The Complete Ennichi

Why does a buddha's sacred day fall when it does?

On temple notice boards and calendars you will see "Today is the ennichi of such-and-such a buddha." An ennichi is a day on which it is said to be easier to form a bond with a particular buddha. Most come round every month: the 8th for Yakushi, the 18th for Kannon, the 24th for Jizō, the 28th for Fudō, and the 30th for Śākyamuni. Others follow the sexagenary signs of the calendar, the phases of the moon, or the memorial day of a founding master (an eminent monk who established a school). Here we go back to the original passages of the scriptures to see why each date falls where it does.

Table of Contents

Preface

There are five types of ennichi

"Why is Yakushi's day the 8th, and Jizō's the 24th?" Each ennichi date has a Buddhist reason, but the reason differs from one ennichi to another. Sorted by origin, they fall into five types, and every ennichi belongs to one of them.

  1. Days of abstinence (sainichi)

    Days of abstinence are fixed days of the month on which one keeps oneself restrained. They began as the custom called the uposatha (fusatsu), which was organized into the six and then the ten days of abstinence, and each of the ten days was given a guardian buddha or bodhisattva. Jizō on the 24th and Yakushi on the 8th come from these buddhas of the ten days. This is the oldest type, with direct authority in the scriptures.

  2. The Thirty Buddhas of the Month (sanjūnichi hibutsu)

    This assignment extends the ten days of abstinence to all thirty days of the month, filling the empty days with buddha-names from the Lotus Sutra. Most of the monthly ennichi calendar rests on it. It is a calendar of devotion handed down in Zen circles and spread in the Muromachi period.

  3. Ennichi of the sexagenary cycle (eto)

    This type fixes the day by the rotation of the twelve branches, or of the sexagenary cycle (eto, the pairing of the ten stems with the twelve branches). Blue-Faced Vajra on the day of the Metal Monkey (kōshin) and Mahākāla on the day of the Wood Rat (kinoe-ne) are examples: the sign of the day is tied to the deity worshipped on it.

  4. Ennichi of waiting for the moon and waiting for the sun (tsukimachi and himachi)

    A folk devotion of praying while waiting for the moon at a given phase or for the sunrise. Each night has its own principal deity: Seishi Bodhisattva on the twenty-third night, Ākāśagarbha on the thirteenth, and so on.

  5. Days of remembrance (the memorial days of founding masters and kami)

    This type follows the memorial days of founding masters and eminent monks who established schools, and of kami. As with Kōbō Daishi on the 21st (the Miei-ku), a memorial day became a monthly ennichi.

Part Two gives a quick-reference table of the monthly ennichi and the origins of each principal buddha's day.

Part One: Overview

Why does Buddhism, which sees no luck in days, have ennichi?

Ennichi did not exist in early Buddhism. Śākyamuni rejected as delusion the practice of deciding one's actions by lucky and unlucky days or by the stars. Ennichi exist nonetheless because the Buddha's teaching was laid over the calendar that people were already using. Making a fixed day a day of restraint, or a day of forming a bond with a buddha, is a means of guiding people (an expedient means, hōben).

So the ennichi have several ways (principles) of fixing the day side by side. Each principle ties devotion to a buddha onto a calendar that originally lay outside Buddhism, and none of them is the orthodox one. Below we take, in order, the days of abstinence (sainichi), the Thirty Buddhas of the Month (sanjūnichi hibutsu), the sexagenary cycle (eto), moon-waiting and sun-waiting (tsukimachi and himachi), and the days connected with founding masters (soshi) and kami, and cite the principle and scriptural basis of each.

縁日の五つの系統

仏教は本来、日に吉凶を立てないそれでも、人々の暦に信仰を重ねて「縁日」を立てた（方便）
縁日（仏とご縁を結ぶ特別な日）
日の決め方には、五つの系統があります。
1斎日六斎日・十斎日に仏を配する
2三十日秘仏30日に仏を配し、毎月の縁日へ
3干支十二支で日を決める
4月待・日待月の出を待って祈る
5ゆかりの日祖師・高僧の命日
縁日は、仏とご縁を結ぶ特別な日です。その日づけの決め方には、斎日・三十日秘仏・干支・月待や日待・ゆかりの日（祖師や高僧の命日）という五つの系統があります。

Type 1

Days of abstinence (the six and ten days of abstinence, and the ten buddhas of abstinence)

The root of the ennichi dates is the days of abstinence (sainichi). These are fixed days of the month on which lay people keep the eight precepts of abstinence (hassaikai), refrain from killing, and accumulate good; their source goes back to the uposatha (fusatsu) of Śākyamuni's time. Later the days of abstinence grew to ten a month, and assigning a buddha or bodhisattva to each of those ten days produced the ten buddhas of abstinence. The ennichi of Jizō on the 24th, Yakushi on the 8th, and others come from here.

斎日が縁日になるまで

斎日が毎月の縁日へ育っていった順序。8・14・15日の布薩に始まり、23・29・30日を加えた六斎日（四天王が人を見に降りる、バラモン教由来の日）へ広がり、さらに十斎日と各日の仏（十斎日の仏）が配され、1か月の30日すべてに広げて『法華経』の仏名で補った三十日秘仏となり、30日それぞれの仏が毎月の縁日として定着した。

8・14・15日の布薩から、四天王が人を見に降りる六斎日へ広がり、十斎日と各日の仏が配され、30日すべてに広げて『法華経』の仏名で補った三十日秘仏となって、各尊の毎月の縁日として定着した順序です。

The beginning of the uposatha

The beginning of the uposatha | the Vinaya, the Uposathakkhandhaka

The uposatha was a custom of Indian religious practitioners, who gathered to preach on the new moon, the full moon, and the half moon (the eighth day); Buddhism adopted it.

In time the uposatha added preaching to the assembly, and then the recitation of the prātimokṣa (the articles of the precepts) and confession, until it became a fortnightly monastic rite for reviewing the precepts.

The 8th, 14th, and 15th, the core of the days of abstinence, already appear in this account of origins. Buddhism took these dates from the fortnightly religious assemblies widely held at the time.

The six days of abstinence and the patrol of the Four Heavenly Kings

The six days of abstinence and the patrol of the Four Heavenly Kings | the Sūtra of the Four Heavenly Kings

The Sūtra of the Four Heavenly Kings gives the most systematic account of fixing six days of abstinence a month and of the belief that heaven watches people on those days.

This sutra names the six days of abstinence explicitly: the 8th, 14th, 15th, 23rd, 29th, and 30th of each month. It teaches that one who does good on these days, taking the threefold refuge (sankie), keeping the precepts, giving alms, and caring for one's parents, will live longer, be protected by good deities, and at death be born in the heavens.

The idea that heaven watches people on fixed days lies beneath many later ennichi, such as the ten buddhas of abstinence, the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, moon-waiting, and the Metal Monkey (kōshin) vigil. The three-tiered patrol, ministers on the 8th, princes on the 14th, and the Four Heavenly Kings themselves on the 15th, agrees exactly between the Chinese translation and the Pali.

月の満ち欠けと六斎日

月の満ち欠けと六斎日
六斎日には、天の神々が人の行いを見回るとされました。月の満ち欠けの節目に当たります。

四天王の見回りと六斎日

斎日に天が下界を見回る仕組み。上が天（忉利天・帝釈天）、下が人間界。使者（四天王の臣下）は8日と23日、太子は14日と29日、四天王みずからは15日と30日に天から人間界へ降りて人の善し悪しを調べ、帝釈天へ報告する。前半と後半で同じ巡察がくり返され、合わせて六斎日（8・14・15・23・29・30日）になる。

使者は8日と23日、太子は14日と29日、四天王みずからは15日と30日に下界へ降り、人の善し悪しを調べて帝釈天に報告するとされました。前半（白月）と後半（黒月）で同じ巡察がくり返され、合わせて六斎日（8・14・15・23・29・30日）になります。

Why six days of abstinence?

Why six days of abstinence? | the explanation in the Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom

Nāgārjuna Bodhisattva (Ryūju Bosatsu) explains why these six days were chosen in his Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom.

Its explanation draws on the pre-Buddhist Indian idea that particular days are in the charge of particular gods. This is belief cited from a teaching outside Buddhism (gedō), namely the Brahmanical (later Hindu) tradition. According to it, Maheśvara (Makeishura, the Great Sovereign God, corresponding to Śiva), the most exalted of the gods, governs the four days of the 8th, 14th, 23rd, and 29th, while the 15th, the full moon, and the 30th, the last day of the month (misoka), are days shared by all the gods. Maheśvara's four days and the two shared days make six, and these are exactly the six days of abstinence (the 8th, 14th, 15th, 23rd, 29th, and 30th). Because on these days gods and demons gain strength and bring harm to people, the treatise says, one restrains oneself and keeps abstinence.

Having said this, the Treatise states plainly that in the Buddha's Dharma a day is inherently neither lucky nor unlucky. The gods' assigned days belong to the belief of the Brahmanical tradition. Buddhism neither rejects nor worships them; following the worldly notion of unlucky days as a condition, it teaches abstinence as an expedient means of guiding people toward the good.

What are the eight precepts of abstinence?

The "eight precepts of abstinence" kept on a day of abstinence | the Sūtra on Abstinence and others

The eight precepts of abstinence (the eight-limbed precepts) are what a lay person keeps for one day and one night on a day of abstinence. The Chinese Sūtra on Abstinence lists the eight articles.

The eight precepts of abstinence are: not killing; not stealing (giving alms); abstaining from sexual conduct; not lying; not drinking intoxicants; not adorning oneself with flowers and perfumes or engaging in song and dance; not lying on a high, broad bed; and not eating at the wrong time (not eating after noon).

In the scriptures each of the eight is recited in this form: just as an awakened sage (an arhat) keeps this precept for life, so I too will keep it in the same way for this one day and night. A lay person thus keeps for one day the precepts that a renunciant keeps for a lifetime.

This wording is almost identical from the Pali scriptures to the Chinese formula for receiving the precepts. The custom of the day of abstinence, in which a lay person spends one day in purity like a renunciant, passed from India to East Asia without changing its form.

八斎戒

八斎戒の八つ。一、不殺生（生きものを殺さない）。二、不偸盗（盗まない）。三、不淫（淫らな行いをしない）。四、不妄語（嘘をつかない）。五、不飲酒（酒を飲まない）。六、華香・歌舞を離れる（飾りや歌舞音曲をしない）。七、高く広い寝床に臥さない。八、非時食を離れる（正午を過ぎたら食べない）。

斎日の一日一夜、在家の人が出家者にならって保つ八つの戒です。

The merit of keeping a day of abstinence

The merit of keeping a day of abstinence | rebirth into the heavens

The Aṅguttara Nikāya of the Pali canon teaches that the merit of keeping the eight precepts on a day of abstinence surpasses that of ruling the sixteen great realms as king.

This comparison with the sixteen great realms appears in the same way in the Chinese Sūtra on Abstinence and the Sūtra of the Laywoman Viśākhā (Yupoyi duosheqie jing).

The Sūtra on Abstinence further teaches that if, while keeping the eight precepts on a day of abstinence, one also practices the five recollections (gonen: of the Buddha, the Dharma, the Sangha, the precepts, and the heavens), the stains of the heart are washed away.

Abstinence on a yearly cycle

The three long months of abstinence and the eight royal days | abstinence on a yearly cycle

Besides the monthly six days of abstinence, there are the yearly three long months of abstinence and the eight royal days.

The three long months of abstinence (sanchō saigetsu) are the custom of treating the whole of the 1st, 5th, and 9th months as months of abstinence and being especially restrained throughout. The Brahmā's Net Sutra, the root scripture of the Mahāyāna precepts, states clearly that killing and the like during the six days of abstinence or these three long months is a breach of the precepts.

Later commentary explained why these three months were chosen. The 1st month is the beginning when life sprouts, the 5th when it is at its height, and the 9th the start of gathering the harvest into the storehouse: each falls at a turning point of the year. Furthermore, it was explained that the heavenly emperor patrols the four quarters of the world (the four great continents) in turn month by month to examine the conduct of people, and that the months in which the world we inhabit is inspected fall precisely on these 1st, 5th, and 9th months.

The eight royal days (hachiō-nichi) are the eight turning points of the year where the seasons change: the beginnings of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, together with the spring and autumn equinoxes and the summer and winter solstices. They correspond to today's twenty-four solar terms. The now-lost Sūtra of Tapussa (Daii-kyō) fixed these days, when the gods of heaven and earth change places and yin and yang alternate, as the eight royal days.

The six days of abstinence, the three long months of abstinence, and the eight royal days all rest on the same idea: heaven patrols the human world at fixed times to examine good and evil, so on those days one restrains oneself.

三長斎月と八王日

年単位の斎。三長斎月は正月・五月・九月の三か月。八王日は立春・春分・立夏・夏至・立秋・秋分・立冬・冬至の八つの節目。

毎月の六斎日に加えて、年には三度の長い斎月（正・五・九月）と、季節の変わり目の八王日があります。

The root authority for the ten days of abstinence

The root authority for the ten days of abstinence | the Sūtra of the Past Vows of Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva

The scripture that directly teaches the ten days of abstinence is the Sūtra of the Past Vows of Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva.

This sutra lists the ten days of abstinence as the 1st, 8th, 14th, 15th, 18th, 23rd, 24th, 28th, 29th, and 30th, and teaches that on those days transgressions are gathered up (tallied) and their weight is judged.

Here too, as with the six days of abstinence and the eight royal days, the days of abstinence are days on which good and evil are examined.

六斎日から十斎日へ／十斎日の仏

六斎日（8・14・15・23・29・30）に、4日（1・18・24・28）を加えると、十斎日（1・8・14・15・18・23・24・28・29・30）になる。

六斎日に4日を加えたのが十斎日です。この10日のそれぞれに、念ずべき仏が配されました。

The ten buddhas of abstinence

The ten buddhas of abstinence | the buddha or bodhisattva to be mindful of on each day

The ten buddhas of abstinence pair each of the ten days with an underworld official who descends to the world below and with a buddha or bodhisattva to call to mind that day. One who calls to mind the buddha of the day is said to escape the suffering of the hell assigned to it and to have transgressions erased. A manuscript unearthed at Dunhuang preserves the complete assignment.

DayUnderworld official who descendsBuddha or bodhisattva to be mindful ofMerit of keeping abstinence
1stThe YouthDīpaṃkara TathāgataOne does not fall into the hell of blades and spears; transgressions of forty kalpas are removed.
8thThe PrinceYakushi, the Buddha of Lapis Lazuli Radiance (Bhaiṣajyaguru)One does not fall into the hell of filth; transgressions of thirty kalpas are removed.
14thThe Inspector of LifeThe thousand buddhas of the Auspicious KalpaOne does not fall into the hell of the boiling cauldron; transgressions of one thousand kalpas are removed.
15thThe Great General of the Five PathsAmitābhaOne does not fall into the hell of freezing ice; transgressions of two hundred kalpas are removed.
18thKing YamaAvalokiteśvara (Kannon)One does not fall into the hell of the sword-tree; transgressions of ninety kalpas are removed.
23rdThe Great GeneralVairocana (Rushana)One does not fall into the hell of hungry ghosts; transgressions of one thousand kalpas are removed.
24thTaishan Fujun, Lord of Mount TaiJizō (Kṣitigarbha)One does not fall into the hell of hacking and cutting; transgressions of one thousand kalpas are removed.
28thIndraAmitābhaOne does not fall into the hell of the iron saw; transgressions of ninety kalpas are removed.
29thThe Four Heavenly KingsBhaiṣajyarāja and Bhaiṣajyasamudgata BodhisattvasOne does not fall into the hell of the grinding mill; transgressions of seven thousand kalpas are removed.
30thKing BrahmāŚākyamuniOne does not fall into the hell of the river of ashes; transgressions of eight thousand kalpas are removed.

Source: Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva and the Ten Days of Abstinence (Dizang pusa shi zhairi) (Taishō No. 2850, a Dunhuang manuscript). A variant with almost the same content is the Four Days of Abstinence of the Mahāyāna (Dasheng si zhairi) (Taishō No. 2849). The 24th is governed by Taishan Fujun (Lord of Mount Tai), ruler of the underworld and the hells, and on that day Jizō Bodhisattva, the savior of the hells, is assigned. Note that the principal buddha of the 28th here is Amitābha. The origin of each deity's ennichi is taken up one by one in Part Two.

