Confidence
| Field | Confidence | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Shrine name | 94% | Center large red square seal in tensho reads 隆栄稲荷神社. The bottom-left small red rectangle reads 「下谷神社々務所」 (Shitaya Jinja Shamusho — "Shitaya Jinja Office") confirming the goshuin was issued at Shitaya Jinja's office, where the goshuin for the sub-shrine Ryūei Inari is also issued. The bold red brushstroke at top is a stylized 「奉」 (offering) calligraphy. |
| Date | 97% | Left column reads 令和六年五月二十日 = 20 May 2024. Same Tokyo Asakusa-area pilgrimage day. |
Identification
- Name (Japanese): 隆栄稲荷神社
- Name (Romanized): Ryūei Inari Jinja
- Type: Inari sub-shrine (massha 末社)
- Parent shrine: 下谷神社 (Shitaya Jinja) — a major nearby shrine in Taitō Ward
- Location: Within the grounds of Shitaya Jinja, Taitō 3-chōme, Tokyo — near Inari-chō Station on the Ginza Line
- Date received: 令和六年五月二十日 = 20 May 2024
Reading the goshuin
| Element | Reading | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 奉 (stylized red brush) | "Hō" — humble offering, rendered as artistic red ink | Top right, bold red brushstroke |
| 拝 | "Hai" — worship | Top right, black brush below 奉 |
| 隆栄稲荷神社 (tensho) | Shrine name in seal script | Center, large red square seal |
| 下谷神社々務所 (tensho) | "Shitaya Jinja Office" — issuing authority | Bottom-left, small red rectangle |
| 令和六年五月二十日 | 20 May 2024 | Left column, brush |
About the parent shrine — 下谷神社 (Shitaya Jinja)
下谷神社 (Shitaya Jinja) is one of Tokyo's oldest shrines, traditionally said to be the oldest Inari shrine in Tokyo (都内最古の稲荷). Founded in 730 CE (Tenpyō 2) during the Nara period, the shrine has been at its current location since 1928 (it was moved several times). The shrine's principal deities are 大年神 (Ōtoshi-no-Kami) and 日本武尊 (Yamato Takeru-no-Mikoto), but its Inari heritage is preserved through the 隆栄稲荷神社 sub-shrine.
Notable feature — the dragon ceiling painting
Shitaya Jinja's main hall ceiling features a famous 横山大観 (Yokoyama Taikan) painting of a dragon (龍) — Yokoyama Taikan was one of the most important Japanese painters of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The painting is only viewable by special permission from the shrine office. The shrine's original goshuincho features this dragon.
"Yose-hassho-no-chi" (寄席発祥之地) — Birthplace of Rakugo Yose
A stone monument near the shrine entrance commemorates 下谷神社 as the birthplace of Edo-style yose (寄席 — variety theaters), where rakugo (落語) storytelling as a public performance art took root in 1798. This makes the shrine an unofficial spiritual home of Japanese rakugo, and rakugo performers occasionally make pilgrimage here.
About 隆栄稲荷神社 (Ryūei Inari)
The sub-shrine 隆栄稲荷 sits on the left side of the approach (sandō) to Shitaya Jinja's main hall. Like all Inari shrines, it is characterized by a distinctive corridor of red torii gates in classical Inari style, plus a fox mound (狐塚) populated with stone fox statues.
Enshrined deity
- 宇賀魂命 (Uka-no-Mitama-no-Mikoto) — the same Inari deity enshrined at the head Fushimi Inari Taisha in Kyoto
Blessings
- 家内安全 (kanai anzen) — household safety (the Inari household-protector role)
- 商売繁盛 (shōbai hanjō) — business prosperity (standard Inari)
- General Inari blessings — agriculture, food, prosperity
Goshuin issuance
The Ryūei Inari goshuin is issued at Shitaya Jinja's main office (社務所), not at a separate Ryūei desk — which is why this goshuin's bottom-left seal reads 「下谷神社々務所」 even though the shrine name in the center is Ryūei Inari. The shrine issues two distinct goshuin:
- 下谷神社 — the main Shitaya Jinja goshuin
- 隆栄稲荷神社 — this sub-shrine's goshuin
Both have monthly-rotating limited variants in addition to the standard versions.
Why visit during the Asakusa pilgrimage day?
下谷神社 is NOT one of the 9 stations of the Asakusa Meisho Shichifukujin pilgrimage (entries 13, 15, 16). However, it sits midway between Sensō-ji/Asakusa and Akihabara/Akiba Jinja — directly on the walking route a Shichifukujin pilgrim would take when moving between the Asakusa cluster and the Akihabara/Kanda cluster. The user's same-day inclusion of Shitaya / Ryūei Inari plus Akiba Jinja (entry 07) plus Kanda Myōjin (entry 18) reflects this geographic logic — picking up nearby shrines while traversing the Taitō / Bunkyō / Chiyoda area.
What the blessing carries
- 家内安全 (kanai anzen) — household safety
- 商売繁盛 (shōbai hanjō) — business prosperity
- 古い稲荷信仰のご加護 — protection from one of Tokyo's oldest Inari traditions (730 CE founding)