Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha - Hawaii Dazaifu Tenmangu
SEPTEM BER 2020

Th e Sh r in e in 1935

Gr at it u de f or a Hu n dr ed Year s
A 100th Anniversary is a major
milestone and an opportunity tocelebrate our faith, history andcommunity.
The 100th Anniversary Autumn
Thanksgiving Festival this year isespecially joyous as weremember our directors, officers
and supporters throughout theages whose vision andcommitment created this shrine.
We are deeply grateful for all who
have worked to fulfill the dreamsof our Issei founders toperpetuate a strong legacy to allof us who now attempt toperpetuate their vision in ourcommunity.
The original shrine supporters
were from the Kapalama area.

officiated by Rev. Takizawa.

Today, our friends come from all
50 states and foreign countries toparticipate in our annual events
such as Chinowa, Shichigosan,
Hatsumode, Back-to-School
Blessing and to seek themultitude of blessings throughour Omamori and Ofuda.
The 100th Anniversary
Thanksgiving Festival commenced
at 1:00 pm on September 27,

Although it is an incredibly
important event for the shrine,
the difficult decision was made toobserve the annual festival
without the presence of guests.
Our top priority remains thehealth, safety and well-being of
our community while ensuring
the continuity of our spiritual
mission.

Each shrine has its own uniquefounding history and has
undergone its respective
vicissitudes. However, thecommon characteristic linking allof these shrines is theirembodiment of the common
desire for local, national anduniversal peace.
Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha,
endearingly known as
Konpira-san was established in
Hawaii in 1920 to perpetuate
Shinto traditions.
Kapalama was developed as oneof the first residential areas of
Honolulu and in the 1920s,
consisted of mixed ethnicneighborhoods bound by pasturelands. The area around Kapalama
Post Office was predominantly
Japanese.
Many Japanese farmers, flower

growers and poultry and hog
farmers worked and lived near
Kam IV Road while those inbusiness and industrial ventures
worked and lived along North
King Street.
In 1920, a Gobun-rei (spirit of thedeity of the main shrine) from
Kotohira-gu was brought toHawaii by Rev. Hitoshi Hirota,
Yasubei Motoyasu, Bunkichi
Tanaka (a carpenter who lived on
Kama Lane), Hisajiro Taguchi(owner of Japanese American
Groceries on Akepo Lane) andGennosuke Okamoto (Manager ofthe Asahi Theatre).
A residence at 1256-A North King
Street in Palama was converted
into a shrine where Rev. Hirota
performed the traditional rites
and rituals embraced by the first
generation Isseis.

N. King Street around Palama Market,
looking Ewa. This area was called
Palama Japan Town in the early 1900s.
The grove of trees in the back is where
Honolulu Ford is now located.

Kotohira-gu long known as theguardian deity of fishing andcommerce quickly grew inpopularity and membership.
On November 3, 1920, the shrine
was recognized by Kotohira-gu,
Japan as a legitimate branch of
the famous shrine in Kagawa-ken.
On February 20, 1924, the shrinewas acknowledged by theTerritorial government as anonprofit church and officiallybegan its religious activities as thefirst Kotohira-gu on American soil.
Photos from the grandson of thefirst Chief Priest Hitoshi Hirota
reveals that a shrine was built atthe N. King Street location
sometime between 1921 and1925.
In 1930, a Gobunrei was received

Photo of the shrine at N. King Street,taken sometime between 1921 - 1925.

from Shirasaki Hachimangu of
Yamaguchi-ken and the Shirasaki
Hachiman-gu Hosan Kai wasestablished by Miyozuchi Komeya,owner of the Komeya Hotel with amembership of over 600 Issei
families from Iwakuni Village,
Yamaguchi-ken.
In October 1930, a Gobunrei fromOtaki Jinja in Hiroshima wasauthorized for worship in Hawaii
and the Otaki Jinja Hosan Kai wasestablished by Teiichi Sugimoto, ofSugimoto General Contractors
with a membership of over 120
Issei families from Otake City,Hiroshima.

