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TORII ATLAS · VISIT GUIDE

A Shrine Within a Shrine? Understanding Subsidiary Shrines

Understand subsidiary shrines, sessha and massha, with Kawai Shrine at Shimogamo as an example. Learn how to visit without feeling you must worship at every sanctuary.

Walking through a large shrine, you may find another torii and sanctuary with a different name. This is also a place of worship, sometimes with kami and traditions different from those of the main shrine.

What are sessha and massha?

Keidai-sha describes a shrine within the main shrine’s grounds; keigai-sha describes one outside them. Sessha and massha, often translated as subsidiary shrines, concern their relationship and history with the main shrine.

A sessha may enshrine kami connected to the main shrine’s kami, or kami associated with the land. Historical criteria and local traditions shape the names. “Sessha” does not simply mean a bigger building, nor “massha” a smaller one. Use the shrine’s official terminology.

Why are there separate sanctuaries?

Kami with ties to the main shrine or the locality can be worshipped in separate buildings. Their stories differ, so there is no single explanation for every subsidiary shrine. Name boards and accounts of the enshrined kami help you understand each one.

Kawai Shrine at Shimogamo

Kyoto’s Kawai Shrine is a sessha of Shimogamo Shrine. It enshrines Tamayorihime no Mikoto. The official guide describes traditions of protection for women and prayers for beauty, including distinctive hand-mirror-shaped ema plaques.

It illustrates how an affiliated shrine can have its own name and prayer traditions. These prayers express wishes, not guaranteed changes in appearance or health.

Do you have to visit every one?

There is no obligation to worship at every subsidiary shrine. Kanda Myojin’s official FAQ treats this as a matter of personal faith and connection rather than a requirement.

For a travel itinerary, visiting the main shrine first, then the sanctuaries that interest you, is an easy approach. It is not a strict universal order: follow local instructions and any shrine-specific worship customs. Respect closed areas and photography restrictions.

Our first-visit guide covers the basics. When combining a main and subsidiary shrine, check the scope of each time estimate. Their walking areas may overlap, so simply adding the allowances can count the same part twice.

Sources

Checked 9 October 2026. Original text by Torii Atlas.

Related reading: What is a Shinto shrine (Jinja)?

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