| 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. |
