Inasanohama Beach

A sandy beach located about a kilometer west of the Izumo Taisha Grand Shrine in Izumo City, Shimane Prefecture. The beach appears in the “Kuni-yuzuri,” a legend relating the transfer of the rulership of Japan to the gods of Heaven described in ancient texts such as the “Kojiki” and the “Nihonshoki,” as well as the legend of the “Kuni-biki” written in the “Izumo no Kuni Fudoki.” Highlights include a sheer cliff where the gods Okuninushi and Takemikazuchi negotiated for the transfer of the ownership of the land; and Bentenjima, an island where the goddess Toyotama-hime is enshrined. Two famous Shinto rituals are conducted on the beach—the Shiokumi Shinji, held early on the morning of the first day of every month; and the Kamimukae no Shinji, held on the 10th of October according to the old calendar. The beach’s waters are shallow and the coast is beautiful, and many people come here in summer to swim and enjoy beach going.