The shrine in 1931, immediately after
the move from North King and Wolter
Lane to its new location on Kama Lane

In 1931, the shrine purchased a57,320 sq. ft. parcel of land at1045 Kama Lane with individual
donations from members and thecommunity.

A new torii gate was erected in1934 and in March of the sameyear, a temizusha water basin wasdonated by the shrine's Fujin-kai
Womens organization.

Through fundraisers like "movieviewings" and Kabuki performances, the shrine was able toraise funds to build a shrine officeand cultural facilities.

renbujo and sumo ring were built.
By 1940, the shrine was home tosumo, kyudo archery, numerous
martial arts tournaments andcultural activities for the Japanesecommunity.

Photo taken in July 1936 from a tournament
held at the shrine, sponsored by the Hawaii
Branch of the Dai Nippon Butokukai.

However, the Japanese attack on
Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941
threw the whole nation intoturmoil.
Issei leaders of the community
Photo of Rev.Misao Isobe taken in 1938.
Members of the Hawaii Imazu Chojin Kai
initiated the hiring of Rev. Isobe whoserved at Shirasaki Hachimangu shrine of
Imazu village, Yamaguchi-ken.

In 1935, a pair of koma-inu lions
which were the largest in the U.S.
at the time and toro lanterns
specially designed and crafted in
Yamaguchi-ken, were donated by
the congregation.
In 1936, a community center,martial arts dojo, kyudo archeryrange, outdoor theater, kendo

were immediately rounded up andsent to internment camps,
including the shrine's Chief Priest,
Misao Isobe.

In 1943, the interned Rev. Misao
Isobe and his family weredeported to Japan. Shrine officers
officially announced thetemporary closure of the shrine
and its activities on April 6, 1946.
The shrine in 1937

After the war, members
enthusiastically restored shrine
activities on December 31, 1946,
despite the absence of a priest.

detention.
Robertson, Castle & Anthonyassigned Frank Padgett, a young
Caucasian attorney who had
recently moved to Honolulu upon
graduation from Harvard Law
School. Kotohira's lawsuit was his
first case, a move indicative thatthe firm had no hope of winning
the trial.

However, the shrine faced
another crisis on June 1, 1948
when federal officers raided theshrine under the Trading with theEnemy Act, making arrests andseizing the shrine property.
On June 8, 1948, an emergency
meeting was called and a special
committee formed to initiate
measures for the return of theshrine and its property.
On March 4, 1949, anannouncement for the sale of theKotohira Jinsha property appearedon local newspapers.
The shrine immediately solicitedthe services of the law firm,Robertson, Castle & Anthony andfiled a suit on March 31, 1949
against the United States Attorney
General Tom C. Clark, the State ofHawaii and the Federal Alien Land
Office for misusing Section 9 of
the Trading with the Enemy Act
against a civilian organization notunder the influence of theJapanese government and also
damages for wrongful seizure andPresident Harry Truman
appointed Senator J. Howard
McGrath, Attorney General of theUnited State on August 24, 1949.
Kotohira Jinsha's lawsuit came tobe known as Kotohira Jinsha vsMcGrath.
The trial began and ended on May
17, 1950. On May 18, 1950, Judge
McLaughlin ruled in favor of theplaintiffs, Kotohira Jinsha.
Kotohira Jinsha was once again

able to continue all activities ontheir property in Kapalama.

places of worship and civicorganizations.

Members jubilantly celebrated theAutumn Thanksgiving Festival on
Sunday, October 29, 1950, nine
long years since the last festival in1941.

On July 31, 1965, a stone memorial
was erected in honor of shrine
members who persisted against
overwhelming odds in a lawsuit
against discrimination by theFederal Government. It was alsomeant to serve as a constantreminder of the hardships andindignities suffered at the hands ofa nation misguided by wartime
hysteria, racial prejudice and fear.

