Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine Jinko Event
| Location | City of Dazaifu |
|---|---|
| Designation | Prefecturally Important Tangible Folk Cultural Property（Intangible） |
| Emblem |  |
The Jinko event was started by Oe no Masafusa, Provisional Governor-General of Dazaifu in the Heian period (1101). Every year in September, a procession of portable shrine proceeds on the roads following the land allotments of ancient times, between Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine and the Dazaifu South Hall Site (present-day Enokisha Shrine), where Sugawara no Michizane lived in exile. This Jinko procession is accompanied by about 400-700 people dressed in period costumes and escorting a portable shrine.
A Heian-Era Picture Scroll That Calls to Mind Ancient Times
Every September, an event is held between Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine and the South Hall site (currently Enokisha Shrine), where Sugawara no Michizane once lived. On the morning of the first day, the shioitori ceremony is performed at Shito Falls in the foothills of Mount Tempai, then at night, portable shrines are carried from Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine down to theSouth Hall site amid welcoming fires. In the afternoon of the second day, the portable shrine is returned to Tenmangu Shrine along with spear, flags, floats, bamboo music (musical troupe), caskets , sacred horses, horseback riders and more, surrounded by the sound of drums and bells and guided by paper lanterns on poles. An event featuring parade of hundreds of people in Heian-era costume is called a “Heian Picture Scroll”.
Dazaifu City Characters/Tabito the Traveler, Otomo no Tabitto, Princess Reiwa
At Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, this event has been held on the Spring Festival in February, which is also the death date of Michizane, for more than 900 years.
The spirit of Sugawara no Michizane is carried in a portable shrine from Tenmangu Shrine to the South Hall, where he lived during before his death (currently Enokisha Shrine), where thanks is given to Jomyoni, a woman to whom Michizane was indebted in his life, before returning to Tenmangu the following day.
The bang of the drums and gongs reverberate as a parade of hundreds carrying a portable shrine donning colorful costume make their way through town, a scene reminiscent of elegant antiquity.
Access Information
Address
818-0117 4-7-1 saifu, Dazaifu, Fukuoka
By Train
About 5 min on foot from Nishitetsu Dazaifu Station
About the Western Capital
The “Western Capital”, created in Tsukushi 1300 years ago. Cultural assets speaking to the magnificence of this city of international exchange that flourished in East Asia are scattered across the cities of Chikushino, Kasuga, Onojo, Dazaifu, Nakagawa, and Umi in Fukuoka Prefecture as well as the town of Kiyama in Saga Prefecture.