Remote Worship

Okinoshima is a sacred island off the coast of Munakata and Fukutsu. Access is restricted to a handful of Shinto priests who serve there. Worshippers of the island and the deity enshrined there at Okitsu-miya Shrine must engage in a practice of remote worship (yohai).

The practice of remote worship is widespread across the Munakata region, including in Fukutsu, where the Three Female Deities of Munakata (enshrined at Hetsu-miya, Nakatsu-miya, and Okitsu-miya Shrines) have been revered for thousands of years. While some worship locations are structures, many yohai spots around Fukutsu are simple vantage points on mountainsides or beaches. There are several yohai spots around Fukutsu, including the village of Tebika and Shiraishi Beach. 

Until the mid-twentieth century, ceremonies were commonly held at the end of rice planting, to honor the deities of Okinoshima. People would make offerings of food and sake at a yohai spot, to give thanks for a successful planting and pray for a good harvest or good catch, and good health. Although these formal ceremonies are no longer common, they are still held at Suga-jinja Shrine, and people from the area still visit these spots to offer prayers.