The Tanoshima Shinmei Shrine is all that remains of Tanoshima Village. The site of the village is along the Toga River going south up the mountain from Sakaue village. It's between the villages of Abetto and Taikanba.
A branch school was opened in the village for its children. In 1959, there were 16 students. But the school was closed 6 years later. Perhaps this was because many of the younger families moved away or because a bus service could be established between the village in Sakaue village nearby. The concrete branch schools in the area were built in the 1970s, so this building would've been made out of wood.
In 2013, Hayaneko visited the village and only 2 houses remained, with one of the houses actually being lived in. Today, all traces of those homes have been removed for some kind of fancy French restaurant and rental cabins.
Looking in, it reminded me a lot of the restaurant from The Menu. Apparently meals are more than 10000円 a plate.
The side road continues past the restaurant into the forest, and eventually ends with the forest engulfing the road. I wasn't paying attention to the map, so I didn't realize that I went past the shrine quite a while ago. Going back to the restaurant, the shrine is located up on the hill behind the area. You can see it from the road peering through the trees.
Shinmei Shrines 神明宮 are Shinto shrines devoted to Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun. In Japanese mythology, Amaterasu was responsible for the origin of agriculture in Japan, so Amaterasu is widely worshipped in areas were agriculture is most important.
Throughout Toga Valley and many rural areas, it's pretty easy to find Shinmei Shrines, as their yearly festivals pray to the gods for an abundant harvest.
With no one left in the village, I'm not really sure who maintains this shrine. Inside the shrine, a plaque showing the names of all the Shinto priests lies on its side, and hasn't been updated in years. Perhaps the folks running the restaurant keep up the old rituals.
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