Nagoya, Japan Shrine Visit Report 2026 Showa No.5 Kashinoki-Ryujin
Kashinoki Ryujin (Nishibatacho) — A Dragon Deity Marked Only by a Stone Monument (Showa Ward, Nagoya, Japan)
I visit shrines around Nagoya, where my japanstones.shop warehouse and office are located. My goal is to publish articles about Japan’s stone culture, rooted in everyday life. I am currently visiting shrines in Showa Ward, Nagoya, and when I arrived here, I was honestly surprised. There was only a stone monument. Only the traces of cut-down trees remained.
On 2026-01-27, I visited “Kashinoki Ryujin (Nishibatacho).” There was no shrine building and no torii gate. On a corner lot in a residential area, a small space had been set aside—only a stone monument, white gravel, stepping stones, and a bit of planting remained.
Photos
Side view
Entrance
Field Notes
- A corner lot in a residential area (one stone monument within a small set-aside space)
- No visible shrine building or torii gate
- What remains: the stone monument, white gravel, stepping stones, and traces of cut-down trees
Timeline (AD)
| Year (AD) | Event |
|---|---|
| 1939-12 | An inscription on the side of the monument reads “Built in December, Showa 14” (equivalent to December 1939). |
| 1956 | A local tradition says the stone monument was found on Kawahara-dori and brought back to be enshrined here (Showa 31, equivalent to 1956). |
If this tradition is true, there may never have been a substantial shrine building here in the first place. It may have been venerated in the most minimal form, centered on the stone monument.
Deity (Unknown)
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Enshrined deity | Unknown |
| Name on the monument | A stone monument inscribed “Kashinoki Ryujin” is venerated here |
Summary
From this point on, there are no clues beyond oral tradition, so what follows is necessarily speculation. What remains today is only the stone monument, white gravel, stepping stones, and the traces of cut-down trees.
Perhaps this place was once shaded by thicker trees, with a deeper, more shrine-like atmosphere. Or perhaps there was once a simple rope and a tiny hokora shrine at minimum. Even so, the fact that a named stone monument remains tells me one thing clearly: an act of veneration once existed here. My thoughts return to that.
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Written on: 2026-01-28 (JST)