十斎日と冥界の役人

十斎日の救いの仕組み。1、その日に冥界の役人が天から下りて人の罪を調べる。2、その日の仏を念じ斎を保てば。3、その地獄に堕ちるのを免れる。たとえば24日は、太山府君が下り、地蔵菩薩を念ずれば、斬斫地獄を免れる。

十斎日には、その日ごとに冥界の役人が下って人の行いを調べるとされました。その日の仏を念じ、斎を保てば、その地獄を免れると説かれます。

Type 2

The Thirty Buddhas of the Month

The Thirty Buddhas of the Month assign a different buddha or bodhisattva to each of the thirty days of the month, a custom of devotion arranged so that one may venerate the buddha of each day. It took shape by extending the buddhas of the ten days of abstinence (Type 1) to all thirty days and filling the empty days with buddha-names from the Lotus Sutra.

The Thirty Buddhas of the Month

The Thirty Buddhas of the Month: the buddha of each of the thirty days

The buddha or bodhisattva assigned to each of the thirty days of a month.

DayBuddha-name
1stDīpaṃkara Buddha
2ndPradīpaprabha Buddha
3rdPrabhūtaratna Buddha
4thAkṣobhya Tathāgata
5thMaitreya Buddha
6thThe Buddha of Twenty Thousand Lamps
7thThe Buddha of Thirty Thousand Lamps
8thYakushi Tathāgata
9thMahābhijñā-jñānābhibhū Buddha
10thThe Buddha of the Lamp of Sun and Moon
11thThe Buddha of Joy
12thThe Invincible Buddha
13thĀkāśagarbha Bodhisattva
14thSamantabhadra Bodhisattva
15thAmitābha
16thDhāraṇī Bodhisattva
17thNāgārjuna Bodhisattva
18thAvalokiteśvara Bodhisattva
19thSūryaprabha Bodhisattva
20thCandraprabha Bodhisattva
21stAkṣayamati Bodhisattva
22ndAbhayaṃdada Bodhisattva
23rdMahāsthāmaprāpta Bodhisattva
24thKṣitigarbha Bodhisattva
25thMañjuśrī Bodhisattva
26thBhaiṣajyasamudgata Bodhisattva
27thVairocana Buddha
28thMahāvairocana Tathāgata
29thBhaiṣajyarāja Bodhisattva
30thŚākyamuni Tathāgata

The original thirty buddha-names include names from the Lotus Sutra such as Prabhūtaratna, Mahābhijñā-jñānābhibhū, the Lamp of Sun and Moon, the Buddhas of Twenty and Thirty Thousand Lamps, Akṣayamati, and Abhayaṃdada. There are several traditions of the assignment; the one given here is the standard form shared by pilgrimage sites and temple materials. The commonly known ennichi in the monthly quick-reference table in Part Two spread when independent ennichi, such as those of Myōken, Yakushi, and Kannon, and ennichi of the kami were layered onto the thirty buddha-names. Placing Fudō and Mahāvairocana on the 28th is an assignment tied to esoteric Buddhism in Japan.

How the Thirty Buddhas of the Month came to be

How the Thirty Buddhas of the Month came to be

Each of the buddha-names appears in the scriptures. The assignment of those thirty buddhas to the thirty days is said to have been made by a Zen master.

This assignment, which extended the buddhas of the ten days of abstinence to thirty days, spread in Japan by way of Zen circles in the Muromachi period.

The assignment is not fixed. Depending on the temple, the region, and the line of transmission, a different buddha may be assigned to the same day. Each deity's ennichi also has its own separate origin, taken up under that deity in Part Two.

Type 3

Ennichi of the sexagenary cycle

Sexagenary ennichi are fixed not by the date but by the rotation of the twelve branches (jūnishi: the twelve animals, Rat, Ox, Tiger, and so on), or by the rotation of the sexagenary cycle that pairs the ten stems with the twelve branches. A day of the Rat or of the Snake comes round once every twelve days; the days of the Wood Rat, the Earth Snake, and the Metal Monkey once every sixty days. Most are explained by the deity's bond with its attendant animal (kenzoku, its messenger).

Sexagenary ennichi

List of sexagenary ennichi

For each sign: the deity, the name of the observance, and the main point of its origin.

Sexagenary signDeityNameKey point of origin
Day of the Wood Rat (kinoe-ne)Mahākāla (Daikokuten)Kinoe-ne machi; first Wood RatOnce every sixty days. The rat is Mahākāla's messenger. One stays up until midnight to worship.
Day of the Rat (ne)Mahākāla (Daikokuten)Once every twelve days. A simplified form of the Wood Rat day.
Day of the Tiger (tora)Bishamonten (Vaiśravaṇa)First TigerFrom the tradition that Bishamonten manifested in the year, day, and hour of the Tiger (Mount Shigi). The tiger is his messenger.
Day of the Horse (uma) (especially the first in the 2nd month)Inari (Ḍākinī, Dakiniten)First Horse; second HorseThe day the deity of Fushimi Inari descended is held to be the first Horse day of the 2nd month, Wadō 4.
Day of the Snake (mi)Benzaiten (Sarasvatī)Snake-day visitOnce every twelve days. The snake is Benzaiten's messenger and manifestation.
Day of the Earth Snake (tsuchinoto-mi)Benzaiten (Sarasvatī)Earth Snake festival; Earth Snake vigilOnce every sixty days. The most exalted of the Snake days. For fortune in money and wealth.
Day of the Boar (i)Marishiten (Mārīcī)Boar-day visitThe boar is Marishiten's messenger and mount. The Boar market at Ueno and the like.
Day of the Metal Monkey (kōshin)Blue-Faced Vajra; IndraMetal Monkey vigil; first Metal MonkeyOnce every sixty days. One stays awake through the night to prevent the three corpse-worms from escaping. In Shintō, Sarutahiko.

十二支で決まる縁日

干支の輪と縁日の尊
十二支の巡りで決まる縁日です。多くは、その尊の使いの動物との結びつきによります。

Type 4

Ennichi of waiting for the moon and the sun

Moon-waiting is a devotion in which a congregation (kōjū, a group sharing the same faith) gathers on the night of a particular lunar phase, venerates the moon, and makes offerings to a principal deity. Moon-waiting stones (tsukimachi-tō) remain throughout the country. The practice is attested from the Muromachi period and flourished in the Bunka and Bunsei eras of the Edo period.

月待塔（つきまちとう）

木の根もとに並ぶ月待塔。石の表面に「廿三夜」と刻まれている。
各地の道ばたや寺社に残る月待塔（つきまちとう）。「廿三夜（二十三夜）」などと刻まれ、人々が夜ごとに集まって月を拝んだことを今に伝えます。

Waiting for the moon and the sun

List of principal deities for waiting on the moon and the sun

The names of the moon- and sun-waiting nights and the principal deity of each.

Waiting for the moon or the sunPrincipal deityNotes
Night of the thirteenthĀkāśagarbha Bodhisattva
Night of the fifteenthMahāvairocana, Amitābha, Yakushi, Kannon, Jizō, ĀkāśagarbhaThe principal deity varies greatly by region.
Night of the sixteenth (izayoi)Mahāvairocana, Amitābha, Holy Kannon, Cintāmaṇicakra (Nyoirin) Kannon, JizōMany principal deities.
Night of the nineteenthCintāmaṇicakra (Nyoirin) KannonThe deity of the nineteenth night. Women's and nenbutsu congregations. Joined with the devotion for safe childbearing.
Night of the twenty-firstCintāmaṇicakra (Nyoirin) KannonWomen's and nenbutsu congregations.
Night of the twenty-secondCintāmaṇicakra (Nyoirin) Kannon; Cundī (Juntei) KannonVaries by region.
Night of the twenty-thirdSeishi BodhisattvaThe twenty-third night vigil; the three-night vigil. The most widely distributed of the moon-waiting devotions throughout the country. Seishi is the original ground of the moon-deva.
Night of the twenty-sixthAizen Myōō (Rāgarāja) (also the Amitābha triad)The twenty-sixth night vigil. Flourished at Takanawa and Shinagawa in Edo.
Metal Monkey vigilBlue-Faced Vajra; IndraOverlaps with the sexagenary ennichi. An all-night sun-waiting vigil.
Wood Rat vigilMahākāla (Daikokuten)Overlaps with the sexagenary ennichi.
Earth Snake vigilBenzaiten (Sarasvatī)Overlaps with the sexagenary ennichi.

The nineteenth night of moon-waiting (Cintāmaṇicakra Kannon) and the 19th of the monthly ennichi (Horse-Headed Kannon) belong to different types and have different principal deities. The twenty-sixth night of moon-waiting (Aizen Myōō) and the 26th of the monthly ennichi (Aizen Myōō) have the same principal deity.

月待の信仰

おもな月待の夜と本尊。十三夜（満月前のふくらむ月）は虚空蔵菩薩、十五夜（満月）は諸尊、十九夜（満月後の少し欠けた月）は如意輪観音、二十三夜（左半分が光る下弦の月）は勢至菩薩で最も広まった、二十六夜（細い有明の月）は愛染明王（阿弥陀三尊とする地域もある）。夜ごとに月相が違い、本尊も異なる。

月待は、決まった夜に月の出を待ち、集まってその夜の本尊を拝む信仰です。夜ごとに本尊が異なり、最も広まったのは二十三夜の勢至です。

Type 5

Ennichi of founding masters and kami

Another way of fixing the day is by a day connected with a person. Ennichi were established after the memorial days of school founders, eminent monks, and kami. Most began with the annual memorial day (shōtsuki meinichi), the month and day of death, and spread to the monthly memorial day (tsuki meinichi). The way of fixing the day differs, but as days of forming a bond with a buddha or a revered master of the past, these are no different from other ennichi.

Founding masters and kami

List of ennichi of founding masters and kami

A list of the ennichi of school founders, eminent monks, historical figures, and kami, with the memorial days, birthdays, and other dates they come from.

DaySubjectOrigin (memorial day, birthday, etc.)
The 3rd of each month / January 3Ganzan Daishi (Ryōgen)Memorial day January 3, 985. Founder of the Horned Daishi and of fortune-slips. The first Daishi of the year in the Tendai tradition.
The 13th of each monthNichiren ShōninPassing October 13, 1282. Monthly memorial day the 13th. The Oeshiki.
The 28th / 16th of each monthShinran ShōninPassing (Kōchō 2, 11th month, 28th day / January 16 by the new calendar). The monthly memorial day is the 28th for the Shinshū Ōtani-ha and the 16th for the Jōdo Shinshū Honganji-ha; the Hōonkō.
The 21st of each monthKōbō Daishi (Kūkai)Entry into meditation March 21, 835. Monthly memorial day the 21st. The Miei-ku. The most firmly established in the Shingon tradition.
The 22nd of each monthPrince ShōtokuMemorial day February 22, 622. The Prince's memorial at Shitennō-ji and Hōryū-ji.
The 25th of each monthTenjin (Sugawara no Michizane)The 25th by both the birth on June 25 and the death on February 25. Kitano and Dazaifu.
The 25th of each monthHōnen ShōninPassing January 25, 1212. Monthly memorial day the 25th. The same 25th as Tenjin.
June 7En no Gyōja (En no Ozunu)The tradition of his ascent to heaven. Founder of Shugendō. Kinpusen-ji and the like.
October 5BodhidharmaThe memorial day of the first patriarch of the Zen school (the Daruma-ki).

"Hatsu-Daishi," the first Daishi day of the year, is January 21 for Kōbō Daishi and January 3 for Ganzan Daishi; whom it refers to depends on the school.

Ennichi deriving from memorial days

Memorial days of founding masters and kami, and their ennichi

Ennichi that come from the memorial days of historical figures.

The ennichi of buddhas and bodhisattvas are fixed by the assignments of the days of abstinence and the Thirty Buddhas of the Month. The ennichi of founding masters and kami start from a historical date in the life of a real person.

Mañjuśrī coincides with Tenjin and Hōnen Shōnin on the 25th, and Fudō with Shinran Shōnin on the 28th. Two separate principles, memorial days and the monthly assignment of principal deities, happened to land on the same day. The origin of each person's ennichi is taken up one by one in Part Two.

Part Two: The Deities One by One

The ennichi of the principal buddhas

After a quick-reference table of the monthly ennichi, we take up the origin of each principal deity's ennichi one by one, in the order of tathāgatas, bodhisattvas, wisdom kings, devas, and founding masters and kami. For each date we also show which type in Part One it belongs to.

Quick reference

Calendar of monthly ennichi (1st to 30th)

The widely known monthly ennichi, from the 1st to the 30th, gathered in one table. It is built on the assignment of the Thirty Buddhas of the Month (originally the thirty buddha-names), and also includes ennichi established separately and ennichi of the kami. Several deities often share a day, which is the main reason ennichi lists differ from one source to another.

DayPrincipal deityName of the ennichiNotes and variant traditions
1stMyōken BodhisattvaMyōken ennichiSome traditions place Myōken on the 15th.
2ndLife-Prolonging Jizō
3rdGanzan Daishi (Ryōgen)Ganzan Daishi ennichiDerives from Ryōgen's memorial day, January 3. The first Daishi of the year in the Tendai tradition.
4thAkṣobhya Tathāgata
5thMaitreya BodhisattvaMaitreya ennichiSuitengū (Shintō) shares this day.
6thThe Buddha of Twenty Thousand Lamps
7thThousand-Armed KannonThe tradition placing it on the 17th is also strong.
8thYakushi TathāgataYakushi ennichi; first YakushiKishimojin on the 8th is also established. Some temples place it on the 12th.
9thMahābhijñā-jñānābhibhū Buddha
10thKonpira (Kotohira)Konpira ennichiThe 10th in the Shugendō and Shintō traditions.
11thHachiman Daibosatsu
12thYakushi TathāgataCoexists with the 8th.
13thĀkāśagarbha BodhisattvaĀkāśagarbha ennichiNichiren Shōnin's day, the 13th, falls here too.
14thSamantabhadra BodhisattvaSamantabhadra ennichi
15thAmitābha TathāgataAmitābha ennichiA fixed day since the Heian period. There is also a tradition placing Myōken on the 15th.
16thKing YamaYama ennichi; first YamaKangiten (Shōten) on the 16th and Shinran Shōnin's monthly memorial day, the 16th (Honganji-ha), fall here too.
17thThousand-Armed KannonCoexists with the 7th.
18thAvalokiteśvara BodhisattvaKannon ennichi; first Kannon; the day of forty-six thousand daysOne of the oldest ennichi records in the literature (the Konjaku Monogatarishū).
19thHorse-Headed KannonHorse-Headed Kannon ennichiSeparate from the nineteenth night of moon-waiting (Cintāmaṇicakra Kannon).
20thEleven-Faced KannonTwentieth-day EbisuEbisu (Shintō) shares this day.
21stKōbō Daishi (Kūkai)Daishi ennichi; first DaishiA separate type deriving from a memorial day. In the thirty buddha-names, Akṣayamati Bodhisattva; some assignments give Cundī (Juntei) Kannon.
22ndCintāmaṇicakra (Nyoirin) KannonThe Prince's memorialPrince Shōtoku's monthly memorial day, the 22nd, falls here too (Shitennō-ji).
23rdSeishi BodhisattvaThe twenty-third nightCoincides with the twenty-third night of moon-waiting (Seishi).
24thKṣitigarbha BodhisattvaJizō ennichi; first JizōA fixed day since the Heian period. Atago Gongen's day, the 24th, falls here too.
25thMañjuśrī BodhisattvaTenjin ennichi; first TenjinTenjin (Sugawara no Michizane) and Hōnen Shōnin also fall on the 25th.
26thAizen MyōōAizen ennichi; the twenty-sixth nightCoincides with the twenty-sixth night of moon-waiting (Aizen).
27thVairocana Buddha
28thFudō Myōō; MahāvairocanaFudō ennichi; first Fudō; closing FudōFudō and Mahāvairocana on the same 28th. An assignment made in Japan.
29thBhaiṣajyarāja Bodhisattva
30thŚākyamuni TathāgataŚākyamuni ennichi; the last day of the monthThe close of the thirty buddha-names.

Ennichi of the Shintō tradition, such as Myōken, Konpira, Tenjin, Ebisu, and Suitengū, are included in the same table.

