Unzen Onsen Town Religious History Trail: Konohanasakuya-hime Jinja Shrine
Konohanasakuya-hime Jinja Shrine is located at the top of a winding path above Gensei Marsh. The shrine is spiritually connected to Asama Jinja Shrine near Mt. Fuji (3,776 m); the goddess Konohanasakuya-hime is also enshrined here. She is a deity of fertility, child-rearing, and sake brewing.
A local story says that when a man and woman who were struggling to have children came here to pray for fertility, they were blessed with a child. In recognition of this and similar stories, people from the local town carved statues representing the physicality of the “god of men” and “god of women.” Both are easily identifiable upon arrival to the shrine. Modern worshippers leave offerings of sake and other drinks in the hope that they, too, will have healthy children.