Celebrating Scholarship at the Tenjin Matsuri Parade

Renee Kelch of Planet Depos – American Realtime, and her husband Ken, celebrated the Tenjin Matsuri festival in Osaka, Japan on July 25.

As Renee described it, “The festivities were so beautiful and the atmosphere so exciting, that we not only photographed it, but also joined in the procession as it headed to the Ogawa River.”

The shrine that Renee and Ken photographed here weighs approximately 2,000 pounds.  Many of the 3,000 people who participated in the parade dressed in the Imperial court style of the 8th – 12th Centuries. It was a parade of intense beauty.

Once the parade reached the Ogawa River, the participants boarded boats at Tenmabashi Bridge and sailed upstream. The festival was capped off by a gigantic 2-hour fireworks display up and down the river.

The Tenjin Matsuri festival is one of the three greatest festivals of Japan, and has been held annually in Osaka for over 1,000 years. It honors the deity of scholarship, Sugawara Michizane.