Aizen-Matsuri Festival at Aizen-do Temple
Aizen-Matsuri Festival at Aizen-do Temple
The Aizen Festival prepares for the hot summer ahead with a parade of women wearing cool and attractive yukata.
June 30 – July 2
The Aizen Matsuri (愛染祭り) is Osaka’s first major summer festival of the year. It is believed to have originated when women from the entertainment district, dressed in yukata (summer kimono), visited the temple in palanquins called kago.
On the first day of the festival, 12 selected Aizen Musume girls, also wearing yukata, are carried through the streets in a beautifully decorated palanquin known as hoekago, heading toward Aizen-dō Temple amid a lively, celebratory atmosphere.
The temple’s principal image, Aizen Myōō, the Buddhist deity of love, is displayed to the public only during the New Year season and this festival. The event is further enlivened by around 300 food stalls, adding to the festive summer spirit.
Aizen-do Temple
Address : 5-36 Yuhigaokacho, Tennoji Ward, Osaka
Admission : Free
Hours : 10:00 to 21:00
Parade : from near JR Tennoji station to the Temple from 13:00 to 15:00 on June 30th