Tathāgatas

Śākyamuni Tathāgata

The 30th of each month (plus the annual observances: birth on 4/8, awakening on 12/8, parinirvāṇa on 2/15)
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month
  • Annual observance

Śākyamuni Tathāgata is assigned to the 30th, the last of the thirty buddha-names, and the 30th of each month is his ennichi. On a different basis there are also three great festivals that come once a year. For the birth (April 8, the Kanbutsu-e) and the parinirvāṇa (February 15, the Nehan-e), the scriptures state the dates explicitly. For the awakening (December 8, the Jōdō-e), the early scriptures fix no month or day; it was settled on December 8 in China and became the Rōhachi-e.

Yakushi Tathāgata

The 8th
  • Ten buddhas of abstinence
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

The 8th is one of the six days of abstinence, and in the ten buddhas of abstinence Yakushi is assigned to this day. The Sūtra of the Merit of the Past Vows of Yakushi teaches keeping the eight-part precepts of abstinence (hachibu saikai, that is, the eight precepts of abstinence) together with the name of Yakushi Tathāgata. The thirty buddha-names also place Yakushi on the 8th, and, as the quick-reference table shows, some temples keep the 12th as Yakushi's ennichi.

Amitābha Tathāgata

The 15th
  • Ten buddhas of abstinence
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month
  • Moon-waiting

In both the ten buddhas of abstinence and the thirty buddha-names, Amitābha is assigned to the 15th, the day of the full moon. Amitābha's contemplation of the sun (nissōkan) is a meditation on the sun setting in the west. Making the 15th Amitābha's day is a symbolic link that lays the fullness of the full moon and the western quarter over Amitābha. In the ten buddhas of abstinence Amitābha is also assigned to the 28th, and on the twenty-sixth night of moon-waiting the Amitābha triad (Amitābha, Kannon, and Seishi) is said to appear in the moonlight.

Mahāvairocana Tathāgata

The 28th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

Mahāvairocana (Dainichi Nyorai) is the root buddha of Shingon esoteric Buddhism, held to be truth itself, illuminating every world. All buddhas and bodhisattvas are taught to arise from Mahāvairocana. The thirty buddha-names assign him to the 28th, and Fudō Myōō, his manifestation, is tied to the same 28th.

Maitreya Bodhisattva

The 5th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

Maitreya Bodhisattva (Miroku Bosatsu) is the buddha of the future. It is taught that 5.67 billion years after Śākyamuni's parinirvāṇa he will appear in this world, attain awakening beneath the dragon-flower tree (ryūgeju), and save all beings, and that until then he waits in Tuṣita Heaven (Tosotsuten). The ennichi of the 5th comes from the thirty buddha-names.

Akṣobhya Tathāgata

The 4th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

Akṣobhya Tathāgata (Ashuku Nyorai) is the buddha held to dwell in the eastern realm of Abhirati (Myōki), and he symbolizes the "unshakable mind" that grows angry at nothing and is never moved. The ennichi of the 4th rests on the assignment of the thirty buddha-names.

Bodhisattvas

Kannon Bodhisattva

The 18th
  • Ten buddhas of abstinence

Kannon Bodhisattva (Kannon Bosatsu) is the bodhisattva of compassion, said to hear the cries of suffering beings and to appear in whatever form each needs in order to save them. Kannon has long been cherished in many forms, such as Eleven-Faced, Thousand-Armed, and Cintāmaṇicakra. The ennichi of the 18th appears in the Konjaku Monogatarishū and is one of the oldest records of an ennichi in the literature. The 18th comes from the assignment of the ten buddhas of abstinence. In other forms, Kannon is assigned to other days as well: the 7th and 17th (Thousand-Armed), the 19th (Horse-Headed), the 20th (Eleven-Faced), and the 22nd (Cintāmaṇicakra) in the quick-reference table, Cundī (Juntei) noted under the 21st, and the nineteenth, twenty-first, and twenty-second nights of moon-waiting.

Seishi Bodhisattva

The 23rd (the twenty-third night)
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month
  • Moon-waiting

Seishi Bodhisattva (Seishi Bosatsu) is the bodhisattva of the light of wisdom and the bodhisattva of the nenbutsu. The 23rd is the day assigned to Seishi in the thirty buddha-names (the Thirty Buddhas of the Month). Seishi is also the principal deity of the twenty-third night, the most widespread of all moon-waiting devotions in Japan. Moon-waiting sees the moonlight of the night sky as the light of wisdom, which accords with the scripture that teaches that Seishi illuminates all things with the light of wisdom. Long recitation of the Buddha's name through the night while waiting for the moon also matches a practice the scripture teaches, unbroken pure recollection (jōnen sōkei, keeping pure recollection going without interruption).

Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva

The 25th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva (Monju Bosatsu) is the bodhisattva who presides over surpassing wisdom; his name even appears in the Japanese proverb "Three heads together make the wisdom of Mañjuśrī." He is shown riding a lion and holding the sword of wisdom. The thirty buddha-names assign him to the 25th, and this became his ennichi. On the same 25th the memorial-day ennichi of Tenjin and Hōnen Shōnin coincide.

Samantabhadra Bodhisattva

The 14th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

Samantabhadra Bodhisattva (Fugen Bosatsu) presides over practice, as Mañjuśrī presides over wisdom, and is shown riding a white elephant. He is also known as the bodhisattva who protects those who keep the Lotus Sutra, and often appears in scenes that teach the salvation of women. The ennichi of the 14th comes from the thirty buddha-names (the Thirty Buddhas of the Month); in the ten buddhas of abstinence, the thousand buddhas of the Auspicious Kalpa are placed on the 14th.

Jizō Bodhisattva

The 24th
  • Ten buddhas of abstinence

Jizō Bodhisattva (Jizō Bosatsu) is assigned to the 24th in the ten buddhas of abstinence. The day is governed by Taishan Fujun (Lord of Mount Tai), ruler of the underworld and the hells, and assigning Jizō Bodhisattva, the savior of the hells, to the same day is consistent with the teaching. Among all the ennichi, Jizō is the deity with the surest scriptural support, and the ten days of abstinence themselves are taught in the Sūtra of the Past Vows of Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva, as seen in Type 1 of Part One.

Ākāśagarbha Bodhisattva

The 13th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month
  • The thirteen buddhas
  • The thirteen-year-old visit
  • Moon-waiting

At least four threads tie Ākāśagarbha Bodhisattva (Kokūzō Bosatsu) to the number 13. The first is the monthly ennichi of the 13th, whose direct source is the placing of Ākāśagarbha on the 13th in the Thirty Buddhas of the Month. The second is the thirteenth of the thirteen buddhas (jūsanbutsu): Ākāśagarbha is the last of the thirteen deities of memorial services, the principal deity of the thirty-third-year memorial. The third is jūsan-mairi, the custom in which children of thirteen by traditional count pray to Ākāśagarbha for wisdom; it is held on the 13th of the third month of the old calendar, and Hōrin-ji in Arashiyama is the famous site. The fourth is jūsan-ya, the thirteenth night: the principal deity of the moon-waiting groups that wait for the "later moon" on the 13th of the ninth month of the old calendar is also Ākāśagarbha. Behind these lies a group of scriptures that present Ākāśagarbha as the bodhisattva of wisdom and memory, teaching practices of memory tied to the gumonji method (gumonji-hō) and the morning star (myōjō). Hōrin-ji relates that the monk Dōshō performed the gumonji method for a hundred days in Tenchō 6 (829), and that at dawn on the day of completion the morning star descended and he perceived Ākāśagarbha; the temple keeps its ennichi on the 13th. In this temple tradition, the gumonji method, the morning star, and the 13th come together in a single story.

Wisdom kings

Fudō Myōō

The 28th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month

In the thirty buddha-names (the Thirty Buddhas of the Month), Mahāvairocana is placed on the 28th, and Fudō Myōō, his manifestation, is tied to the 28th. The assignment of Fudō to the 28th appears in a Japanese treatise (Shōgei Shōnin's Nizōgi kenmon). In the Edo period, when people sought the worldly benefits of the goma, it became widely established as "Fudō's day."

Aizen Myōō

The 26th
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month
  • Moon-waiting

Aizen Myōō (Rāgarāja) is the wisdom king who turns desire itself into awakening, cherished as the principal deity of matchmaking and harmony. The ennichi of the 26th is closely tied to his being the principal deity of the twenty-sixth night (nijūroku-ya) of moon-waiting. The twenty-sixth night vigil (nijūroku-ya machi) is an observance of waiting for the thin late moon (ariake) that rises deep in the night of the 26th of the lunar month and venerating its light. It was widely held on the shores of Takanawa and Shinagawa in Edo, and it was said that in the moonlight the three deities Amitābha, Kannon, and Seishi appeared, or that Aizen Myōō appeared. The Thirty Buddhas of the Month also assign Aizen to the 26th.

Devas

Myōken Bodhisattva

The 1st
  • Thirty Buddhas of the Month
  • The stars

Myōken Bodhisattva (Myōken Bosatsu) is the deification of the pole star and the Big Dipper, held to be the most excellent of all the stars, guarding the land and removing calamities. Myōken was devoutly worshipped by warrior houses, especially the Chiba clan. In the monthly quick-reference table Myōken is placed on the 1st, and the 1st, the beginning of the month, is held to be the ennichi. Another tradition places it on the 15th, the day of the full moon (Myōken-kō).

King Yama

The 16th
  • The ten kings
  • Days of abstinence

Yama's ennichi is the 16th of each month. Above all, the 16th of the first and the seventh months are held to be Yama's great days of abstinence, the days on which "the lid of the cauldron of hell opens." Yama presides over the fifth judgment among the ten kings. The Sūtra on the Ten Kings for Cultivation in Advance teaches that King Yama will in the future become a buddha named Samantabhadra-rāja Tathāgata. In Japan, through the idea of original ground and manifest trace (honji suijaku), the view that Jizō is Yama's original ground spread.

Kangiten (Shōten)

The 1st and the 16th
  • Custom

Kangiten, also called Shōten, is a deva of esoteric Buddhism depicted as two elephant-headed figures, male and female, embracing in a dual-bodied (sōshin) form. He was originally a deity of obstruction (shōge) who hindered people, but it is told that Kannon Bodhisattva took the same form and led him into harmony. From this account he is worshipped as a deity who grants worldly wishes with particular power, such as harmony between husband and wife, children, and prosperity in business, and his original ground is held to be Mahāvairocana. Because his power is held to be strong, his rites are strict: as a hidden image never shown, he is reverently honored with the oil-bathing offering (yokuyu-ku), in which a monk pours warmed sesame oil over the image. He is devoutly enshrined in Shingon as well, and his ennichi is held to be the 1st or the 16th.

Kishimojin

The 8th, 18th, and 28th
  • Custom

Kishimojin (Hārītī) was originally a demoness who seized and devoured the children of others, but when Śākyamuni hid her youngest child and she came to know the grief of losing a child, she repented and became a deity who guards safe childbearing and the rearing of children. In the "Chapter on Dhāraṇī" of the Lotus Sutra she vows to guard those who keep the sutra. She is worshipped on the 8th, 18th, and 28th at Zōshigaya and elsewhere.

Mahākāla (Daikokuten)

The day of the Wood Rat (kinoe-ne)
  • Sexagenary cycle

Daikokuten was originally Mahākāla, the Great Black One of India, a fierce deity governing war, wealth, and the underworld. In the temples of China and Japan he was enshrined as the deity of the kitchen and of food, and on Mount Hiei, Dengyō Daishi Saichō is said to have enshrined him. In time he became widely loved as a god of good fortune, standing on rice bales, holding the mallet of fortune (uchide no kozuchi), and carrying a large sack. In Japan, because the sound "daikoku" is shared, he was identified with Ōkuninushi no Mikoto and came to be counted among the Seven Gods of Fortune. Because the rat (ne) is his messenger, the day of the Wood Rat (kinoe-ne) in the sexagenary cycle is held to be his ennichi, and people kept the Wood Rat vigil (kinoe-ne machi), staying up until midnight to worship him.

Bishamonten

The day of the Tiger (tora)
  • Sexagenary cycle

Bishamonten (Vaiśravaṇa) guards the north as one of the Four Heavenly Kings (Tamonten) and is a deity who grants fortune in war and in wealth. He is also cherished as one of the Seven Gods of Fortune. From the account that Prince Shōtoku realized him in the year, day, and hour of the Tiger at Mount Shigi (Shigisan), the day of the Tiger became his ennichi. The tiger is his messenger.

Benzaiten

The days of the Snake and the Earth Snake
  • Sexagenary cycle

Benzaiten (Sarasvatī) presides over music, eloquence, and the arts, and is cherished as a goddess who later also brings fortune in wealth, depicted holding a biwa. She is one of the Seven Gods of Fortune. Because the snake is her messenger and manifestation, the day of the Snake in the twelve branches, and above all the day of the Earth Snake (tsuchinoto-mi) that comes once every sixty days, is held to be her ennichi. The link with the snake comes from a syncretism in Japan.

Marishiten

The day of the Boar (i)
  • Sexagenary cycle

Marishiten (Mārīcī) is a deity whose form riding a boar is stated explicitly in the scriptures. This form became the basis for making the day of the Boar in the twelve branches her ennichi. Among the sexagenary ennichi, Marishiten alone has her iconography stated explicitly in the scriptures.

Inari (Ḍākinī, Dakiniten)

The day of the Horse and the first Horse
  • Sexagenary cycle

Inari is a familiar devotion that prays for abundant harvests and prosperity in business, with the fox as the deity's messenger. In Buddhism Inari was identified with Dakiniten (Ḍākinī). Because the shrine records of Fushimi Inari hold that the deity descended on the first Horse day (hatsu-uma) of the second month of Wadō 4 (711), the day of the Horse, and above all the first Horse day, became the ennichi.

Blue-Faced Vajra (Shōmen Kongō)

The day of the Metal Monkey
  • Sexagenary cycle
  • Daoism

Blue-Faced Vajra (Shōmen Kongō) is a deity with a blue body and a wrathful aspect who wards off plague and calamity. He was worshipped as the principal deity of the Metal Monkey vigil (kōshin machi), based on the Daoist theory of the three corpse-worms (sanshi). On the night of the Metal Monkey (kōshin), to prevent the three corpse-worms within the body from escaping and reporting one's sins to heaven, people passed the night without sleep, once every sixty days. The three monkeys of "see not, speak not, hear not" and the Metal Monkey steles (kōshin-tō) that remain in many places are vestiges of this devotion.

Founding masters and kami (deriving from memorial days)

Kōbō Daishi (Kūkai)

The 21st
  • Memorial day

Kōbō Daishi Kūkai entered meditation (nyūjō) on the 21st of the third month of Jōwa 2 (835). In Engi 10 (910), Archbishop Kangen of Tō-ji began the Miei-ku, and the monthly memorial day, the 21st, became the ennichi. It is the most firmly established memorial-day ennichi in the Shingon tradition.

Tenjin (Sugawara no Michizane)

The 25th
  • Memorial day

Tenjin is Lord Sugawara no Michizane, enshrined and cherished as the deity of learning. Michizane, who died in exile though innocent, was later revered by the people as Tenjin. Both his birth and his death are held to fall on the 25th, so the 25th is his ennichi. He is enshrined at Kitano Tenmangū and Dazaifu Tenmangū, and the plum blossom is his emblem.

Hōnen Shōnin

The 25th
  • Memorial day

Hōnen Shōnin was the monk who founded the Jōdo school, teaching the exclusive nenbutsu (senju nenbutsu) of simply reciting "Namu Amida Butsu." He passed away on the 25th of the first month of Kenryaku 2 (1212), and the monthly memorial day, the 25th, became his ennichi. Tenjin's ennichi falls on the same 25th.

Shinran Shōnin

The 28th and the 16th
  • Memorial day

Shinran Shōnin was the monk who inherited Hōnen Shōnin's teaching, taught the path of simply entrusting oneself to Amitābha's salvation, and was later revered as the founder of Jōdo Shinshū. He passed away on the 28th of the eleventh month of Kōchō 2 (1262). The Shinshū Ōtani-ha keeps this 28th as his monthly memorial day, and the Jōdo Shinshū Honganji-ha keeps the 16th, after January 16, the date converted to the new calendar. The Hōonkō is held in connection with his memorial day.

Nichiren Shōnin

The 13th
  • Memorial day

Nichiren Shōnin was the monk who founded the Nichiren school, teaching the recitation of the daimoku "Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō." He passed away on the 13th of the tenth month of Kōan 5 (1282), and the monthly memorial day, the 13th, is his ennichi. Around his memorial day the Oeshiki is held in remembrance of the founder.

