東京の“最強パワースポット”小網神社の名を無断使用　「御利益」うたう“偽コラボ商品”に注意（2026年06月18日）

(Aired June 17, 2026) On the 17th, in the early afternoon in Nihonbashi, Tokyo. A long line had formed in front of a small shrine nestled between buildings. And this long line continued on the other side of the street after turning the corner at the intersection. This is Koami Shrine, known as one of Tokyo's most powerful spiritual spots, and revered as a god of good fortune and protection against evil. As a sacred place for fans of their favorite artists, with people praying for things like winning concert tickets or success in their favorite activities, the shrine grounds are overflowing with worshippers every day. However, due to its immense popularity, Koami Shrine is currently facing a problem. The shrine's official social media accounts have posted a warning: "Recently, we have observed instances of people using our shrine's name and blessings to sell products such as power stones. Koami Shrine is not involved in any collaborations, tie-ups, or the sale of novelty goods." This warning indicates that products are being sold using Koami Shrine's name without permission and claiming to offer blessings. Upon searching major online shopping sites, it was discovered that numerous lucky charms and other products using the name of Koami Shrine were being sold. One of these was a lucky charm product claiming to use "Koami Shrine's sacred salt." The price was around 2300 yen per item, and the product's promotional video even featured photos of the shrine grounds. However, Koami Shrine's chief priest, Masanori Hattori, stated regarding this product, "We decline all tie-in projects, including those with private companies. We would like this to stop." He denied any involvement of the shrine, stating that the product was unauthorized. In reality, Koami Shrine provides sacred salt as a purifying salt to those who request it, for a fee. The sacred salt costs 100 yen per pack. There is also an edible version, which costs 1200 yen. Regarding the fact that lucky charms using this sacred salt were being sold without permission, Chief Priest Hattori stated, "We call the offering (of gratitude) 'hatsuho-ryo,' but distributing it at a price higher than the hatsuho-ryo is an insult to the gods. It would be a form of disrespect." The counterfeit collaboration product of Koami Shrine, which illegally misused the blessings of the shrine, drew criticism from visitors. However, a closer look at the product description page reveals a statement: "Please note that this product is not an official product of Koami Shrine, and we have not received any sales or supervision from them." It clearly stated that it was not an official product of Koami Shrine. However, a lawyer points out that the sales method of the product is problematic and could potentially lead to criminal charges. Attorney Koji Mizogami of Hashimoto General Law Office: "While there is indeed a statement that it is 'not official,' the words 'Koami Shrine' and 'Sacred Salt' are prominently displayed in large letters. The Unfair Competition Prevention Act prohibits acts such as using another person's brand power and product appeal without compensation to gain economic benefits that one would not normally obtain, as this constitutes unfair competition. This could lead to charges of violating the Unfair Competition Prevention Act, potentially resulting in imprisonment of up to five years or a fine of up to 5 million yen. Furthermore, if the salt is not from Koami Shrine, it could also lead to fraud charges. Therefore, our reporting team directly contacted the seller of the lucky charm goods, and a representative responded to our inquiries. While acknowledging that they were unaware of the shrine's warning, they explained, "We are indeed using salt from Koami Shrine. We copied another company that was selling products using the salt." Immediately after this interview, the shrine received a call from the vendor, and regarding the content of that exchange, Chief Priest Hattori said, "They asked if it would be alright to list the items if we emphasized more that they have no connection to the shrine, but that's not what we meant. We asked if they could be a little more considerate about listing the items. We don't really want to sue. In fact, we've been told that they made a considerable amount of money, so we can't help but feel that it might come down to them having made a lot of money."