Famous for Matchmaking and Mizuura Mikuji Fortune-telling! How to Enjoy Kyoto’s Kifune Shrine

Kifune Shrine is an old shrine at the source of Kamo River. It is in an area often referred to as the "inner parlor of Kyoto", where the murmur of Kifune River and the rich greenery helps one forget the hot summer. 

It is not clear when it was established, but legend says that Tamayori-hime (Princess Tamayori, mother of the legendary first emperor of Japan, Jimmu) appeared on a yellow boat that traveled from Osaka Bay up Yodo River and Kamo River, and built a shrine for the water deity at what is now known as Okunomiya. 

It has been revered by successive emperors as the shrine to pray for rain, and is also famous for its matchmaking benefits. There are three shrines along Kibune River - the Main Shrine, Okunomiya, and Yui no Yashiro - so enjoy the walk while visiting them! 

Don't forget to get fortune-telling papers that are placed in a small basin of holy water in order to get divine messages from the water deity to appear.

*This information was originally published in Kansai Walker on 08.08.2017