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Yaegaki Shrine is dedicated
to the gods of marriage, Susanoo no Mikoto and Princess Inata, who took
up residence here after Susanoo no Mikoto defeated the giant eight-headed
serpent, Yamata no Orochi. Within the temple grounds stand a pair of Koma
Inu (stone guardian dogs). With their characteristic manes, these statues
are thought to have been among the first Koma Inu erected as guardians at
shrines in Japan. The small pond behind the shrine, the Mirror Pond, is
popular with young women wishing to predict when they will marry using "coin
fortune-telling." A coin is placed on a piece of waxed paper and floated
on the pond's surface and observed to see how far and for how long the coin
floats before sinking (the quicker and nearer it sinks, the better). Legend
also has it the pond was once used as a mirror by the Princess Inata when
she applied makeup. |
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