Abstract
The main building of Mikami-Jinja is the oldest example of Irimoyazukuri (a style of roof) -Honden. Mikami-Jinja is well known for its religious worship of mountain. This paper is a fundamental study of Mikami-Jinja from the three points of view of history, religion and architecture. The conclusion is as follows : (1) Though there are still many obscure points, it is clear that Mikami-Jinja was very influenced in its history by Kofukuji-temple, Enryakuji-temple, and the temples near Mt. Mikami. (2) The origin of Mikami-Jinja comes from the worship of Mt. Mikami. But considering the location of Mikami-Jinja, its relationship to Mt. Mikami is not so strong. (3) The main building of Mikami-Jinja has common religious characters with other famous Irimoyazukuri-Honden which are not located in mountains, like, for example, Yasaka-Jinja or Kitano-Tenmangu.
