오아라이 이소사키 신사

The worship hall contains 14 intricate carvings of birds and plants, but one panel deliberately shows no bird at all. Locals say the bird 'flew away,' inviting visitors to use their imagination.

The shrine's guardians are frog statues instead of the usual lion-dogs. This is a wordplay on 'kaeru,' which means both 'frog' and 'safe return,' making them symbols of travelers coming home safely.

Oarai Isosaki Jinja는 미토 코몬으로 알려진 미토 번주 도쿠가와 미쓰쿠니의 후원으로 1690년에 재건되었습니다.

Tokugawa Mitsukuni, one of the most powerful lords of the Edo period, personally funded the shrine's reconstruction in 1690 after it was destroyed during 16th-century warfare.