Udo Jingū

Udo-jingū (鵜戸神宮) is a Shinto shrine in Nichinan, Miyazaki prefecture, Japan, south of Aoshima. It is the mythical birthplace of Emperor Jimmu's father Ugayafukiaezu.^[1] According to shrine legends, it is the place where the sea goddess Toyotamahime, the mother of said Ugayafukiaezu, built a birth-hut from the feathers of a cormorant. Other gods venerated here are Yamasachihiko (alias Hohodemi alias Hoori, Jinmu's grandfather), Amaterasu, Amenooshihomimi, Ninigi-no-Mikoto, and Emperor Jimmu. While the original myth includes a tragic divorce of Ugayafukiaezu's parents, the shrine is popular with young couples hoping for easy childbirth and a happy marriage.

Udo-jingū 鵜戸神宮
The honden (main shrine)
Religion
Affiliation	Shinto
Deity	Ugayafukiaezu Amaterasu Ame-no-oshihomimi Ninigi-no-Mikoto Hoori Emperor Jimmu
Location
Location	3232, Miyaura, Nichinan, Miyazaki 887-0101
Shown within Japan
Geographic coordinates	31°39′01″N 131°28′00″E
Website
www.udojingu.com
Glossary of Shinto

Local characteristics

Udo shrine is in a cave in the side of the cliff, near the Nichinan coast of Miyazaki. The honden, or main shrine, is in a cavern with a view of the ocean.

In the cave is the ochichi iwa, or "breast stone," a dripping stone which is said to have fed the kami Ugayafukiaezu, father of the first emperor of Japan, when his mother returned to the sea. The shrine sells a candy made from the water of this stone, mizuame, a kind of taffy.^[2]

In the slight distance of the cavern is a rocky island with two peaks. Attendees can purchase small clay balls and attempt to toss them between the peaks for good luck.^[2]