宇佐宮権少僧都信聡正平十三祀戊戌二月日 慶長二年ノ鞘書アリ〉
- Important Cultural Property
- 豊前国宇佐宮絵図
- Important Cultural Property
- 銅鐘
- Important Cultural Property
- 宇佐神宮境内
- Historic Site
- 宇佐神宮社叢
- Natural Monument
Source: the national register. All of them together →
Festivals
- Principal annual festival
-
3月18日 例祭（宇佐祭）
source
Other festivals and rituals
- 仲秋祭（放生会）
- 10月体育の日、前日、前々日の3日間
- 御神幸祭（夏越大祭）
- 7月31日・8月1日・8月2日
- 鎮疫祭
- 2月13日
- 臨時奉幣祭（勅祭）
- 10年に一度斎行
Nearest ichinomiya
The closest is Yusuhara Hachimangu, about 36 km to the south-east in a straight line, the ichinomiya of Bungo Province. After that come Sasamuta Jinja (45 km south-east) and Tamanooya Jinja (61 km north).
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 Buzen Province page.
Historical rank
- Province
- Buzen Province (Saikaidō)
- Prefecture
- Oita
- Engishiki (927)
- Myōjin Taisha
- Former state rank (1871–1946)
- Kanpei Taisha
Sources
- https://www.city.usa.oita.jp/tourist/touristspot/touristspot2/touristspot3/10171.html (checked 2026-09-09)
- https://www.usa-kanko.jp/pages/116/ (checked 2026-09-09)
- http://www.usajinguu.com/gaien-parking/ (checked 2026-09-10)
- https://www.usa-kanko.jp/pages/182/detail=1/b_id=1374/r_id=450/ (checked 2026-09-10)
- http://www.usajinguu.com/god/ (checked 2026-09-10)
- http://www.usajinguu.com/ (checked 2026-09-10)
- http://www.usajinguu.com/worship/ (checked 2026-09-10)
- http://www.usajinguu.com/faq/ (checked 2026-09-10)
How we handle spellings, festival selection, former ranks and map accuracy is set out once on the About page.