Aoshima Jinja

Aoshima Jinja in Miyazaki is a shrine that stands on a small island called Aoshima. The whole island about 1.5 km in circumference is the grounds of the shrine. Aoshima is a habitat for tropical and subtropical plants and designated as a special natural treasure. Until 270 years ago, it was regarded as a sacred ground and entry onto the island was only permitted for Shinto priests and Shima-bugyo (magistrate of island). Today, everybody can go across the Yayoi Bridge and visit this island. In old days, people could go across this bridge only once a year on March 10th based on the old calendar. Even for this, people had to wait for the land to show up and connect the main land and the island at low tide.