Tenjin Matsuri

Tenjin Matsuri (天神祭) is one of the most symbolic water and light festivals in Osaka also ranked as one of the three greatest festivals in Japan, held annually on the 24th–25th of July. Tenjin is the ‘god of the sky’ and Matsuri is a festival in Japanese. The other festivals are the Gion Matsuri in Kyoto and Kanda Matsuri in Tokyo. Osaka, also known as the City of Water and Light, hosts this festival that dates back more than a thousand years ago. This festival started in year 951 to commemorate the deification of the great scholar, Sugawara no Michizane, enshrined now as the God of Learning. Come and you will get a first-hand experience of how the Japanese celebrate their summer. Tenjin Matsuri is the amalgamation of a boat festival, a fireworks display of over 3000 shots, and parades of Omikoshi-portable shrines. And of course, a lot of energy from the crowd clad in colorful yukata (summer kimono) and geta (wooden slippers) to be a part of this annual summer event. Start your exciting journey into the festival from the Tenmangu shrine. For early birds, on the 24th of July, the Yomiya-sai(Pre-evening festival) starts as early as 7:45 am with rituals and prayers for the success of the festival. There is a Taiko-Japanese drum performance accompanied by a Danjiri (Omikoshi carrier) dancer and dragon dance to signify the start of this festival. Do not miss the golden Omikoshis on display in Tenmangu shrine used in the festival. By 11 am in the Tenmangu shrine you can see the people dressed in costumes getting ready for the possession of the Omikoshis. One of the famous stops that you won’t want to miss is the possession on Midosuji street all the way to Tenjinbashi bridge. Sound and music are of course a big part of any festival, for Tenjin Matsuri, you can see people young and old, sweating profusely in the summer heat, chanting loudly, playing traditional music while 20-30 Danjiris shout to the rhythm of the music while carrying the sacred Omikoshis that weights up to hundreds of kilos. At 6 pm, the Boat Possessions starts on Okawa River. Try to spot the possession with a Kabuki actor, or the boat with the Japanese puppets while enjoying your walk along the stalls by the river. On 25th July, known as the Honmiya – the actual festival day, the three main events are the Land Possessions, Boat/ Water Possessions, and the Fireworks at night. The highlight is the Hanabi firework that starts around 7:30 pm with a much bigger crowd. In Japan, a summer festival is not complete with Hanabi, this must-see event displays 3000 shots of awesome fireworks. The firework is indeed a great end to a grand festival. The people, the energy, the sound, and the color of Tenjin festival are indeed an experience a Japanese traveler wouldn’t want to miss.