The Divine Mount with Sacred Antlers: Deer
Kagoshima Jingū (Ibaraki)
Hodosan Shrine 宝登山神社 (Saitama)
The Gosaijin that Rode on a White Deer
"When people think of deer, many probably call Nara Park to mind. The deer that calmly walk the park grounds, have since ancient times been protected as the important divine messengers of Kasuga Taisha.
According to legends from Kasuga Taisha, around the time the shrine was beginning construction, Takemikazui no Kami, the gosaijin of Kagoshima Jingū in Hitachi Province (nowadays Ibaraki Prefecture) came riding on a white stag to Mt. Kasuga. From then on, it is said that the deer of this land became revered as divine messengers.
Unlike other animals, male deer have the distinctive trait of shedding their antlers annually and regrowing them. Ancient people upon observing this perceived it as a symbol of divine power, leading them to hold deer in deep reverence."
Diagram Explanation from Left to Right
"When Takemikazuchi no Kami arrived from Kagoshima Jingū to the land of Kasuga, he rode on a white stag. As such, deer came to be revered at Kasuga Taisha as divine messengers."
Antlers, A Symbol of Rebirth
"As male deer shed their antlers yearly and regrow them, they became regarded as a divine symbol of rebirth."
Who is Takemikazuchi no Kami?
"A Lightning Kami. Born from the blood that fell from the hilt of the sword that Izanagi no Mikoto used to kill the fire kami. He persuaded Ōkuninushi no Kami to hand over the land, and aided Emperor Jimmu on his Eastern Expedition."
"Since ancient times, the deer of Nara have been revered by the people. In the Heian Era, it is said that nobles would rejoice upon meeting a deer, seeing it as a lucky omen. Some would even get off their ox carts to pay their respects."
"At shrines such as Kasuga Taisha, where deer have been revered as divine messengers since ancient times, there are some where people can come into contact with the sacred deer."
"In the deer sanctuary on the shrine's precincts, they treat sick or injured deer, as well as protect deer who are pregnant. Every year at the beginning of summer, they hold a special opening to showcase the newly born fawns. In addition, the Kakugiri 角きり event is held in the fall. A tradition that has continued since the Edo period."
Kagoshima Jingū (Ibaraki)
"it is said that in ancient times deer roamed the shrine precincts, freely coming and going. However, since the Edo period, they were regularly seized, and now very few remain. The current deer sanctuary was founded in 1958, and the deer there were inherited from Kasuga Taisha and Kanda Myōjin. There are about twenty deer kept there."
"It is said that after receiving the opportunity to care for a pair of deer from Katori Jingū (Chiba), the shrine began to keep deer. The current deer are the third generation. It is said that meeting the deer will bring good fortune."
"Some shrines such as Hososan Shrine in Saitama, feature carvings of the story "Feeding Parents with Deer's Milk," from the ancient Chinese moral text "The Twenty-Four Filial Exemplars." It is a tale of filial piety dating to the Zhou Dynasty, in which a young man named Tan Zi, who in order to cure his parents eye ailments, donned the hide of a deer, and blended into a herd to collect milk to give to his parents."
"Since ancient times deer have been called Momoji-dori 紅葉鳥. The origins of which lie in the calls of male deer searching for mates in late autumn. Deer and fall folliage are both closely tied to autumn, with deer appearing in the autumnal Waka of both the Man'yōshū and Kokinwakashu anthologies. This is why one will often see carvings of deer and fall foliage on the prayer halls at shrines."
"Every year on the fifteenth of April, at Suwa Taisha Kamisha (Nagano), a unique festival called the Ontōsai is held. It is a ritual to offer thanks to the kami of the mountains for bountiful harvests and successful hunts. Since ancient times, there have been tradition in mountain areas of offering animals hunted to the kami of the mountains and then eating them. It is a festival that carries on this tradition. It is said that in the past that as many as 75 deer heads dripping with blood were offered, but nowadays the ritual involves offering up three taxidermied deer heads."
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