1Honden (Main Sanctuary)

The Main Sanctuary, where the divinities reside, was built in 1872. Renovations started in 1986, and after three years it was restored to its original state in 1989.

2Reijibo Hoanden (Repository for the Symbolic Registry of Deities)

This building, located behind the Main Sanctuary, was constructed in 1972. It houses the Symbolic Registers of Souls, lists of the names of all the divinities worshipped here at Yasukuni Jinja. They are written on handmade Japanese paper.

3Haiden (Main Hall)

The Main Hall was built in 1901. Its roof was renovated in 1989. In front of it stands a wooden offering box. Visitors come here to pay their respects.

4Motomiya (Original Shrine)

This small shrine was established in Kyoto, in secret, by sympathizers of Imperial loyalists killed during the upheaval that arose in the early days of the Meiji Restoration. Seventy years later, in 1931, it was moved here. It is called Motomiya, or “original shrine,” as it was the prototype of what later became Yasukuni Jinja.

5Chinreisha (Spirit-Pacifying Shrine)

This shrine was built in 1965 to console the souls of every person who has died in wars fought anywhere in the world.

6Chumon Torii (Third Shinto Shrine Arch)

The current torii gate was rebuilt in 2006 from cypress harvested in Saitama Prefecture.

7Minamimon (South Gate)

This is the closest gate from Ichigaya Station. The guardian lion-dog statues are the only ones on the entire grounds made of bronze.

8Saikan / Shamusho (Purification Retreat / Shrine Office)

9Otemizusha (Main Purification Font)

The purification basin in the pavilion was presented to Yasukuni Jinja in 1940 by Japanese residents of the United States. It is made of granite, and weighs more than eighteen tons. Before you pay your respects at the Main Hall, please rinse your hands and mouth here.

10Shinmon (Main Gate)

This magnificent cypress gate was completed in 1934. Each of its two doors bears a chrysanthemum crest measuring 1.5 meters in diameter. Restoration work on the gate, including the replacement of the roof tiles, was undertaken in 1994.

11Daini Torii (Second Shinto Shrine Arch)

The Second Shrine Gate was built in 1887. It is the biggest bronze torii gate in Japan.

12Nogakudo (Noh Theater)

Built in Tokyo’s Shiba Park in 1881, the Noh Theater was presented and moved to Yasukuni Jinja in 1903. Noh dramas and traditional Japanese dance are performed on its stage in honor of the resident divinities.

13Sanshuden (Assembly Hall)

This hall was rebuilt in 2004. Reception and waiting rooms are available for individuals and groups who wish to worship at the Main Sanctuary.
This is where applications are accepted for those who wish to honor the memory of soldiers fallen in battle, the spirits enshrined at Yasukuni Jinja.
*This is a place for serious worship only.*

14Tochakuden (Reception Hall)

The Reception Hall was originally built in 1933 as a waiting chamber for members of the Imperial family, and other distinguished worshippers.

15Shinchi Teien (Sacred Pond Garden)

This garden was created early in the Meiji era. Its restoration in 1999 led to it being rediscovered as one of the finest gardens in Japan. It is a strolling garden, and its centerpiece is a waterfall in a setting so serene that visitors may think they are deep in the mountains.

16Kountei (Teahouse)

Tea-ceremony workshops by instructors from the Urasenke School are held Monday through Saturday.

17Senshintei

18Seisentei (Teahouses)

The Seisentei Teahouse was built in 1958, while the Senshintei Teahouse was built in 1961. Restoration work on both was undertaken from 2000 to 2001.

19Shokon Saitei

This is where memorial services used to be held to summon the spirits of the dead before enshrining them together.

20Keishokan (Seminar Room & Multipurpose Building)

In 1938, a dressing and waiting room for wrestlers was built next to the Sumo Ring, but it gradually deteriorated with age. In order to make it usable for a variety of purposes in addition to its existing function as a dressing room, such as trainings and seminars for worshippers, reconstruction work began as part of the 140th anniversary projects, and was completed in 2010.

21Sumo Ring

In 1869, a sumo-wrestling exhibition was held at Yasukuni Jinja to celebrate the shrine’s founding. Since then, exhibitions by professional sumo wrestlers, including grand champions or Yokozuna, take place at the Annual Spring Rites almost every year. The facility becomes filled with many people who enjoy the matches free of charge.