Prince Shōtoku

The 22nd
  • Memorial day

Prince Shōtoku (Shōtoku Taishi) was a statesman of ancient Japan who, tradition says, deeply revered Buddhism, established the Seventeen-Article Constitution, and built Shitennō-ji and Hōryū-ji. He was later deeply loved by the people, and devotion to the Prince spread. His death is dated to the 22nd of the second month of Suiko 30 (622) (in the Tenjukoku Shūchō), and the 22nd is his ennichi, after the Prince's memorial (taishi-ki) at Shitennō-ji and Hōryū-ji.

Ganzan Daishi (Ryōgen)

The 3rd
  • Memorial day

Ganzan Daishi (Ryōgen) is the eminent Tendai monk who rebuilt the declining Mount Hiei, known as the founder of fortune-slips and as the Daishi who wards off misfortune. The talisman of the "Horned Daishi" (tsuno-daishi), said to depict the form of a demon, is still pasted at the doorways of houses as a charm against evil. His memorial day is the 3rd of the first month of Eikan 3 (985), and the 3rd of each month is his ennichi. January 3 is the first Daishi of the year in the Tendai tradition.

Conclusion

The numbers of the ennichi and where they come from

佛法中、日無好惡
In the Buddha's Dharma there is no good or ill in a day (Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom, fascicle 13).

The ennichi numbers are tied to Buddhism, but in a different way for each type. The days of abstinence began with the uposatha and are the oldest type, grounded in the scriptures. The ten buddhas of abstinence assigned a buddha to each of those days. The Thirty Buddhas of the Month are a custom that spread from China to Japan. The sexagenary cycle and moon-waiting rest on devotion to the calendar and to the moon. The ennichi of founding masters and kami form a separate group that comes from memorial days.

Jizō on the 24th, for example, is the ennichi with the surest scriptural support. Fudō on the 28th is the deity laid over the day in Japan as the manifestation of Mahāvairocana. The Daishi on the 21st is an ennichi of a separate type that comes from a memorial day. All belong to the same Buddhist life of practice, each with its own origin.

Restraining oneself and accumulating good on a fixed day is an expedient means for guiding people toward the good. Ennichi are the days on which people have carried this means forward for a thousand years and formed bonds with the buddhas. On the next ennichi that comes round, please quietly join your palms.

With palms joined

Byodoji (the Twenty-Second Sacred Site of the Eighty-Eight Sacred Sites of Shikoku)

Frequently Asked Questions

What is an ennichi in the first place?

An ennichi is a day on which it is said to be easier to form a bond with a particular buddha; it is also called a "day of forming a bond" (kechien). A day connected with the deity, such as a day of birth, manifestation, or vow, is chosen, and visiting on that day has long been said to bring greater blessings than usual. The bustle of stalls and festivities comes from the markets that, from the Edo period on, sprang up before temple gates to serve the crowds of worshippers.

Why is there an ennichi on a fixed day every month?

At its base lies a Buddhist custom called the days of abstinence (sainichi): fixed days of the month on which lay people keep the precepts, refrain from killing, and accumulate good. Their source goes back to the uposatha (fusatsu) of Śākyamuni's time. On top of this came the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, which assign a buddha or bodhisattva to each day of the month, and so the monthly ennichi calendar took shape.

How do the six days of abstinence, the ten days of abstinence, and the Thirty Buddhas of the Month differ?

The six days of abstinence are the 8th, 14th, 15th, 23rd, 29th, and 30th of each month. The ten days of abstinence add four more, ten days in all; assigning to each of them a buddha to call to mind gives the ten buddhas of abstinence. The Thirty Buddhas of the Month extend this to all thirty days of the month, a calendar for venerating the buddha of each day. Much of the monthly ennichi calendar rests on the Thirty Buddhas of the Month.

Why is the 24th Jizō's ennichi?

Because the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva and the Ten Days of Abstinence, unearthed at Dunhuang, states explicitly: "On the 24th Taishan Fujun descends; call Jizō Bodhisattva to mind." The 24th is governed by Taishan Fujun (Lord of Mount Tai), ruler of the underworld and the hells, and on that day one calls to mind Jizō Bodhisattva, the savior of the hells. Among all the ennichi, Jizō is the deity with the surest scriptural support.

Why is the 28th Fudō's ennichi?

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, Mahāvairocana is placed on the 28th, and Fudō Myōō, his manifestation, became tied to the 28th. The assignment of Fudō to the 28th appears in a Japanese treatise, Shōgei Shōnin's Nizōgi kenmon. That the 28th is a day of abstinence, and that Fudō is the manifestation of Mahāvairocana, are both taught in the scriptures.

Why is the 13th Ākāśagarbha's ennichi?

The monthly ennichi of the 13th comes from the placing of Ākāśagarbha Bodhisattva on the 13th in the Thirty Buddhas of the Month. Ākāśagarbha and the number 13 are also linked through the thirteenth of the thirteen buddhas (the principal deity of the thirty-third-year memorial), jūsan-mairi for children of thirteen by traditional count, and the thirteenth night on the 13th of the ninth month of the old calendar. Hōrin-ji in Arashiyama has a temple tradition that the monk Dōshō performed the gumonji method (gumonji-hō), the morning star descended, and he perceived Ākāśagarbha; the temple keeps its ennichi on the 13th.

Why are there ennichi fixed by the sexagenary cycle?

Most come from the deity's bond with an animal held to be its messenger (kenzoku), or from the customs of the calendar and of Onmyōdō. Mahākāla on the Wood Rat (kinoe-ne), Bishamonten on the Tiger, Inari on the Horse, Benzaiten on the Snake, Marishiten on the Boar, Blue-Faced Vajra on the Metal Monkey, and others have their days fixed by the rotation of the twelve branches or the sexagenary cycle. Above all, Marishiten's form riding a boar is stated explicitly in the scriptures.

What is moon-waiting (the twenty-third night)?

Moon-waiting is a devotion in which people gather on the night of a set lunar phase, wait for the moon to rise, and venerate a principal deity. Moon-waiting stones remain throughout the country. The principal deity differs from night to night, and the most widespread is Seishi Bodhisattva of the twenty-third night. It took root because the symbolism of seeing moonlight as "the light of wisdom" met the scriptural teaching that Seishi is the bodhisattva of wisdom and of the nenbutsu.

How do the ennichi of Kōbō Daishi (the 21st) and Tenjin (the 25th) differ from the ennichi of a buddha?

They differ in coming from the memorial days of real people. The monthly memorial days of Kōbō Daishi Kūkai's entry into meditation (March 21), of the death of Tenjin, Lord Sugawara no Michizane (February 25), and others became ennichi. This is a different principle from systems such as the days of abstinence and the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, which assign buddhas and bodhisattvas to days. Mañjuśrī coincides with Tenjin and Hōnen Shōnin on the 25th, and Fudō with Shinran Shōnin on the 28th, because separate principles happened to land on the same day.

Is there fortune, good or ill, in an ennichi?

The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom teaches that "in the Buddha's Dharma there is no good or ill in a day." Restraining oneself and accumulating good on a fixed day is an expedient means for guiding people toward the good, not a sign that the day itself is lucky or unlucky.

Ennichi services nationwide

Ennichi services around Japan

This directory lists, day by day, temples and shrines throughout Japan that hold services or ennichi festivals on ennichi dates. Only observances confirmed through official temple or shrine websites, official social media accounts, or official information from local governments or pilgrimage associations are listed, with links. Entries run in date order from the 1st to the last day of the month (misoka).

1st

The 1st is sakujitsu, the first day of the month. It is an ennichi for Myoken Bodhisattva and Bishamonten. Temples throughout Japan hold ennichi services and first-of-the-month goma rites, while shrines hold monthly rites and welcome worshipers for tsuitachi-mairi.

Temples: Ennichi services and goma

  • Shigisan Chogosonshiji TempleHegun Town, Nara Prefecture・Shigisan Shingon sect

    Bishamonten ennichi

    The ennichi of the principal image, Bishamonten, falls on the 1st, the 3rd, and the days of the Tiger each month, and monthly services are held in the temple's halls.

    Official website ↗
  • Yanagishima Myokenyama Hoshoji TempleSumida Ward, Tokyo・Nichiren sect

    Myoken ennichi (prayer service)

    The 1st of each month is the ennichi of Myoken Bodhisattva, and the monks solemnly hold a prayer service.

    Official website ↗
  • Hojoji TempleShinjuku Ward, Tokyo・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Monthly goma prayer

    A solemn goma rite is performed on the 1st of each month, as well as on the 18th and 21st. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Nishiarai Daishi Sojiji TempleAdachi Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Sakujitsu (first-of-the-month visit)

    The 1st of each month is kept as the sakujitsu ennichi, and the temple welcomes worshippers making their first visit of the month.

    Official website ↗
  • Kangakuji TempleNose Town, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    First-of-the-month goma

    A goma rite is solemnly performed at 11:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month. Worshippers offer their prayers on goma sticks.

    Official website ↗
  • Oiwayama Saishoji Temple (Oiwa Bishamonten)Ashikaga City, Tochigi Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Monthly goma practice

    On the 1st of each month, goma is performed three times: at 5:30 a.m., 10:00 a.m., and 1:30 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Kurikara Fudoji TempleTsubata Town, Ishikawa Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Ennichi and goma rite

    The 1st of each month is the ennichi. A goma rite is performed from noon.

    Official website ↗
  • Fukagawa Fudodo (Naritasan Tokyo Annex)Koto Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fukagawa Fudo ennichi

    The 1st of each month is the ennichi. In addition to the daytime goma, a special goma is held at 7:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Shiofune Kannonji TempleOme City, Tokyo・Shingon sect Daigo school

    Monthly goma service

    A goma rite is performed at 6:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month, except in January and May.

    Official website ↗
  • Okurayama Sugimotoji TempleKamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon goma

    The oldest temple in Kamakura and Temple 1 of the Bando Thirty-Three Kannon Pilgrimage. From 1:30 p.m. on the 1st and 18th of each month, the temple solemnly performs a Kannon goma for its principal image, Eleven-Faced Kannon.

    Official website ↗
  • Kabusanji Temple (Japan's First Bishamonten)Takatsuki City, Osaka Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Bishamonten first-of-the-month visit

    Said to be the first sacred site in Japan to enshrine Bishamonten. On the morning of the 1st of each month, the temple performs a Bishamon-Fudo goma, and worshippers come for the first-of-the-month visit (tsuitachi-mairi) to pray for prosperity in business and other wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • Saijo Inariyama Myokyoji TempleKita Ward, Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    First-of-the-month visit

    One of Japan's three great Inari sites, it preserves the combined worship of kami and buddhas. The 1st of each month is held to be an ennichi for forming a bond with Saijoson, and the temple is busy with first-of-the-month visitors. A first-of-the-month market is also held, except in January and February.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: First-of-the-month visits and monthly rites

  • Hokkaido Shrine TonguSapporo City, Hokkaido・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite and the birthday rite of the First-Day Kosha association are held at 6:00 p.m. on the 1st of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Shonai ShrineTsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month visit and monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month. Limited goshuin seals and sacred bells change each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Fujiki ShrineMurakami City, Niigata Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month visit

    On the 1st of each month, sacred salt and sakaki are distributed to express gratitude for the previous month and pray for safety during the new month.

    Official website ↗
  • Imizu ShrineTakaoka City, Toyama Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month rite

    On the 1st of each month, the Ichinomiya first-day offering and freshly pounded sweets are presented before the kami.

    Official website ↗
  • Ohno Minato ShrineKanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held from 6:30 a.m. on the 1st of each month. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Koshigaya Katori ShrineKoshigaya City, Saitama Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    On the 1st of each month, a monthly rite with purification and the recitation of the Great Purification Prayer and norito is held. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Hie ShrineChiyoda Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Sakutan rite

    On the 1st of each month, the shrine gives thanks for the blessings of the kami and prays for peace in daily life. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Kanda Myojin ShrineChiyoda Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held from 8:30 a.m. on the 1st of each month. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Nezu ShrineBunkyo Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite begins at 8:30 a.m. on the 1st of each month. A limited goshuin seal is offered.

    Official website ↗
  • Tanashi ShrineNishi-Tokyo City, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite (first-of-the-month visit)

    A monthly rite begins at 9:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month (registration required).

    Official website ↗
  • Hakone ShrineHakone Town, Kanagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the morning of the 1st of each month. Those attending receive a certificate of worship.

    Official website ↗
  • Minatogawa ShrineKobe City, Hyogo Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (first-of-the-month visit)

    A monthly rite with a kagura performance is held in the main sanctuary at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Omiwa ShrineSakurai City, Nara Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month visit and monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held in the worship hall at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month. A first-of-the-month morning market is also held.

    Official website ↗
  • Shirasaki Hachiman ShrineIwakuni City, Yamaguchi Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month visit

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 15th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Hakozaki ShrineFukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    On the 1st of each month, except January 1, the shrine presents sacred food offerings and recites norito prayers before the kami.

    Official website ↗
  • Toka Ebisu ShrineFukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month rite

    A first-of-the-month rite is held from 10:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month (the monthly rite is on the 10th).

    Official website ↗
  • Miyajidake ShrineFukutsu City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month visit

    On the 1st of each month, worshippers come through the night for the first-of-the-month visit.

    Official website ↗
  • Terukuni ShrineKagoshima City, Kagoshima Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month rite

    A first-of-the-month rite begins at 9:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month, with a first-of-the-month tea gathering and a limited goshuin seal.

    Official website ↗
  • Yatsushiro Shrine (Myokengu)Yatsushiro City, Kumamoto Prefecture・Shrine (Myoken faith)

    Monthly rite (Myoken ennichi)

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 15th of each month, which are the ennichi dates of Myoken.

    Official website ↗
  • Tarumaeyama ShrineTomakomai City, Hokkaido・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 15th of each month, and also at the subsidiary Inari Shrine and Tarumae Tenmangu.

    Official website ↗
  • Takekoma ShrineIwanuma City, Miyagi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    One of the three Inari shrines in Japan. The monthly rite is held from 11:00 a.m. on the 1st of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Takayashiki Inari ShrineKoriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held at 6:30 a.m. on the first day of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Okayama ShrineKita Ward, Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture・shrine

    Beginning-of-month rite

    The chief guardian shrine of Okayama City. A beginning-of-month rite is held at 8:30 a.m. on the 1st of each month (except January).

    Official website ↗
  • Shioya ShrineSaeki Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st, 10th, and 20th of each month. On the 1st, the rite begins at 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Namiuegu ShrineNaha City, Okinawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    An old shrine representing Okinawa and one of the eight Ryukyu shrines. Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 17th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Izumo Taisha ShrineIzumo City, Shimane Prefecture・shrine

    Beginning-of-month rite

    A beginning-of-month rite is held on the 1st of each month, in most months from 10:00 a.m., praying for the flourishing of the Imperial Family, the prosperity of the nation, and the peace of worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Taikodani Inari ShrineTsuwano Town, Shimane Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite lasting about 40 minutes begins at 11:00 a.m. on the 1st and 15th. The shrine gives thanks for divine blessings and prays for the flourishing of its devotees and the fulfillment of their wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • Miyazaki ShrineMiyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture・shrine

    First-of-the-month visit

    There is a custom of visiting the shrine on the first day of each month, and commemorative gifts are awarded on December 1st to those who visit the shrine each month throughout the year. At the rest area on the approach to the shrine, seasonal pilgrimage mochi is offered from 6 a.m. on the 1st.

    Official website ↗
  • OkinomiyaNaha City, Okinawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The shrine stands in Ōnoyama Park. A monthly rite is held on the 1st of each month, and prayers are offered at the beginning of the month.

    Official website ↗
  • Miyako ShrineMiyakojima City, Okinawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st and 15th of each month. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Hirosaki Hachiman ShrineHirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st of each month, with prayers before the kami for a peaceful month.

    Official website ↗
  • Shinkotoni ShrineKita Ward, Sapporo City, Hokkaido・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st of each month to pray for peace throughout the month, such as family safety and business prosperity.

    Official website ↗
  • Kehi ShrineTsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture・shrine

    Sakutan rite

    The chief guardian shrine of the Hokuriku road. A sakutan rite is held on the 1st of each month, and a monthly rite on the 15th.

    Official website ↗
  • Niigata Sochinju Hakusan ShrineChuo Ward, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st, 15th, and 28th of each month. On the evening of the 1st, a monthly worship gathering is held where the participants read out the Great Purification Prayer and prayers themselves.