A young Frank Padgett with officer anddirectors of Kotohira Jinsha

The lawsuit led by Kotohira Jinsha
was the first ever initiated by aJapanese-American (JA) in thehistory of the United States, paving
the way for similar lawsuits by JA

To mark the start of a new
beginning, Kotohira Jinsha officiallychanged its name to Hawaii
Kotohira Jinsha and the supportingorganization to Hawaii Kotohira
Jinsha Kyodan on May 11, 1951. All
activities were re-established withthe return of Rev. Misao Isobe in1952.
At the urging of the Honolulu
Fukuoka Kenjinkai and itsmembers, a Gobunrei authorized
for worship by Dazaifu Tenmangu
Fukuoka was brought to Hawaii on
July 24, 1952.
The Gobunrei was hand-carried
from Dazaifu to Yokohama by Chief
Priest Nobusada Nishitakatsuji andtransported by boat to Honolulu bythen shrine president and Fukuoka
Kenjin kai officer, Yotaro Fujino.
The shrine, in its efforts toshrine property was once again to
be taken by the government.
Tragedy struck members in April
1958, as they mourned the deathof Rev. Misao Isobe. Rev. Kunisuke
Sakai became the 4th Guji on
August 15, 1959.

Spring Thanksgiving Festival held in
1956 with officers of the Honolulu
Fukuoka Kenjin Kai

promote Japanese culture,sponsored a Japan-Hawaii
Goodwill Sumo Tournament in1956 between the All Japan HighSchool Champions and the Hawaii
Sumo Champions.
In 1957, the State of Hawaii madeclear its plans for the Lunalilo
Highway and two-thirds of theIn the 1960's, several Gobunrei
from shrines that were not able toresurrect activities after the war
were brought to the shrine.
On June 9, 1961, a Gobunrei ofInari Jinja was brought to theshrine by Yoshimasa Yonemoto
followed by a Gobunrei of Suitengu
in Honolulu and Watatsumi Jinja inKakaako.
In the Spring of 1962, the Statesubmitted a proposal to relocate
the shrine to the Leeward area,
however, upon much deliberation,
the majority of members voted infavor of remaining at Kama Lane.
Preparations began on July 30,
1962 for the relocation of theshrine to its present site on the lot.
On May 24, 1962, the building thathoused the shrine office andpriest's quarters was torn down tomake way for a new building.

On June 26, 1962, President
Kenichi Nakaya finalized the sale of30,837 sq ft of shrine land to theState for $122,250, heralding anew chapter in the history of theshrine.

On September 13, construction of
the community hall, shrine officeand parsonage was completed.

on May 9, 1981 and a groundbreaking ceremony was performed
in May 17, 1981.

The roof of the Temizusha basin
was restored and September 25,
the repositioning of the Torii gate.

The completion ceremony wasperformed on April 16 followed bya re-creation of the Kyokusui no En
gala at Ala Moana Park.

A ceremony commemorating thecompletion of the new shrinebuilding was held on September
26, 1963.
On June 4, 1964, Kyukichi Wada
completed construction of four
kamidanas which were consecrated in a ceremony on July 9,1964.
In July 1976, plans for construction of a Dazaifu Tenmangu shrine
at Kama Lane was brought to thetable.
Construction permits were issued

devotedly built by members
volunteering their time andexpertise daily, for a period of 12months.

Rev. Kunisuke Sakai performing theGround breaking ceremony

On April 15, 1982, Rev. and Mrs.
Nobusada Nishitakatsuji, 15 priests
and a tour group from Dazaifu
Tenmangu, Fukuoka arrived in
Hawaii to participate in thecompletion of the first Dazaifu
Tenmangu shrine on foreign soil
Our Dazaifu Tenmangu shrine was

Hawaii Kotohira Jinsha - Hawaii
Dazaifu Tenmangu was establishedby devoted members to transmit
the spiritual and cultural needs ofthe community and continues toexist due to the vision andleadership of its Directors andOfficers and support by
Kotohira-gu and Dazaifu
Tenmangu, Japan and our local
community.
Read about our history on ourwebsite: www.jinja.us

Visit ou r w ebsit e: w w w.jin ja.u s