22Yasukuni Kaiko Bunko (Yasukuni Archives)

These archives opened on October 7, 1999, house 100,000 volumes. The collection includes reference materials that describe the circumstances under which the divinities of Yasukuni Jinja died, as well as source materials for research on modern history. We welcome anyone who wishes to learn more about the divinities enshrined here or conduct research on modern history.

23Yasukuni Kaikan

This building was completed in 1934. The Yasukuni Archives and a free rest area for visitors are located on the first floor.

24Visitors’ Rest Area

This area includes restrooms, vending machines, and a space for smokers. It was newly constructed as part of the 150th anniversary projects, and completed in 2016.

25Memorial Statue of War Widow with Children

This statue, completed in 1974, is a tribute to the many war widows who did such a fine job of raising their children in the face of incredible hardship and loneliness. It was commissioned by their children, now adults, and symbolizes their gratitude to their mothers.

26Monument to Dr. Pal

This monument was completed in 2005 to honor Dr. Radha Binod Pal, the representative judge from India during the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (commonly known as the Tokyo Tribunal). Among all the judges on the tribunal, he was the only one who judged all the defendants as not guilty.

27Memorial Statues Honoring Horses, Carrier Pigeons, and Dogs

This bronze, life-sized statue of a fine steed was presented to Yasukuni Jinja in 1958 to honor the memory of the horses that served the military loyally.
The statue of a carrier pigeon atop a globe honors the birds that were faithful messengers in wartime. Made of bronze and named “Pigeons and the Globe,” it was presented to Yasukuni Jinja in 1982.
The statue of a German shepherd, also bronze, represents the soldiers’ beloved canine comrades, and was donated to Yasukuni Jinja in March 1992.

28Yushukan Museum

The museum was opened in 1882. It is a facility to store and exhibit relics. The building was repaired and expanded in 2002.

29Cafeteria

The cafeteria “Yui” located in the first-floor entrance hall of the Yushukan Museum offers not only tea, but also exclusive menu items like “Navy Curry” authentically reproducing one of the Japanese Navy’s original recipes.
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30Gift Shop

The gift shop offers a selection of souvenirs for worshippers and relevant books.

31Kitamon (North Gate)

This is the closest gate from Iidabashi Station.

32Dove Cote

Almost 500 white doves live on the grounds of Yasukuni Jinja. It is said that only one in 10,000 doves is pure white.

33Statue of Omura Masujiro

Omura Masujiro (1824-1869), the founder of the modern Japanese Army, devoted a great deal of effort to the establishment of Yasukuni Jinja. This statue installed in 1893 was Japan's first Western-style statue.

34Daiichi Torii (First Shinto Shrine Arch)

Japan's largest torii, or shrine gate, was erected in 1921. Described in a poem as “the great gate that seems to pierce the sky,” it was a notable landmark for visitors. But because of damage from exposure to wind and rain over the years, the gate was removed in 1943. The present torii was dedicated in 1974 by comrade in arms. It is twenty-five meters in height.

35Shagou Hyou (Stone pillar on which shrine name is engraved)

36Memorial Monument to the Hitachimaru

In 1904 during the Russo-Japanese War, the army transport vessel Hitachimaru was attacked by a Russian fleet from Vladivostok, and sunk with over one thousand men on board. A memorial service is held in front of this monument every year on June 15.

37Irei No Izumi (Soul-Comforting Spring)

This installation was dedicated in 1967 in memory of the soldiers who gasped their last breaths on the unfamiliar soil of distant battlefields, begging their mothers for water.
The sculpture is an abstract representation of a loving mother tenderly pouring clean water.

38Ishi Torii (Stone Shinto Shrine Arch)

Built in 1932. This is the entrance to a parking lot.
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39Lantern Tower

This tower with a continuously burning light was completed in 1871, and once served as a beacon for ships passing through the harbor of Shinagawa. It was moved from the other side of the road to its current location in 1925 due to improvement work on Kudan Slope.

40Cherry Trees

The cherry trees of Yasukuni Jinja have their origin in the cherry trees planted here at Kudan for the first time in 1870, the year after the Sanctuary of Yasukuni Jinja (known as Shokonsha at the time) was built. These beautiful trees, long considered a symbol of Japan, embody pride for the divinities of the shrine. Today there are about 600 cherry trees here, many of which are Somei Yoshino and Yamazakura varieties. Each year, the Japan Meteorological Agency bases its cherry-blossom flowering forecasts on the cherry trees at Yasukuni Jinja.