is a Shinto shrine located in the Kita ward of Tokyo, Japan.
Established during the Kamakura period, most likely around 1321âÂÂ1324, the shrine gives the name of "à Âji" to this area of the city. Most of the original buildings in the shrine precincts were destroyed during World War II, and were rebuilt from the late 50s to 1982.
It is notable for its giant ginkgo tree, suspected to be 600 years old and designated a Natural Monument in 1939, and for its annual festival (held in August), which includes a mikoshi parade and a performance of dengaku dance.
It is one of the , of which it has been designated as the "northern protector shrine".
The exact date in which the à Âji Shrine was founded is not known, but according to a stone with inscriptions (designated a Tangible Cultural Property of Tokyo) still standing beside the ginkgo tree, near the shrine precincts, Toyoshima contributed to found the shrine between 1321 and 1324. The giant ginkgo tree is suspected to have been planted at around this time.
à Âta Dà Âkan (1432-1486), the samurai and Buddhist monk who designed and built the Edo Castle (now the Imperial Palace), is said to have taken shelter from a storm under a big castanopsis tree in the shrine precincts which was destroyed, probably during World War II.
The area of the Kita-ku ward surrounding it receives the name of "Ã Âji" from the shrine.
Most of the original buildings of à Âji Shrine were destroyed in 1945 during World War II, and were rebuilt in 1959-1964 and in 1982.
The shrine entrance is marked by a big concrete in the myà Âjin style, very common in Shinto architecture, characterized by curved upper lintels.
A short leads from the torii to the honden. On its right side stand a , the traditional water ablution pavilion used by worshippers to purify themselves before approaching the shrine.
There is a back access to the shrine through a long stairway from the Otonashi Shinsui Park. This is where the giant ginkgo tree stands.
The main building of à Âji shrine is a in the Ishi-no-ma-zukuri style, a complex Shinto shrine structure in which the haiden, or worship hall, the heiden, or offertory hall, and the honden, are all interconnected under the same roof in the shape of an H.
The kami worshipped here are Izanami-no-Mikoto and Amaterasu-Ã Âmikami, considered to be "especially benevolent regarding marriage ceremonies, marital harmony, and restoring luck".
At the left of the sandà  stands a subsidiary shrine called Seki shrine. This small shrine has been described as "rare even within Japan since it is dedicated to an ancestral deity in charge of hair."
The ginkgo biloba or ginkgo tree stands on a hill of the left bank of the Otonashi river, just beside the shrine precincts, at the right side of the sandà Â. It has a height of 24.2 m and a trunk circumference of 5.2 m. It is suspected to have been planted during the construction of the shrine, which would make it more than 600 years old.
Unlike most of the à Âji shrine, the ginkgo tree survived the bombing of Tokyo during World War II, although the top part of the trunk was damaged.
One of the main attractions of the shrine, it was designated a Natural Monument in 1939.
Another giant ginkgo tree of similar characteristics in Tokyo is located in the grounds of Shiba Tà Âshà Â-gà «.
The annual festival of à Âji Shrine is held the first Sunday of August. It features a mikoshi parade, and the performance of the à Âji Jinja Dengakumai dance, one of Japan's three great dengaku dances.
There is no admission fee for visitors to enter the shrine precincts, and there is parking space available.
The entrances is at a 3-minute walk from the north exit of à Âji Station on the Keihin-Tà Âhoku Line, or from exit 3 of the same station on the Tokyo Metro Namboku Line, at a 5-minute walk from à Âji-ekimae Station and a 7-minute walk from Asukayama Station on the Toden Arakawa Line.