Buddhism in Japan | Hey Japan!

Exhibition

Sacred Monsters in Buddhist Art

An exhibition exploring how Buddhist art depicts non-human beings such as serpents and demons alongside buddhas and bodhisattvas across different regions.

11 Jul – 16 Aug 2026Kyoto · Kansai

Exhibition

Kukai and the Treasures of Shingon Buddhism

Tokyo National Museum marks the 1,250th anniversary of Kukai's birth with 88 Shingon temple treasures, including 15 National Treasures and nine secret statues.

14 Jul – 6 Sep 2026Tokyo · Kanto

Market

Exhibition

Sacred Monsters in Buddhist Art

An exhibition exploring how Buddhist art depicts non-human beings such as serpents and demons alongside buddhas and bodhisattvas across different regions.

11 Jul – 16 Aug 2026Kyoto · Kansai

Exhibition

Kukai and the Treasures of Shingon Buddhism

Tokyo National Museum marks the 1,250th anniversary of Kukai's birth with 88 Shingon temple treasures, including 15 National Treasures and nine secret statues.

14 Jul – 6 Sep 2026Tokyo · Kanto

Market

Iizumi Kannon Daruma Fair

An annual market held in December where visitors purchase traditional daruma dolls representing wishes for health, family unity, and prosperity.

17–18 Dec 2026

Kanagawa · Kanto

Market

Enmei-ji Temple Annual Market (Daruma Market)

A year-end market features daruma dolls, traditional symbols of resilience, accompanied by a distinctive soul-insertion ritual using flint sparks.

28 Dec 2026Kanagawa · Kanto

Festival

Motsu-ji Temple Hatsukayasai Festival

The final day of this week-long Buddhist observance at a UNESCO World Heritage temple features torchlit processions and prayers for good fortune.

14–20 Jan 2027Iwate · Tohoku

Festival

Nagasaki Lantern Festival

The festival illuminates Nagasaki's streets with around 15,000 Chinese lanterns, some reaching 10 metres, celebrating Lunar New Year traditions.

6–23 Feb 2027Nagasaki · Kyushu

Festival

Saidai-ji Eyo Festival

At this over 500-year-old Okayama festival, men in loincloths compete for a wooden stick, with the victor becoming the 'Lucky Man' and receiving believed year-long blessings.

21 Feb 2027Okayama · Chugoku

Festival

Urasa Bishamondō Naked Man Festival

A 1,200-year-old midwinter festival features bare-chested men competing to ascend to the temple and offer prayers to the protective deity Bishamonten.

7 Mar 2027Niigata · Chubu

Illumination

Zuiryuji Temple "Spring Light-up"

Colored lights and music illuminate this National Treasure temple in spring, accompanied by a market featuring local goods and specialties.

22 Apr – 5 May 2027Toyama · Chubu

Festival

Mamada no Jaga Maita

Before the rice-planting season, children parade enormous painted serpents through town while chanting, immersing them in a pond as part of a centuries-old rainmaking ritual.

5 May 2027Tochigi · Kanto

Illumination

ZEN NIGHT Tofukuji

Nighttime illumination event at a historic Kyoto temple featuring vibrant green maple leaves paired with original soundscape music designed to calm the mind.

29 May – 5 Jul 2027Kyoto · Kansai

Festival

Aizen Festival

A 1,400-year-old temple festival honors a Buddhist deity associated with love and good fortune through public celebrations and sacred displays.

30 Jun – 2 Jul 2027Osaka · Kansai

Festival

Abare Festival

Illuminated lanterns parade through coastal Ushitsu in a celebration rooted in legend, featuring frenzied rituals to honor spiritual protection from epidemics.

3–4 Jul 2027Ishikawa · Chubu

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