Spatial Structure of Japanese Religion - Geography of Religion in Japan: Religious Space, Landscape, and Behavior - page 42

The dedication of agricultural products is particularly important because of the
religious orientation of Kasama Inari , the God of agriculture. In addition to rice
and cocoon dedications for the Kenkoku and Kenkensai , farmers may offer other
goods such as rice and vegetables throughout the year.
3. The third group receives an invitation to create a branch shrine of Kasama Inari .
A believer is invited to the house or offi ce of another believer, and then creates a
branch shrine of the divine spirit of Kasama Inari there. Creating a branch shrine
has the religious meaning of sharing the sacred spirit involved. The form of the
branch shrines varies; most shrines are created in houses ( kamidana are miniature
shrines that are worshiped everyday) as a household God, but sometimes, a
branch shrine is created at the offi ce or shrine of a village.

In this chapter, I identify the area of belief of Kasama Inari by following the
distribution of Kasama Inari believers: (1) worshipers who pray by entering the
sanctum, (2) the distribution of persons who dedicate produce, and (3) the distribu-
tion of persons invited to create a branch shrine. These criteria have two assump-
tions: the believers involved can be used to create an index that reveals continued
belief in Kasama Inari , and those believers are the most important people among
the believers of Kasama Inari .
The Ujiko areas associated with the Kasama Inari shrine parishioners include
fi ve neighborhoods in Kasama (Takahashimachi, Aramachi, Omachi, Shinmachi
and Atagomachi) (Figs. 3.4 and 3.5 ). These fi ve former towns included the Sansho
and Yasaka shrines that were enshrined in addition to Kasama Inari. Thus, the towns
in this area include parishioners of two shrines. At the famous Summer Festival of
the Sansho Shrine, mikoshi (sacred palanquins) are carried around thirteen towns in
Kasama. In contrast, festivals conducted by parishioner-believers of Kasama Inari
are rare. However, each town's neighborhood association shares the expenses of the
parishioners by spreading religion among all the households. A representative of the
shrine parishioners is elected who then contributes to the maintenance and opera-
tion of the Kasama Inari . This chapter, therefore, treats the areas of the shrine
parishioners in a similar fashion to the quasi-sacred area of mountain religions, and
thus excludes them from the belief area analysis.
The distribution of other Kasama Inari believers can be identifi ed from materials
from the Kasama Inari Shrine and research via hearings with people and worshipers
(believers) related to the shrine. The period of research was from January 1993 to
November 1993.

3.1.3 Distribution and Regional Characteristics of Worshipers

Entering the Sanctum

3.1.3.1 Distribution of Individual Worshipers

Many enthusiastic believers, including the members of the Kasama Inari Pious
Association (called pious worshipers) visit the Kasama Inari every month. In 1993,