    Official website ↗
  • Niigata Prefecture Gokoku ShrineChuo Ward, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The shrine holds a monthly rite on the 1st, 8th, and 15th. Anyone may attend. Prayers are offered for the peace of Niigata Prefecture and the health of those present.

    Official website ↗

2nd

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 2nd is assigned to Tomyo Buddha; in popular ennichi calendars, it is associated with Enmei Jizo. Jizo's principal ennichi is the 24th, so few temples or shrines hold regular observances on the 2nd. Some temples, however, continue Kannon prayers or Jizo ennichi observances on this day.

Temples: Monthly services and Jizo ennichi

  • Mizumadera Temple (Mizuma Kannon)Kaizuka City, Osaka Prefecture・Head temple of the Tendai sect

    Day of observance (1st, 2nd, 15th, and 18th of each month)

    The 2nd of each month is a day of observance: the temple monks go round worshipping at each hall in turn, and from 10:50 a.m. they hold the service in the main hall, which enshrines the principal image, Sho Kannon Bodhisattva, together with the public prayer service.

    Official website ↗
  • Enmei Kosodate JizosonArakawa Ward, Tokyo・Jizo-do

    Jizo ennichi (days of 2)

    The 2nd, 12th, and 22nd of each month, the "days of 2," are Jizo ennichi, and people keep coming to pray for long life and the raising of children. The site enshrines Edo-period stone images, including a Jizo Bodhisattva inscribed 1643.

    Official website ↗

3rd

The 3rd is the ennichi associated with the monthly memorial day of Ganzan Daishi Ryogen, who revitalized the Tendai school. Revered as a protector against misfortune, he is honored with goma rites at Tendai temples throughout Japan. Some temples also observe ennichi for Bishamonten on the 1st and 3rd.

Temples: Ganzan Daishi ennichi and goma

  • Hojuji TempleHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Ganzan Daishi ennichi and goma

    On the 3rd of each month, the ennichi of Ganzan Daishi, the temple performs goma in two sessions at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Shitennoji TempleTennoji Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Washu sect head temple

    Ganzan Daishi service

    On the 3rd of each month, a goma rite is performed in the Ganzan Daishi Hall, and after it concludes the officiant gives blessings with a shakujo staff.

    Official website ↗
  • Rozanji TempleKamigyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Enjoshu

    Goma at the Ganzan Daishi Hall

    A goma rite is performed in the Ganzan Daishi Hall on the 3rd of each month, and anyone may visit freely.

    Official website ↗
  • Anrakuji Temple (Ganzan Daishi)Joso City, Ibaraki Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Ganzan Daishi ennichi

    The 3rd of each month is kept as the ennichi of the principal image, Ganzan Daishi, and the temple welcomes worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Shigisan Chogosonshiji TempleHegun Town, Nara Prefecture・Shigisan Shingon sect

    Bishamonten ennichi

    The ennichi of the principal image, Bishamonten, falls on the 1st and 3rd and on the days of the Tiger each month, and prayers with the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra are held in the temple's halls.

    Official website ↗
  • Seikouyama Shoboji TempleTaito Ward, Tokyo・Nichiren sect

    Bishamonten ennichi: unveiling and prayer service

    The temple enshrines Bishamonten, one of the three major Bishamonten statues of Edo. The 3rd day of each month is observed as an ennichi, where the principal image is unveiled and a prayer service is held, during which prayers are given using the wooden sword (bokken) conferred at the Nichiren school's great ascetic training hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Shigisan Daihonzan GyokuzoinHegun Town, Nara Prefecture・Shigisan Shingon sect

    Bishamonten monthly service and goma

    This head temple enshrines Bishamonten of Mount Shigi. Goma is performed early every morning, and on the 1st, 3rd, and first Tiger day of each month special services and prayers with the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra are held. From the 1st through the 3rd of each month, the monthly Bishamon association (Tsukigime Bishamon-ko) meets.

    Official website ↗

4th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 4th is assigned to Akshobhya Tathagata. No major observance unique to this date is widely transmitted, but Jizo images whose ennichi fall on dates ending in four, the 4th, 14th, and 24th, are enshrined throughout Japan.

Temples: Jizo ennichi

  • Koganji Temple (Togenuki Jizo)Toshima Ward, Tokyo・Soto sect

    Togenuki Jizo ennichi

    The 4th, 14th, and 24th of each month are Jizo ennichi, and the main hall stays open until 8:00 p.m. for worshippers. On the 4th there is also a prayer service at 6:30 a.m.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Momodo ShrineOmihachiman City, Shiga Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The monthly rite is held from around 10:00 a.m. on the 4th of each month. The enshrined deity is Sarutahiko no Mikoto, long revered for protection from asthma. Advance reservations are not required, and souvenirs are presented to those who attend.

    Official website ↗

5th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 5th is assigned to Maitreya Bodhisattva. It is also the ennichi of Suitengu, recalling the Edo-period custom when worship was permitted only on the 5th of each month. Shrines and temples in various regions hold monthly rites and services on this day.

Temples: Monthly ennichi and services

  • Yakushiji TempleNara City, Nara Prefecture・Head temple of the Hosso sect

    Xuanzang ennichi service

    At 1:00 p.m. on the 5th of each month, a service is held at the Genjo Sanzo-in Garan, and the Heart Sutra is recited.

    Official website ↗
  • Yagotoyama Koshoji TempleShowa Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Daizuigu Myoo ennichi

    At 10:00 a.m. on the 5th of each month, the ennichi of Daizuigu Myoo is observed, and stalls line the approach.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Suitengu ShrineChuo Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite (5th)

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st, 5th, and 15th of each month. The 5th comes from the Edo-period ennichi, when worship was allowed only on the 5th of each month.

    Official website ↗

6th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 6th is assigned to the Buddha of Twenty Thousand Lamps (Niman Tomyo Butsu). On the 6th of each month, some temples hold a Daikokuten festival or a regular Dharma gathering.

Temples: Daikokuten festival and regular Dharma gatherings

  • Manoji TempleMinamiboso City, Chiba Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Daikokuten festival

    A monthly Daikokuten festival is held on the 6th of each month, and the mallet and talismans of Asahi Kaiun Daikokuten are blessed in the goma fire. Goma is performed at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m., and a good-fortune market opens in the grounds.

    Official website ↗
  • Ichijoji TempleFukagawa City, Hokkaido・Jodo Shinshu Honganji school

    Regular Dharma gathering

    A regular Dharma gathering begins at 1:30 p.m. on the 6th of each month. Teachers invited from around Japan give a Dharma talk after the chanting of the Shoshinge, and a meal (otoki) is served. The gathering is suspended during the busy farming season.

    Official website ↗

7th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 7th is assigned to Thousand-Armed Kannon, although another tradition assigns this deity to the 17th. Kyoto's Miyako Shichifukujin observes the 7th as an ennichi, and some temples hold sutra-copying sessions and Dharma talks.

Temples: Sutra copying and Seven Gods of Fortune ennichi

  • Kurama-dera TempleSakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Hironori Kurama

    Sutra copying and Dharma talk

    On the 7th of each month, the temple holds a sutra-copying session (one copy of the Heart Sutra, from 10:40 a.m.) and a Dharma talk from 1:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Matsugasaki Daikokuten (Myoenji Temple)Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune ennichi

    As the Daikokuten site of Kyoto's Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune pilgrimage, the temple adds a gold seal to goshuin on the 7th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Kyoogokokuji Temple (Toji)Minami Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Toji Shingon sect

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune: Bishamonten (gold seal)

    A head temple of the Shingon school, enshrining Bishamonten of the Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune. Those who visit on the 7th of each month receive a gold seal on their temple seal. This ennichi is separate from the Kobo Market on the 21st.

    Official website ↗
  • Rokuharamitsuji TempleHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune: Benzaiten (gold seal)

    Founded by Kuya Shonin, the temple enshrines Benzaiten of the Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune. The office of the Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune association is here, and the gold seal is given on the 7th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Sekizan Zen-inSakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune: Fukurokuju (gold seal)

    A sub-temple of Enryakuji on Mount Hiei, said to guard the capital's northeast 'demon gate.' It enshrines Fukurokuju of the Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune and gives the gold seal on the 7th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Kodo Gyoganji TempleNakagyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune: Jurojin (gold seal)

    Temple 19 of the Saigoku Thirty-Three Pilgrimage, enshrining Jurojin of the Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune. The gold seal is given at the Jurojin Hall in the grounds on the 7th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Obakusan Manpukuji TempleUji City, Kyoto Prefecture・Obaku sect

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune: Hotei (gold seal)

    The head temple of the Obaku school, founded by Ingen Ryuki. The Hotei in the Tennoden hall is counted among the Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune, and the gold seal is given on the 7th of each month.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Ebisu and Seven Gods of Fortune ennichi

  • Kyoto Ebisu ShrineHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Miyako Seven Gods of Fortune: Ebisu (gold seal)

    One of Japan's three great Ebisu shrines, it enshrines Ebisu as one of Kyoto's Seven Gods of Fortune. It is renowned for the Toka Ebisu festival in January, and on the 7th of each month worshippers may receive the pilgrimage's gold seal.

    Official website ↗
  • Miho ShrineMatsue City, Shimane Prefecture・shrine

    Seventh-day Ebisu festival (monthly rite)

    The head shrine of all Ebisu shrines in Japan. The 7th of each month is kept as the ennichi, with a monthly rite from 9:00 a.m., and golden sea-bream amulets are given on the 7th only.

    Official website ↗

8th

The 8th is the ennichi of Yakushi Nyorai. Beginning with Hatsu-Yakushi on January 8, Yakushi sacred sites throughout Japan hold ceremonial recitations of the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra and perform goma rites. Some temples also observe Kishimojin's ennichi on the 8th, 18th, and 28th.

Temples: Yakushi ennichi and goma

  • Yakushiji TempleNara City, Nara Prefecture・Head temple of the Hosso sect

    Yakushi ennichi

    At 11:00 a.m. on the 8th of each month, the temple holds a Yakushi ennichi service in the Kondo and performs a ceremonial recitation of the six hundred fascicles of the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra. The head priest gives an ennichi Dharma talk at 1:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Ichibata Temple (Ichibata Yakushi)Izumo City, Shimane Prefecture・Rinzai sect Myoshinji school

    Yoka-san (Yakushi ennichi)

    The 8th of each month is "Yoka-san," the ennichi of Yakushi Nyorai, with a prayer service with the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra, a talk by the chief abbot, and udon served to visitors.

    Official website ↗
  • Nishiarai Daishi (Sojiji Temple)Adachi Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Yakushi Nyorai ennichi

    The 8th of each month is the ennichi of Yakushi Nyorai; after the goma prayer at 11:00 a.m., a service is held in the main hall (except in January).

    Official website ↗
  • Zoshigaya Kishimojindo (Homyoji Temple)Toshima Ward, Tokyo・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin ennichi

    On the 8th, 18th, and 28th of each month, Kishimojin's ennichi, many people come to pray for safe childbirth and the raising of children.

    Official website ↗
  • Taiyuji TempleKita Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Ichigan Fudo goma prayer

    On the 8th, 18th, and 28th of each month, a goma prayer for Ichigan Fudo is held in the goma hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Mutsu Kokubunji YakushidoWakabayashi Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Great ennichi goma and handmade market

    A great goma rite for Yakushi Nyorai begins at 9:30 a.m. on the 8th of each month. The Yakushi-san Handmade Market opens in the temple grounds at 10:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Shinjoji Temple (Zakuro-dera)Kanazawa City, Ishikawa Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin ennichi

    People continue to visit the temple on the 8th, 18th, and 28th of each month, which are the ennichi dates of Kishimojin, to pray for fertility and safe childbirth.

    Official website ↗
  • Joruriji TempleKizugawa City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon Ritsu sect

    Unveiling of Yakushi Nyorai

    On the 8th of each month, the seated Yakushi Nyorai, principal image of the National Treasure three-story pagoda, is unveiled (in fine weather only).

    Official website ↗
  • Teruya TempleToride City, Ibaraki Prefecture・Lotus sect

    Kishimo Sonjin prayer service

    A prayer service is held at 10:00 a.m. on the 8th of each month, Kishimojin's ennichi. Participants write their wishes on prayer cards, the wishes are read aloud, and all pray together.

    Official website ↗
  • Joshoji TempleMinami Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin ennichi and daimoku gathering

    Each month, on Kishimojin's ennichi dates, the 8th, 18th, and 28th, the temple offers prayers for protection from childhood ailments and for clarity of wisdom. On the 8th, members of the devotional association also hold a daimoku gathering.

    Official website ↗
  • Kawasaki Daishi Heikenji TempleKawasaki Ward, Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Blessing with the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra at the Yakushi Hall

    On the 8th of each month, Yakushi Nyorai's ennichi, after the morning goma, blessings with the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra are given in the Yakushi Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Inabado Byodoji TempleShimogyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect Sennyuji school

    Inaba Yakushi handmade market

    The principal image is a Yakushi Nyorai known as Inaba Yakushi, revered for protection against cancer. A handmade market is held in the grounds on the 8th of each month, Yakushi Nyorai's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Chomyoji TempleSakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Prayer service at the Kishimojin Hall

    Prayers are held at 2:00 p.m. on the 8th of each month at Kishimojin Hall within the temple grounds, and visitors may enter the hall to worship.

    Official website ↗
  • Ichibatayama Yakushiji TempleOkazaki City, Aichi Prefecture・Rinzai sect Myoshinji school

    Yakushi ennichi

    The principal image is Ichibata Yakushi Ruriko Nyorai. The 8th of each month, Yakushi Nyorai's ennichi, is kept as the temple's ennichi, and Japanese sweets are given to worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Kamiterayama Yokeiji TempleSetouchi City, Okayama Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Yakushi ennichi

    A Heian-period seated Yakushi Nyorai (an Important Cultural Property) is enshrined in the Yakushi Hall. The 8th of each month, Yakushi Nyorai's ennichi, is kept as the Yakushi ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Tenkosan Myokokuji TempleKochi City, Kochi Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin service

    A prayer service is held at 1:00 p.m. on the 8th of each month, Kishimojin's ennichi. It is said to help with safe childbirth and women's illnesses.

    Official website ↗
  • Myokokuji TempleArao City, Kumamoto Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin monthly festival

    A monthly service for Kishimojin begins at 11:00 a.m. on the 8th. Participants sound fan drums and chant the daimoku, followed by a Dharma talk from the head priest and a prayer service.

    Official website ↗
  • Araiyakushi BaishoinNakano Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Yakushi ennichi goma prayer service

    On the ennichi of the 8th, 18th, and 28th of each month, a goma prayer service is held, in which prayers are offered through the esoteric rite to burn away afflictions. Services begin at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Shoboji Temple (Oharano, Nishikyo Ward)Nishikyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo goma

    The 41st temple of the Saigoku Forty-Nine Yakushi Pilgrimage. A Fudo goma rite is performed on the 8th of each month, the ennichi of Yakushi Nyorai, and worshipers offer their prayers.

    Official website ↗
  • Tsukino Yakushi Tozanji TempleShimonoseki City, Yamaguchi Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Yakushi ennichi service and Dharma talk

    A temple of Yakushi Nyorai affectionately called Tsukuno Yakushi. A service and Dharma talk are held at 10:00 a.m. on the 8th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Akamon Shichibutsu YakushiZentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Horaku service and Akamon eighth-day market

    Seven stone Yakushi images enshrined before the gate of the head temple Zentsuji, also called Chichi Yakushi. A horaku service is held on the 8th of each month, and an eighth-day market opens along Akamon-suji.

    Official website ↗
  • Renkyuji TempleFujieda City, Shizuoka Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin unveiling

    The 8th of each month is Kishimojin's ennichi. On this day only, the hall of Kaiun Kishimo Daizenjin is opened, and goshudai and goshuin with a design for the month are given.

    Official website ↗
  • Sorinji TempleHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Yakushi Nyorai goma prayer

    The principal image is Yakushi Ruriko Nyorai. A Yakushi goma is performed at 11:00 a.m. on the 8th of each month, Yakushi's ennichi. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗

9th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 9th is assigned to Mahabhijnajnanabhibhu Buddha. Although few observances are unique to this date, some shrines connected with Ontake devotion, which gives special significance to the number nine, and shrines dedicated to Daikoku observe the 9th as an ennichi.

Shrines: Ennichi and monthly rites

  • Chichibu Mitake Shrine (Togo Park)Hanno City, Saitama Prefecture・Shrine (Mitake faith)

    Ennichi (special rite)

    Following Ontake devotion, which holds the number nine most sacred, special rites are held on the 9th, 18th, and 27th of each month, and blessings (okaji) are given.

