Sanja Matsuri

Sanja Matsuri is one of Tokyo’s largest and most lively traditional festivals, held each year in Asakusa on the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday centered on the third Saturday of May. Organised by Asakusa Shrine and supported by its 44 parish neighbourhoods, the festival draws around 1.8 million visitors over three days and is a defining event of early summer in the city.

The festival honours three men — Hinokuma Hamanari, Hinokuma Takenari, and Hajino Nakatomo — who are enshrined as deities at Asakusa Shrine for their role in the founding of nearby Sensō-ji. Although historically connected to the Buddhist temple, Sanja Matsuri is conducted as a Shinto festival centred on shrine rituals and mikoshi (portable shrine) processions.

Festivities begin on the first day with a large ceremonial parade featuring musical floats, traditional chants, local dances, and geisha-led performances. A highlight is the Binzasara Mai, a ritual dance designated as a Tokyo Intangible Folk Cultural Property, performed to pray for agricultural abundance, protection from illness, and community prosperity.

On the second day, a formal shrine ceremony is followed by the neighborhood mikoshi procession, during which about 100 portable shrines from the parish districts gather at Asakusa Shrine, receive purification rites, and are carried through their local areas.

The final day centres on the procession of the three main shrine mikoshi — Ichinomiya, Ninomiya, and Sannomiya — which are carried from early morning through Asakusa before returning to the shrine in the evening. The energetic handling of the mikoshi reflects traditional beliefs in invigorating the spiritual power of the deities and bringing blessings to the community.