Oiso Shrine — 奥石神社

Oiso Shrine stands at the edge of Lake Biwa in Ōmihachiman, where the old Nakasendō highway once brought travelers from Kyoto toward the eastern provinces. The shrine’s precinct contains two massive camphor trees — husband and wife, according to local designation — whose trunks have grown so close over eight centuries that their bark has fused at the base. Couples visit to tie ribbons between the branches, a practice that began when fishermen’s wives would pray here for their husbands’ safe return across the lake. The trees are so large that five adults with arms outstretched cannot encircle either trunk.

Oiso Shrine was established during the early Kamakura period, around 1185 CE, as a guardian shrine for the lakeside communities that depended on Biwa’s waters. The name “Oiso” (奥石) means “inner stone,” referring to the shrine’s original location among rock formations that once marked the lake’s ancient shoreline. When the Nakasendō highway was formalized in the Edo period, the shrine became a customary stop for travelers seeking protection before crossing Lake Biwa by boat — a journey considered more dangerous than any mountain pass. The current shrine buildings date from the late Edo period, rebuilt after a fire in 1847.

Susanoo no Mikoto is the primary deity enshrined at Oiso, the storm god and younger brother of Amaterasu. His association with water and protection from calamity made him the natural choice for a shrine positioned between road and lake. Susanoo is known in mythology for his volatile temperament — he was banished from the heavenly realm for destructive behavior, yet later became a hero by slaying the eight-headed serpent Yamata no Orochi. At Oiso, he is venerated specifically as a protector against drowning and storms on the lake, and as a deity of purification through water.

The shrine’s most enduring legend concerns a fisherman named Tokubei who disappeared on the lake during a sudden squall in 1704. His wife came to the shrine daily for forty days, tying strips of cloth to the branches of the twin camphor trees. On the forty-first morning, Tokubei’s boat was found intact at the shrine’s small dock, though he had last been seen three kilometers offshore. Tokubei claimed that during the storm, he saw a figure standing at the bow of his boat, hand raised against the wind, and when he woke the boat was beached at Oiso. The cloth-tying practice spread after this, and the camphor trees became known as the “meoto kusu” (wedded camphor trees), believed to unite separated couples and protect marriages strained by distance.

The shrine’s honden (main hall) is built in the nagare-zukuri style with a distinctive extended roof on the front face, designed to shelter worshippers from Lake Biwa’s frequent rain. The haiden (worship hall) features latticed windows that frame views of the lake, allowing visitors to see the water while praying. The twin camphor trees stand approximately fifteen meters tall, their canopies forming a continuous umbrella of leaves that remains green even in deep winter. Between the trees, a shimenawa rope thicker than a person’s torso is hung with white shide papers, renewed each New Year. The shrine also maintains a small purification basin fed by a natural spring that rises from the lakebed — the water is notably cold year-round.

• Oiso Taisai (October 15) — The autumn grand festival features a procession that carries the shrine’s mikoshi down to the lake’s edge, where priests perform rituals to thank Susanoo for safe passage during the fishing season and to request protection for the coming winter.
• Meoto Kusu Matsuri (April 8) — The Wedded Camphor Festival, when couples tie matching ribbons to the trees and receive special blessings for marital harmony.
• Hatsumōde — New Year visits are particularly popular, as the shrine offers omamori specifically for safe travel and relationship preservation.

Early morning in late autumn (November) offers the most atmospheric experience. Mist rises from Lake Biwa at dawn, partially obscuring the shrine until the sun clears the eastern mountains. The camphor trees drop their old leaves in November before immediately budding new growth, creating a brief period when the ground is carpeted in bronze while the branches show fresh green. The shrine is quietest on weekday mornings outside of festival periods, when the only sounds are waves against the shore and wind in the camphor canopy.