    Official website ↗
  • Shimogamo Shrine (Kotosha)Sakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Kotosha monthly rite

    On the 9th of each month, a monthly rite is held for Daikoku, enshrined at Kotosha, the subsidiary shrine before the main sanctuary.

    Official website ↗
  • Tajima Mitake ShrineSakura Ward, Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture・Shrine (Mitake faith)

    Monthly rite and Godaison Otakiage ritual

    A monthly rite is held on the 9th of each month together with the Godaison Otakiage ritual. The site is said to be where Fukan Gyoja, who opened Mount Ontake in Kiso, practiced.

    Official website ↗
  • Bushu Ome Kotohira ShrineOme City, Tokyo・Shrine (Kotohira faith)

    Eve of the monthly festival

    The eve of the monthly festival is held from the evening of the 9th of each month. Because the original shrine enshrines Shichisei Daigongen and Myoken Daigongen, the 9th is set as the eve, and rites are held during the day on the 10th.

    Official website ↗

10th

The 10th is the ennichi of Konpira, also written Kotohira. Revered for safety at sea and the fulfillment of prayers, Kotohira shrines throughout Japan hold monthly rites and toka-mairi pilgrimages. In some regions, Toka Ebisu observances are held on the same date.

Shrines: Konpira ennichi and monthly rites

  • Toranomon Kotohira ShrineMinato Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Tenth-day festival

    The shrine holds the Toka Festival on the 10th of each month. In the Edo period it stood within the Edo residence of the Marugame domain, which opened its grounds to worshippers only on the 10th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Toka Ebisu ShrineHakata Ward, Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (10th)

    From 11:00 a.m. on the 10th of each month (except January), a monthly rite is held, praying to Ebisu and Daikoku for the health and safety of worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Bessho Kotohira ShrineChuo Ward, Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture・shrine

    Tenth-day visit

    On the 10th of each month, people make the "Toka-mairi" visit to the great deity Konpira, said to bring special merit.

    Official website ↗
  • Kotohira ShrineSammu City, Chiba Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (10th)

    Prayers are held from 9:00 a.m. on the 10th of each month, and members of the public may enter the sanctuary to worship.

    Official website ↗
  • Kotohira ShrineIshioka City, Ibaraki Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (10th)

    A monthly rite is held on the 10th of each month, the ennichi. Those who keep visiting every month are said to receive remarkable blessings.

    Official website ↗
  • Kotohira ShrineIwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (10th)

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 10th of each month (except January).

    Official website ↗
  • Kotohira ShrineSaga City, Saga Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (Kamanari ritual)

    At the monthly rite on the 10th of each month, the Kamanari ritual is performed, and visitors may attend and worship.

    Official website ↗
  • Nishinomiya ShrineNishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture・shrine

    Shunsai rite and Tokaichi good-fortune fair

    The head shrine of Ebisu shrines. A shunsai rite is held at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st, 10th, and 20th of each month. On the 10th, the "Tokaichi" good-fortune fair is held, crowded with worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Hatta Kotohira ShrineSammu City, Chiba Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The monthly rite of Kotohira Shrine is held on the 10th of each month. Prayers are held from 9 a.m., and ordinary worshippers may enter the worship hall and participate.

    Official website ↗
  • Yasui Konpira ShrineHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Konpira monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 10th of each month. The 10th is the ennichi of Konpira; January 10 is Hatsu-Konpira and December 10 is Shimai-Konpira.

    Official website ↗
  • Nemuro Kotohira ShrineNemuro City, Hokkaido・shrine

    Beginning-of-month rite and monthly rite

    Said to have been founded by Takadaya Kahei. A beginning-of-month rite and a monthly rite are held on the 1st and 10th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Bushu Ome Kotohira ShrineOme City, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly festival and Konpira Fune-fune market

    On the 10th of each month, the shrine's ennichi, the main monthly festival is held. Following the eve on the evening of the 9th, the main rite is held on the morning of the 10th, followed by the "Konpira Fune-fune Goen Market."

    Official website ↗

11th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 11th is assigned to Hachiman Daibosatsu. Although few major ennichi are associated with this date, some shrines hold shunsai rites on the 1st, 11th, and 21st, while some temples observe an ennichi for Kobo Daishi.

Temples: Ennichi

  • Nishiarai Daishi (Sojiji Temple)Adachi Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Kobo Daishi ennichi

    The 11th of every month is observed as Nishiarai Daishi's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Daikannonji TempleChuo Ward, Tokyo・St. Kannon sect

    Ennichi (unveiling of the principal image)

    The principal image is a seated iron Sho Kanzeon Bodhisattva. On the ennichi of the 11th and 17th of each month, the doors of its shrine are opened for anyone to worship.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Shunsai and monthly rites

  • Yasukuni ShrineChiyoda Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st, 11th, and 21st of every month, the dates of the Shunsai observances.

    Official website ↗
  • Kashihara ShrineKashihara City, Nara Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st, 11th, and 21st of every month to pray for the flourishing of the Imperial Family and the nation.

    Official website ↗

12th

Some temples observe the 12th as an ennichi of Yakushi Nyorai alongside the more common 8th. The date is also one of the 'days ending in two,' the 2nd, 12th, and 22nd, observed by Enmei Kosodate Jizoson in Arakawa, Tokyo.

Temples: Yakushi ennichi

  • Yakushiji Temple Tokyo BranchShinagawa Ward, Tokyo・Hosso sect

    Yakushi ennichi: Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra recitation

    The 12th of every month is observed as the Yakushi ennichi. The temple recites the Daihannya Sutra with worshippers, followed by a Dharma talk from the head priest.

    Official website ↗

13th

The 13th is the ennichi of Kokuzo Bodhisattva, well known through the Jusan-mairi tradition. Nichiren temples may also hold a hoonko service in memory of Nichiren Shonin, who died on the 13th, while some shrines hold their monthly rites on this date.

Temples: Kokuzo ennichi and goma

  • Muramatsuyama KokuzodoTokai Village, Ibaraki Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Kokuzo Bodhisattva ennichi

    One of Japan's three principal Kokuzo Bosatsu images is enshrined here, and the 13th of every month is observed as Kokuzo Bosatsu's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Koyasan Jimyoin TempleTakano Town, Wakayama Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo goma offering rite

    The principal image is Fudo Myoo. On the mornings of the 13th and 28th of every month, the temple performs a goma rite and prays for the fulfillment of wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • Daichoji TempleFujinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Kokuzo Bodhisattva Hall ennichi

    The 13th of each month is kept as the ennichi of the Kokuzo Bodhisattva Hall, observed every month throughout the year.

    Official website ↗
  • Ikegami Daibo Hongyoji TempleOta Ward, Tokyo・Nichiren sect

    Holy day Hoonko

    The 13th, the date on which Nichiren Shonin passed away, is a day of gratitude. A Hoonko service is held each month on that date.

    Official website ↗
  • Sendai Kokuzoson (Betto Daimanji)Taihaku Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・Soto sect

    Kokuzoson ennichi

    The 13th of every month is observed as the ennichi of the principal image, Kokuzoson. Worshippers born in the Years of the Ox and Tiger visit to pray to their guardian Buddha for merit, good fortune, and wisdom.

    Official website ↗
  • Yagotoyama Koshoji TempleShowa Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kokuzo Bodhisattva ennichi at the Noman Hall

    An ennichi for the principal image, Kokuzo Bosatsu, is held at Nomando Hall at 10:00 a.m. on the 13th of every month. Stalls line the temple grounds in the morning.

    Official website ↗
  • Taiheiji TempleTennoji Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Soto sect

    Kokuzo Bodhisattva ennichi

    The ennichi of the principal image, Kokuzo Bosatsu, is held on the 13th of every month. The temple is known for Jusan Mairi, when children counted as age thirteen pray to receive wisdom and good fortune.

    Official website ↗
  • Yoganji Temple (Shinagawa Kokuzoson)Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo・Tendai sect

    Kokuzo Bodhisattva monthly ennichi

    The principal image is Kokuzo Bosatsu, known as Shinagawa Kokuzo. The 13th of every month is its ennichi, when the temple performs a goma rite in which prayer sticks bearing worshippers' wishes are placed into the sacred fire of wisdom to pray for their fulfillment.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Hakone Shrine (Kuzuryu Shrine Main Shrine)Hakone Town, Kanagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite at the Kuzuryu Shrine main sanctuary

    A monthly rite is held before the sanctuary of Kuzuryu Shrine's main shrine at 10:00 a.m. on the 13th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Hitokotonushi ShrineJoso City, Ibaraki Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held at 9:00 a.m. on the 13th of every month to pray for the flourishing of the Imperial Family and the peace of the local community, parishioners, and worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Owari Okunitama Shrine (Konomiya)Inazawa City, Aichi Prefecture・shrine

    Yakuiwai-ko rite

    The Yakuiwai-ko rite is held at 11:00 a.m. on the 13th of each month to pray for members' household safety and good health.

    Official website ↗

14th

The 14th is assigned to Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. Few major observances are unique to the date, but some temples hold sutra-copying sessions or ennichi observances on dates ending in four, the 4th, 14th, and 24th.

Temples: Sutra copying and ennichi

  • Zojoji TempleMinato Ward, Tokyo・Jodo sect

    Sutra copying

    A sutra-copying gathering is held on the 14th of every month. Registration opens at noon, a Dharma talk begins at 1:20 p.m., and the sutra-copying service begins at 2:00 p.m. The gathering is suspended in July and August.

    Official website ↗
  • Koganji Temple (Togenuki Jizo)Toshima Ward, Tokyo・Soto sect

    Jizo ennichi

    The 4th, 14th, and 24th of every month are Jizo's ennichi dates. On these days, Jizo Hall remains open until 8:00 p.m. for worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Sengakuji TempleMinato Ward, Tokyo・Soto sect

    Prayer service

    Prayers are offered at 11:00 a.m. on the 14th of every month. Advance reservations are required.

    Official website ↗
  • Yagiyama Fukutokuin (Higiri Jizoson)Konan Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Higiri Jizo ennichi

    A Jizo hall enshrining Higiri Jizoson. Days ending in four, the 4th, 14th, and 24th of each month, are ennichi, and worshippers also come on the 14th. It is said that prayers offered for a set number of days are answered.

    Official website ↗

15th

The 15th is the ennichi of Amida Nyorai, a date observed since the Heian period. As the day of the full moon, it is also one of the principal dates, together with the 1st, when shrines throughout Japan hold monthly rites. Some shrines observe Myoken's ennichi on the 15th.

Temples: Amida ennichi

  • Ennoji TempleChuo Ward, Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Amida Nyorai ennichi

    On the 15th of each month, the ennichi of the principal image Amida Nyorai, the temple holds "Jo" meditation (cleaning as service) and a temple market.

    Official website ↗
  • Nose MyokenyamaNose Town, Osaka Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Myoken Daibosatsu ennichi

    This is a sacred site of North Star worship. The 15th of every month is Myoken Daibosatsu's ennichi, and the annual Grand Festival of Myoken Daibosatsu is held on May 15.

    Official website ↗
  • Zenkoji TempleNagano City, Nagano Prefecture・Tendai sect/Jodo sect

    Daihannya-e service

    The principal image is Ikko Sanzon Amida Nyorai. On the 15th of every month, the temple holds a Daihannya-e service, reciting all six hundred fascicles of the Daihannya Sutra in a rapid reading to dispel hardship and pray for good fortune. Depending on the month, the service is held once or twice, during morning worship and at noon.

    Official website ↗
  • Hyakumanben Chionji TempleKyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Sutra copying and great rosary turning

    This is a head temple of the Jodo school. On the 15th of every month, participants copy the Ichimai Kishomon at a morning sutra-copying gathering and perform O-juzu-guri during an afternoon service in the main hall. Amida Hall, which enshrines Amida Buddha, also opens on this date.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Taikodani Inari ShrineTsuwano Town, Shimane Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    At 11:00 a.m. on the 1st and 15th of every month, the shrine gives thanks for divine blessings and prays for the flourishing of its worshippers and the fulfillment of their wishes. The rite is not held on certain dates.

    Official website ↗
  • Omiya Hachiman ShrineSuginami Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 15th of every month to give thanks for divine blessings and pray for the flourishing of the Imperial Family, parishioners, and worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Matsuo Taisha ShrineNishikyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st and 15th of every month, except on January 1.

    Official website ↗
  • Iwashimizu Hachimangu ShrineYawata City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held at 10:00 a.m. on the 15th of every month, except in September.

    Official website ↗
  • Niigata Sochinju Hakusan ShrineChuo Ward, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st, 15th, and 28th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Nagatani Tenmangu ShrineKonan Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite for the subsidiary shrines

    A monthly rite for the auxiliary shrines begins at 9:00 a.m. on the 15th of every month, proceeding in order to the auxiliary shrines, Fudo, and Sengen Shrine.

    Official website ↗
  • Hokkaido ShrineSapporo City, Hokkaido・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 15th of every month, or on the 20th in June and August. The shrine gives thanks for divine blessings and prays for the health of everyone born that month.

    Official website ↗
  • Isasumi ShrineAizumisato Town, Fukushima Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    This shrine is the ichinomiya of Iwashiro Province. A monthly rite is held at 10:00 a.m. on the 15th of every month. Rites are also held that morning at Hakusan Shrine and other shrines within the grounds.

    Official website ↗
  • Nezu ShrineBunkyo Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite begins at 8:30 a.m. on the 1st, 15th, and 21st of every month. Anyone may attend and pray for the nation's prosperity and the peace of parishioners and worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Hie ShrineChiyoda Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    In connection with the annual festival on June 15, a monthly rite is held on the 15th of every month. Those who register at the Minami Shinmon gate by 8:45 a.m. may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Hakone ShrineHakone Town, Kanagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite of both shrines

    On the 1st and 15th of every month, the monthly rite at Hakone Shrine is followed by one at Kuzuryu Shrine's new sanctuary. The rites begin at 8:00 a.m. from January through November and at 9:00 a.m. in December.

    Official website ↗
  • Aichi Prefecture Gokoku ShrineNagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held at 9:00 a.m. on the 1st and 15th of every month. It gives thanks for daily divine blessings and prays for the health and peace of bereaved families and worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Omiwa ShrineSakurai City, Nara Prefecture・shrine

    Kosha Sukeikai monthly rite

    The monthly rite of the Kosha Sukeikai association is held on the 15th of each month, praying for the flourishing and safety of its members, together with a traffic-safety prayer rite.

    Official website ↗
  • Izumo Taisha Shrine Kitajima KokuzokanIzumo City, Shimane Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Izumo-kyo at Kitajima Kokuzokan holds a monthly rite on the 1st and 15th of every month, praying for national peace, abundant harvests, and the household safety of parishioners and worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Tamura ShrineTakamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite for Ichinomiya Inari Daimyojin

    This is the ichinomiya of Sanuki Province. On the 15th of every month, a monthly rite is held for Ichinomiya Inari Daimyojin within the shrine grounds.

    Official website ↗
  • Hakozaki ShrineFukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    One of Japan's three great Hachiman shrines, it holds a monthly rite on the 1st and 15th of every month, except January 1 and September 15.

    Official website ↗
  • Kehi ShrineTsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    This shrine is the ichinomiya of Echizen Province and the chief guardian shrine of the Hokuriku region. A monthly rite is held on the 15th of every month, and a Sakutansai rite on the 1st.

    Official website ↗
  • Osaki Hachiman ShrineSendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Known for its National Treasure sanctuary, the shrine holds a monthly rite on the 15th of every month, Hachiman's ennichi, to give thanks for divine blessings and pray for the prosperity of parishioners and worshippers. A Tsukihajimesai rite is held on the 1st of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Omoto Munetada ShrineOkayama City, Okayama Prefecture・Kurosumi Kyou

    Nisshinsai (rite of the sun deity)

    The Nisshinsai rite begins at 9:00 a.m. on the 15th of every month to give thanks to the sun deity. It is one of the shrine's monthly observances, together with the Kaiunsai on the 1st and Kyososai on the 25th.

    Official website ↗
  • Ishikiyo Hachiman ShrineTakamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    This is Takamatsu's tutelary shrine. A monthly rite begins at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st and 15th of every month, except January 1, May 1, and October 15.

