Imado Shrine

The ‘Imado Shrine’ in Taito Ward, Tokyo is located in the residential area nearby the sightseeing spots in the Asakusa Area. It was built as ‘Imado Hachiman’ in 1063 and was enshrined with Hakusan Shrine in 1937.
The shrine is dedicated to 4 gods, ‘Izanaginomikoto’ and ‘Izanaminomikoto’ who are said to be the first couple in Japan and appear in Japanese mythology stories, Emperor Oujin, and ‘Fukuroju’ which is one of the Seven Gods of Good Fortune. As the shrine worships the first couple in Japan and the postal address of the shrine is ‘1-5-22 (pronounced ii-go-fuufu in Japanese), Imado’, it is famous for giving good luck in marriages as ‘ii-go-fuufu’ means ‘a nice couple’ in Japanese.
Many cat figures and beckoning cats are placed in the precincts, which emerged from the famous “Imadoyaki” pottery of this area. There is also a stone monument in the precincts with the words ‘Souji Okita Shuuennochi’ engraved on it. Souji Okita was the captain of the first unit of the ‘Shinse group’, which was a famous armed organization in the Edo Period. There are several stories regarding his death, however it is said that he spent his last days here, and many fans of the ‘Bakumatsu’ (the last days of the Tokugawa shogunate) visit this shrine.