Osaka Tenmangu

Home to Tenjin, the deity of scholarship, Osaka’s Tenmangu shrine was founded in 949 and continues to attract students praying for good luck before exams. Surrounded by plum trees that blossom late in winter, Tenmangu is a quiet respite from the nearby Tenjinbashi-suji, the longest shopping street in Japan. The Shinto shrine has been rebuilt numerous times due to fires. The current main hall and main gate date back to 1845.

Tenmangu is home to the summertime Tenjin Matsuri, one of the ‘three great festivals’ in Japan along with Kyoto’s Gion Matsuri and Tokyo’s Kanda Matsuri. Taking place annually on July 24 and 25, the festival honours the deity through traditional customs which involve coaxing him out of the shrine for a parade on a mikoshi (miniature shrine) and entertaining him in the city and on the Okawa River with music and dance.