    Official website ↗
  • Fujisaki Hachimangu ShrineKumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The chief guardian shrine of Kumamoto holds a monthly rite at 10:00 a.m. on the 1st and 15th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Tanashi ShrineNishi-Tokyo City, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 1st and 15th of every month to pray for the flourishing of the Imperial Family and nation, and for the health and happiness of parishioners and worshippers.

    Official website ↗

16th

The 16th is the ennichi of King Enma and is associated with Hatsu-Enma and the abstinence days. Many temples also observe Kangiten, or Shoten, on the 1st and 16th. Shin Buddhist temples hold services on the 16th, the monthly memorial day of Shinran Shonin.

Temples: Enma and Shoten ennichi

  • Zuishin-in TempleYamashina Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect Zentsuji school

    Shoten ennichi: oil-bathing offering

    On the 1st and 16th of every month, the ennichi dates of Shoten (Kangiten), the temple performs a Yokuyu-ku rite with offerings of daikon radish and kangidan sweets.

    Official website ↗
  • Honganji Temple (Nishi Honganji Temple)Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Jodo Shinshu Honganji school

    Founder's monthly memorial service

    On the 16th of every month, Shinran Shonin's monthly memorial day, a Founder's Monthly Memorial Service and Dharma talk are held in Goeido Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Shoenji Temple (Shoten-san of Tengachaya)Abeno Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Shoten and Fudo Myoo ennichi

    On the ennichi of the 1st and 16th of each month, Shoten oil-bathing prayers and a Fudo Myoo goma are performed at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Tenmyoji TempleMaebashi City, Gunma Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Shoten oil-bathing offering

    On the 1st and 16th of every month, Shoten's ennichi dates, the temple performs a Shoten Yokuyu-ku rite and prays for worshippers' wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • Sorinin (Yamashina Shoten)Yamashina Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Shoten ennichi: Kesui-ku offering

    On the 16th of every month, Shoten's ennichi, the temple performs a Kesui-ku rite and offers prayers through the Yokuyu practice.

    Official website ↗
  • Kangenji Temple (Saijo Shoten)Higashihiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Shoten ennichi

    On the 16th of every month, Shoten's ennichi, visitors may enter Shoten Hall, which is normally closed to the public. Reservations are required.

    Official website ↗
  • Senbon Enmado TempleKamigyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Enma ennichi special service

    On the 16th of every month, Enma's ennichi, the temple unveils its principal image of King Enma and holds Dharma talks and ancestral memorial services at 10:30 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Daifukudaji Temple (Kuwana Shoten)Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kuwana Shoten monthly festival

    The Kuwana Shoten Monthly Festival is held on the 1st and 16th of every month, Shoten's ennichi dates. The temple performs a goma rite with prayer sticks and prays for visitors' wishes in Shoten Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Hozanji Temple (Ikoma Shoten)Ikoma City, Nara Prefecture・Shingon Ritsu sect

    Kangiten ennichi

    An ennichi for Daisho Kangiten is held on the 1st and 16th of every month. On the 16th, visitors may worship in the inner sanctuary of Shoten Hall, also called Tendo, which is normally inaccessible.

    Official website ↗
  • Sorinji TempleHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kangiten oil-bathing prayer

    The temple enshrines Yakushi Nyorai and Daisho Kangiten. It performs Yokuyu prayers, an esoteric Shoten practice, on the ennichi dates of the 1st or 16th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Sohonzan Zentsuji ShotendoZentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Zentsuji school

    Shoten Hall monthly service

    The Shoten Hall enshrines Daisho Kangiten, affectionately known as Shoten-san. A monthly service is held there on the ennichi of the 1st and 16th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Myoo-in Temple (Godaido Hall)Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Kangiten ennichi

    Godaido Hall enshrines the Five Great Myoo, with Fudo Myoo at their center. The 16th of every month is Kangiten's ennichi, and sutras are chanted in the main hall from 2:00 p.m. Anyone may attend.

  • Daifushoji Temple (Oi Shoten)Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo・Tendai sect

    Shoten ennichi

    Sutra chanting and a Dharma talk are held on the 16th of every month for Shoten's ennichi. From the 1st through the 7th of every month, the temple also performs Daisho Kangiten Yokuyu prayers.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Tonomiya Shiho ShrineTaiki Town, Mie Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    On the 16th of every month, regarded by the shrine as an auspicious day, a monthly rite is held to pray for the peace of the Imperial Family and worshippers.

    Official website ↗

17th

Some temples observe the 17th as the ennichi of Thousand-Armed Kannon, alongside traditions assigning the deity to the 7th or 18th. Temples perform Kannon goma and sutra recitation, while some shrines hold monthly rites on the 17th.

Temples: Kannon ennichi and goma

  • Ryugasaki Kannon Ryusenji TempleRyugasaki City, Ibaraki Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon ennichi great goma

    The 17th of every month is observed as Kannon's ennichi. The temple performs a great goma rite and chants the Kannon Sutra with worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Tachiki Kannon (Anyoji Temple)Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon ennichi

    The 17th of every month is Kannon's ennichi, a day to form a bond with Kannon and pray for protection from misfortune and the fulfillment of wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • Kasamori Kannon (Kasamori Temple)Chonan Town, Chiba Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon ennichi: Daihannya-e

    A Daihannya-e service begins at 11:00 a.m. on Kannon's ennichi dates, the 17th and 18th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Yanagidani Kannon Yokokuji TempleNagaokakyo City, Kyoto Prefecture・Nishiyama Jodo sect

    Yanagidani ennichi

    On the ennichi of the 17th of every month, the temple specially unveils its principal image, holds a Hyakumanben great rosary ceremony, and gives an ennichi sermon.

    Official website ↗
  • Raizan Sennyo-ji Temple Daihio-in TempleItoshima City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect Daikakuji school

    Principal image ennichi goma

    On the principal image's ennichi, the 17th of every month, the temple performs three goma rites at 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., and 12:30 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Seijoyama Kounji TempleSetagaya Ward, Tokyo・Soto sect

    Kannon ennichi

    The Kannon Sutra is chanted at 1:30 p.m. on the 17th of every month, followed by a tea-offering ceremony and prayers for the fulfillment of wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • Shitennoji TempleTennoji Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Japanese sect

    Hokke Hakko-e

    On the 17th of every month, the temple conducts the Hokke Hakko-e service in the lecture hall, with shomyo chanting and debate on the eight fascicles of the Lotus Sutra.

    Official website ↗
  • Daikannonji TempleChuo Ward, Tokyo・St. Kannon sect

    Unveiling of the principal image

    The principal image is a seated iron Sho Kanzeon Bodhisattva. On the ennichi of the 11th and 17th of each month, the doors of its shrine are opened for anyone to worship.

    Official website ↗
  • SenzoinNagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Ennichi goma

    The principal image is Senju Kanzeon Bodhisattva. On its ennichi, the 17th of every month, the temple performs an ennichi goma rite and daily service from 11:00 a.m. to noon.

    Official website ↗
  • Saidaiji KannoninHigashi Ward, Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kannon visit

    The principal image is Senju Kanzeon Bodhisattva. Kannon worship is held in Goosho Hall from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. on the 17th of every month, with goma-stick prayers, a Dharma talk, and hospitality for visitors.

    Official website ↗
  • Fuwashi Kannonji TempleKurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture・Shingon sect isolated

    Ennichi service

    The principal image is Eleven-Faced Kanzeon Bodhisattva. The 17th of every month is its ennichi, when the temple solemnly conducts an ennichi service in the main hall. Anyone may enter the hall and pray that day.

  • Kannonji TempleNaruto City, Tokushima Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Goma prayer

    The principal image is Shokanzeon Bodhisattva. On its ennichi, the 17th of every month, the temple performs a goma rite and prays for traffic safety, household safety, and other wishes.

    Official website ↗
  • SenjuinSasaguri Town, Kasuya District, Fukuoka Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Monthly festival

    A temple of the Sasaguri Shikoku pilgrimage. A monthly festival begins at 11:00 a.m. on the 17th of each month, Kannon's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Wakamatsuji Temple (Wakamatsu Kannon)Tendo City, Yamagata Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon goma

    Known as the Kannon of matchmaking, the temple performs a Kannon goma in the Kannon Hall at 11:00 a.m. on the 17th of each month, Kannon's ennichi. Visitors may offer goma sticks.

    Official website ↗
  • Aburayama Kannon Shogakuji TempleJonan Ward, Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Rinzai sect

    Kannon ennichi

    The principal image is Shokannon. An ennichi service is held in the main hall at noon on the 17th of every month, Kannon's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Kannon-in TempleNishi Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Koyasu Kannon ennichi

    The 17th and 18th of every month are Koyasu Kannon's ennichi dates. Open every day of the year, the temple holds three services daily at 10:00 a.m., noon, and 2:00 p.m., including on both ennichi dates.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Tokyo Daijingu ShrineChiyoda Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 17th of every month, a date connected with the shrine's founding, to pray for the prosperity of the Imperial Family and nation. Grand festivals replace it in February, April, and October.

    Official website ↗
  • Kuwana Shrine (Kasuga Shrine)Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture・shrine

    Kuwana Shrine Monthly Festival

    Kuwana Shrine holds a monthly rite on the 17th of every month.

    Official website ↗

18th

The 18th is the ennichi of Kanzeon Bodhisattva, with the first observance of the year known as Hatsu-Kannon. Kannon's ennichi is one of the oldest ennichi recorded in the literature. Kannon sacred sites and halls throughout Japan hold ennichi observances, goma rites, and services on the 18th of each month.

Temples: Kannon ennichi and goma

  • Sensoji TempleTaito Ward, Tokyo・St. Kannon sect

    Principal image ennichi service

    The 18th of every month is Kanzeon Bodhisattva's ennichi. A service for the principal image begins in the main hall at 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Ninnaji TempleUkyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Kannon-e and Kannon Dharma talk

    The 18th of every month is observed as Kannon's ennichi. Kannon-e services and Dharma talks are held in Kannon Hall at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Tokeiji TempleKamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Rinzai sect Engakuji school

    Unveiling of Suigetsu Kannon

    On the 18th of every month, Kannon's ennichi, the Suigetsu Kannon statue is specially unveiled, followed by sutra chanting and a talk.

    Official website ↗
  • Osu Kannon (Hoshoin)Naka Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Goma and Daihannya Tendoku-e

    On the 18th of every month, the ennichi of the principal image Shokannon, the temple performs goma rites at 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., followed in the evening by a Daihannya Tendoku-e service.

    Official website ↗
  • Koyamadera (Tomiya Kannon)Sakuragawa City, Ibaraki Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Eleven-Faced Kannon goma

    On the 18th of every month at 11:00 a.m., the ennichi of the principal image Eleven-Faced Kannon, the temple performs a goma rite that anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Abiko Kannonji Temple (Daisho Kannonji Temple)Sumiyoshi Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Japanese sect

    Kannon ennichi: gate opening and prayers

    On the ennichi dates of the 1st and 18th of every month, the gates open at 5:30 a.m. and prayers begin in the main hall at 6:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Kyumakei KannonKamitonda Town, Wakayama Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon sect

    Bato Kannon monthly ennichi goma

    On the 18th of every month, the monthly ennichi of the principal image Bato Kanzeon Bodhisattva, the temple solemnly performs a goma rite in Fudo Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Kasamori Kannon (Kasamori Temple)Chonan Town, Chiba Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon ennichi: Daihannya-e

    A Daihannya-e service begins at 11:00 a.m. on Kannon's ennichi dates, the 17th and 18th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • NakayamaderaTakarazuka City, Hyogo Prefecture・Shingon sect Nakayamaji school

    Unveiling service for the principal image

    On the 18th of every month, the temple holds a service for the unveiling of its principal image, Eleven-Faced Kanzeon Bodhisattva, which is open to worshippers from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Hasedera Temple (Kamakura Hasedera Temple)Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Jodo sect system

    Kannon-e

    A Kannon-e service is held on the 18th of every month, the ennichi of the principal image Eleven-Faced Kannon.

    Official website ↗
  • Tsubosakaji Temple (Minamihokkeji Temple)Takatori Town, Nara Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Kannon ennichi Dharma talk

    The 18th of every month, except in February, June, and July, is Kannon's ennichi. A talk by the head priest and various services begin at 11:30 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Nishiarai Daishi (Sojiji Temple)Adachi Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Botan Kannon ennichi

    An ennichi for Botan Kannon is held on the 18th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Makyuji TempleAsahikawa City, Hokkaido・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Nyoirin Kannon goma

    The temple performs an ennichi goma rite for the principal image, Nyoirin Kannon, in Rokkakudo Hall at 1:00 p.m. on the 18th of every month, praying for health, longevity, and recovery from illness.

    Official website ↗
  • Daikanmitsuji Temple (Sendai Daikannon)Izumi Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Ennichi Dharma talk and goma

    The principal image is Byakue Kannon. The 18th of every month is Kannon's ennichi. An ennichi Dharma talk begins at 11:30 a.m., and the temple also performs a goma rite by reservation.

    Official website ↗
  • Sugimotoji TempleKamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Unveiling of the principal image and goma

    This is the first temple of the Bando Thirty-Three Kannon Pilgrimage. On the ennichi dates of the 1st and 18th of every month, the temple unveils three normally hidden images of the principal deity, Eleven-Faced Kannon, and performs a goma rite.

    Official website ↗
  • Gumyoji TempleMinami Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kannon goma

    On the ennichi dates of the 8th, 18th, and 28th of every month, the temple performs a goma rite for its principal image, Eleven-Faced Kannon, from 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Higashieizan Kan'eiji Temple Komyo-kakuTaito Ward, Tokyo・Tendai sect

    Kannon ennichi offering

    The 18th of each month is Kannon's ennichi, when an offering service is held before Kannon. Komyokaku belongs to Kan'eiji in Ueno.

    Official website ↗
  • Seiryuzan Shinpukuji TempleOkaya City, Nagano Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Sho Kannon ennichi goma

    The temple performs an ennichi goma rite for Shokannon in Kannon Hall for about fifty minutes from 9:00 a.m. on the 18th of every month. Visitors may enter and leave freely, and no admission fee is charged.

    Official website ↗
  • IshiyamaderaOtsu City, Shiga Prefecture・Toji Shingon sect

    Kannon ennichi and Goo-san market

    The principal image is Nyoirin Kannon. The 18th of each month is Kannon's ennichi, with a morning service in the main hall. A market called Goo-san opens before the gate.

    Official website ↗
  • Taiyuji TempleKita Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kannon Sutra recitation

    A Kannon Sutra chanting service begins at 1:00 p.m. on the 18th of every month before the principal image, Senju Kannon, in the main hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Kannon-in TempleNishi Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Koyasu Kannon ennichi

    The 17th and 18th of every month are Koyasu Kannon's ennichi dates. The temple is open every day of the year and holds three services daily at 10:00 a.m., noon, and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Ishigakiyama Kannonji TempleKurume City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon ennichi goma prayer

    The 18th of every month is Kannon's ennichi. The temple performs a goma rite at 10:00 a.m. and offers prayers for good fortune and protection from misfortune for every worshipper.

    Official website ↗
  • Jigen-in Temple (Takasaki White-robed Kannon)Takasaki City, Gunma Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Great ennichi goma

    This temple on Mount Kannon enshrines Byakue Daikannon. On dates containing the number eight, the 8th, 18th, and 28th of every month, it solemnly performs a great ennichi goma rite at 10:00 a.m. The 18th is Kannon's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Takimi KannondoNiiza City, Saitama Prefecture・Zen Buddhism

    Kannon-ko gathering

    A Kannon-ko gathering is held from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. on the 18th of every month. Participants chant the Kannon Sutra and quietly join their hands in prayer. No advance registration is required, and beginners are welcome.

    Official website ↗
  • Kinpusen Hasedera TempleShinonoi, Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Kannon ennichi goma offering

    Temple 18 of the Shinano Thirty-Three Kannon Pilgrimage and one of Japan's three Hase Kannon temples. On the 18th of each month, the ennichi of the principal image Eleven-Faced Kannon, an offering is made through the goma rite of Shingon esoteric Buddhism.

    Official website ↗
  • Renko-in Temple Hatsuma-dera TempleTsu City, Mie Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Bato Kannon festival

    Known as Tsu no Hatsuuma-san, this sacred site is visited for protection from misfortune. The 18th of every month is Kannon's ennichi, and the Bato Kannon Festival for the principal image begins at 10:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Kakurinji TempleKakogawa City, Hyogo Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Kannon-ko gathering

    A Kannon-ko gathering begins at 2:00 p.m. on the 18th of every month. Devotees gather to chant the Kannon Sutra and listen to a Dharma talk.

    Official website ↗
  • Joshoji TempleMinami Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kishimojin ennichi

    On the 8th, 18th, and 28th of every month, Kishimojin's ennichi dates, the temple offers prayers for protection from childhood ailments, clarity of mind, and other wishes.

    Official website ↗

19th

The 19th is the ennichi of Horse-Headed Kannon. A separate tradition of waiting for the nineteenth-night moon, centered on Cintamanicakra Kannon, also survives in many regions.

Temples: Bato Kannon ennichi and goma

  • Sensoji Temple KomagatadoTaito Ward, Tokyo・St. Kannon sect

    Bato Kannon ennichi

    On the 19th of every month, the temple unveils its principal image, Bato Kannon, and holds a service.

    Official website ↗
  • Kamioka Bato Kanzeon Myoanji TempleHigashimatsuyama City, Saitama Prefecture・Soto sect

    Monthly ennichi (Bato Kannon)

    A monthly ennichi is held from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on the 19th of each month, and around 10:00 a.m. horses are brought to pay their respects to Kannon. It is not held in July and August.

    Official website ↗
  • Nanasawa Kannonji TempleAtsugi City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Bato Kannon ennichi goma

    On the 19th of every month, the monthly ennichi of Bato Kannon, the temple performs a goma rite in the main hall and also holds a joint memorial service for animals.

    Official website ↗
  • Shoyuji TempleNose Town, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Zao Gongen goma prayer service

    On the 19th of each month, a goma prayer service for Zao Gongen is solemnly held, together with a service to dispel troubles.

    Official website ↗
  • Horinouchi Myohoji TempleSuginami Ward, Tokyo・Nichiren sect

    Shichiji-e (Shichimen-sama)

    At 1:00 p.m. on the 19th of every month, the Lotus Sutra is chanted in the main hall and prayers are offered for Shichimen-sama's protection.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Kirishima ShrineKirishima City, Kagoshima Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held at the main sanctuary on the 19th of every month. It prays for the peace of the Imperial Family, the nation's prosperity, and the peace of parishioners and worshippers. The annual festival also falls on September 19.

    Official website ↗

20th

The 20th is assigned to Eleven-Faced Kannon in one tradition. Some temples also perform an evening goma for Yoi Daishi, the eve of Kobo Daishi's monthly memorial day.

Temples: Yoi Daishi and Kannon ennichi

  • Kawasaki Daishi Heikenji TempleKawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Yoi Daishi great goma

    At 7:00 p.m. on the 20th of every month, the eve of Kobo Daishi's monthly memorial day on the 21st, the temple solemnly performs the Yoi Daishi great goma rite.

    Official website ↗
  • Sumadera (Fukujoji)Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture・Shingon sect Sumaji school

    Daishi ennichi regular goma

    During the Daishi ennichi on the 20th and 21st of every month, the temple performs its regular Fudo goma rite from 10:00 a.m. on the 20th, followed by a special memorial dedication.

    Official website ↗
  • Sekigyoji Temple (Iwanami Kannon)Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Eleven-Faced Kannon goma prayer

    At 10:00 a.m. on the 20th of every month, the ennichi of the principal image Eleven-Faced Kannon, the temple solemnly performs a goma rite lasting about one hour.

    Official website ↗
  • Koyasan OkunoinTakano Town, Wakayama Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Otaiya night walk

    The 21st of every month is called Odaishi-sama's Day, commemorating Kobo Daishi Kukai's entry into eternal meditation on the twenty-first day of the third lunar month. On the preceding evening, the 20th of every month, worshippers gather at Ichinohashi at 7:00 p.m. and walk along the main approach to the mausoleum by lantern light.

    Official website ↗

21st

The 21st is the ennichi of Kobo Daishi, Kukai, and the date of the monthly Mieku memorial service. Derived from the anniversary of his death on March 21, Shingon temples hold Mieku services, goma rites, and Daishi ennichi observances each month. Toji Temple's Kobo Market is especially well known.

Temples: Daishi ennichi and Mieku

  • Kyoo Gokokuji Temple (Toji Temple)Minami Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Toji Shingon sect

    Mieku

    From 10:00 a.m. on the 21st of each month, the Mieku is held in the Miedo hall, and the Kobo Market fills the grounds.

    Official website ↗
  • Kawasaki Daishi Heikenji TempleKawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Kobo Daishi ennichi goma

    On the 21st of each month, Kobo Daishi's monthly memorial day, several goma rites are performed through the day, beginning with the great prayer service for the safety of believers at 6:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Nishiarai Daishi (Sojiji Temple)Adachi Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Kobo Daishi ennichi

    The 21st of each month is Kobo Daishi's ennichi, drawing many worshippers, and a plant market is held on the 21st from March to May.

    Official website ↗
  • Sumadera (Fukujoji)Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture・Shingon sect Sumaji school

    Daishi ennichi Mieku

    On the 21st of each month, the Kobo Daishi Mieku is held at 5:30 a.m., and Fudo goma at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Ninnaji TempleUkyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Mieku

    From 9:30 a.m. on the 21st of each month, the Mieku of the school's founder, Kobo Daishi, is solemnly held in the Miedo hall.

    Official website ↗
  • NakayamaderaTakarazuka City, Hyogo Prefecture・Shingon sect Nakayamaji school

    Mieku

    From 10:00 a.m. on the 21st of each month, the Mieku of Kobo Daishi Kukai is held in the Daishi Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Hasedera templeSakurai City, Nara Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Kobo Daishi Mieku

    On the 21st of each month, the Mieku is held in memory of Kobo Daishi Kukai, who founded the Shingon school.

    Official website ↗
  • Kakuozan Nittaiji TempleChikusa Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・super sect

    Kobo Daishi ennichi

    The 21st of each month, Kobo Daishi's monthly memorial day, is kept as an ennichi, and stalls line the approach.

    Official website ↗
  • Taiyuji TempleKita Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Toba memorial at the Daishi Hall

    From 10:00 a.m. to noon on the 21st of each month, an ancestral memorial service is held in the Daishi Hall, dedicating merit through wooden memorial tablets (kyogi toba).

    Official website ↗
  • Koyasan Tokyo BranchMinato Ward, Tokyo・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Mieku and goma service

    On the 21st of each month the Mieku is held; goeika hymns are sung at 1:00 p.m., a Dharma talk follows at 1:20 p.m., and a goma service begins at 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Koboji TempleMinato Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect

    Goma prayer service and Mieku

    On the 21st of every month from 6:00 p.m., the temple holds a goma prayer meeting as a Mieku to express gratitude to Kobo Daishi.

    Official website ↗
  • Hattasan Soneiji TempleFukuroi City, Shizuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Monthly Mieku

    The 21st of each month is called the day of gratitude, and the monthly Mieku is held in the Daishi Hall. The image of the Daishi is displayed and goeika hymns are sung. The public may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Shinpukuji TempleSuzuka City, Mie Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Daishi-san Mieku

    On the 21st of each month, the Daishi's day, the Mieku is held. A sutra-copying gathering and the Warashibe Choja market are also held.

    Official website ↗
  • Hoshoji TempleGifu City, Gifu Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Kobo Daishi ennichi goma prayer

    On the 21st of each month, Kobo Daishi's ennichi, a goma prayer for well-being is performed from 1:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Chiryu Kobozan HenshoinChiryu City, Aichi Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Kobo Daishi ennichi goma prayer

    An ennichi is held on the 21st of each month, after Kobo Daishi's memorial day, and goma prayers are performed in the Fudo Hall from 10:00 a.m. Stalls line the approach.

    Official website ↗
  • Komyoho-in TempleNachikatsuura Town, Wakayama Prefecture・Komyo Shingon sect

    Odaishi-sama ennichi

    A service begins at 10:00 a.m. on the 21st of every month, Kobo Daishi's ennichi. A Dharma talk follows the midday settai hospitality.

    Official website ↗
  • Head temple ZentsujiZentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Zentsuji school

    Monthly Mieku

    On the 21st of each month, a monthly Mieku is held in the Miedo hall from 11:00 a.m. A sutra-copying session is also held at Henjokaku from 10:00 a.m. the same day.

    Official website ↗
  • Kannon-in TempleNishi Ward, Hiroshima City, Hiroshima Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Yakuyoke Daishi ennichi

    The 20th and 21st of each month are kept as the ennichi of the Yakuyoke (misfortune-averting) Daishi and observed as Kobo Daishi's ennichi.

    Official website ↗
  • Yoshimi Kannon Anrakuji TempleYoshimi Town, Saitama Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Mieku

    The 21st of each month is the ennichi of the school's founder, Kobo Daishi, and the Mieku service is held. Monks gather to chant sutras and offer thanks. Anyone may visit.

    Official website ↗
  • Horakuji TempleHigashisumiyoshi Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect Sennyuji school

    Kobo Daishi ennichi

    An old temple affectionately known as Tanabe Fudoson. The 21st of each month is Kobo Daishi's ennichi, with sutra copying at noon, a service at 2:00 p.m., and a Dharma talk at 3:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Fudarakuzan Tanjoin Chokoji TempleOmihachiman City, Shiga Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kobo Daishi ennichi service

    On the 21st of each month, Kobo Daishi's monthly memorial day, an ennichi service is held, with a goma prayer in which wishes are placed in goma sticks.

    Official website ↗
  • Mame DaishisonHikone City, Shiga Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Kobo Daishi Mieku

    From 11:00 a.m. on the 21st of each month, the Kobo Daishi Mieku is solemnly held. January 21 is observed as Hatsu-Kobo and December 21 as Shimai-Kobo.

    Official website ↗
  • Mt. Mani Saikokuji TempleOnomichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture・Shingon sect Daigo school

    Kobo Daishi Mieku service

    From 2:00 p.m. on the 21st of each month, the Kobo Daishi Mieku service and an ancestral memorial service are held in the Daishi Hall. Fudo goma prayer services are also held on days containing the number eight.

    Official website ↗
  • Ichinotaki TempleSasaguri Town, Fukuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect Daigo school

    Monthly goma service

    One of the temples of the Sasaguri Shikoku Eighty-Eight Temple Pilgrimage. Kobo Daishi is enshrined in the main hall, and a monthly goma service begins at noon on the 21st of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Zushi Daishi Enmeiji TempleZushi City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Odaishi-sama goma prayer service

    On the 21st of every month, from 1:30 p.m., the temple holds a goma prayer service as an observance for Kobo Daishi, praying for protection from misfortune and safety for worshipers' families. Reception is open until 1:15 p.m.

    Official website ↗

22nd

The 22nd is assigned to Cintamanicakra Kannon in one tradition and is also observed as Taishiki, the monthly memorial day of Prince Shotoku. Some shrines hold their monthly rites on the 22nd.

Temples: Taishiki and Sonryo-e

  • Shitennoji TempleTennoji Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Japanese sect

    Taishiki

    The 22nd of each month, the monthly anniversary of Prince Shotoku's death, is observed as Taishi-ki. The Taishi Koshiki and a memorial service for the Six Kannon are held in Taishiden Hall, and admission to the temple complex is free.

    Official website ↗
  • Shiofune Kannonji TempleOme City, Tokyo・Shingon sect Daigo school

    Sonryo-e

    At 10:00 a.m. on the 22nd of each month, the temple holds the Sonryoe service in Amida Hall, an Important Cultural Property, and conducts perpetual memorial rites for spirit tablets.

    Official website ↗
  • Toyokawa Inari (Myogenji Temple)Toyokawa City, Aichi Prefecture・Soto sect

    Monthly festival (ennichi)

    Because Toyokawa Inari was founded on the 22nd day of the eleventh month in the lunar calendar, a monthly rite is held on the 22nd of each month. Open-air and antique markets fill the grounds. The principal image is Toyokawa Dakini Shinten.

    Official website ↗
  • Toyokawa Inari Tokyo AnnexMinato Ward, Tokyo・Soto sect

    Ennichi

    The 1st and 22nd of each month are observed as ennichi dates. Grand festivals are held at New Year and on May 22 and September 22. The September observance is the Ooka Festival, commemorating Ooka Echizen-no-kami.

    Official website ↗
  • Saijo Inariyama Myokyoji TempleKita Ward, Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Inari Daimyojin special prayer

    At 11:00 a.m. on the 22nd of each month, the appointed day of Inari Daimyojin, the temple conducts the Oku Hikaji Kito prayer in the Okunoin.

    Official website ↗
  • Nose MyokenyamaNose Town, Osaka Prefecture・Nichiren sect

    Kamome Inari Daimyojin monthly festival

    On the 22nd of each month, a monthly rite for Kamome Inari Daimyojin is held in Kaiunden Hall. Revered as a guardian against fire, the deity grants a black fire-protection talisman to those who receive prayers that day.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Yuki ShrineSakyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 22nd of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Chiyoho Inari ShrineKaizu City, Gifu Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st, 15th, and 22nd of each month. On these three days, the lattice doors at the front of the worship hall are opened.

    Official website ↗

23rd

The 23rd is the ennichi of Seishi Bodhisattva, the principal deity of the twenty-third-night moon-waiting observance. Groups and stone monuments dedicated to this observance remain throughout Japan.

Temples: Twenty-third night and Seishi ennichi

  • Myohoji TempleSuginami Ward, Tokyo・Nichiren sect

    Unveiling of the Twenty-Third Night Hall

    Nijusanya Hall opens only on the 23rd of each month. Monks chant sutras and accept prayer requests at 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Keiganji Temple (Nijusanya-son)Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Pinkoro Jizoson ennichi

    The principal image is Seishi Bodhisattva. The Pinkoro Jizoson ennichi is held on the 23rd of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Zenkoji DaihonganNagano City, Nagano Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Mizuko Jizo grand memorial service

    At 1:00 p.m. on the 23rd of each month, a grand memorial service is held before Mizuko Jizo to console the spirits of children lost through miscarriage or stillbirth.

    Official website ↗
  • Kenshoin Nijusanya HallAoba Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Nijusanya-son ennichi

    This hall enshrines Tokudaiseishi Bodhisattva as its principal image, and its ennichi falls on the 23rd of each month. It is called Nijusanya Hall because people once gathered on the twenty-third night to await the moonrise and pray to Seishi Bodhisattva. The hall is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and anyone may visit.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Monthly rites

  • Imizu ShrineTakaoka City, Toyama Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (ennichi)

    The 23rd of each month is observed as an ennichi, when the customary monthly rite is held.

    Official website ↗

24th

The 24th is the ennichi of Jizo Bodhisattva, with the first observance of the year known as Hatsu-Jizo. The date has been established since the Heian period. Jizo images, halls, and temples throughout Japan hold ennichi observances and services on the 24th. Some Atago shrines dedicated to protection from fire also observe this date.

Temples: Jizo ennichi

  • Koganji Temple (Togenuki Jizo)Toshima Ward, Tokyo・Soto sect

    Jizo ennichi

    The 4th, 14th, and 24th of each month are ennichi, and on the 24th Jizo-dori Street on the approach is lined with stalls.

    Official website ↗
  • Sensoji Temple JingodoTaito Ward, Tokyo・St. Kannon sect

    Mizuko memorial service

    At 10:00 a.m. on the 24th of each month, a memorial service for mizuko (children lost before birth) is held before the Mizuko Jizo.

    Official website ↗
  • Higiri Jizoson Kannon-in TempleKiryu City, Gunma Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Jizo ennichi

    On the 24th of every month, the ennichi of Jizo, the approach to the temple is crowded with stalls.

    Official website ↗
  • Adashino Nenbutsuji TempleUkyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Mizuko Jizo service

    A Mizuko Jizo service is held in the main hall from 2:00 p.m. on the 24th of each month, the ennichi of Jizo Bodhisattva (in August, the thousand-lantern service is held instead).

    Official website ↗
  • Shitennoji TempleTennoji Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Japanese sect

    Jizo ennichi

    The 24th of each month is Jizo's ennichi, observed for Tatsue Jizoson, the principal image of the Jizo Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Kannonji TempleKokubunji City, Tokyo・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Jizo Bodhisattva ennichi

    As an ennichi connected with the temple, the 24th of each month is kept as the ennichi of Jizo Bodhisattva.

    Official website ↗
  • JizoinKurayoshi City, Tottori Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Jizo ennichi visit

    The 24th of each month is kept as an ennichi visiting day, with a service in the main hall from 10:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Zenkoji DaikanjinNagano City, Nagano Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Jizoson ennichi

    At Daikanjin, the head residence of Zenkoji, an ennichi service for Jizoson is held from 1:00 p.m. on the 24th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Shoshayama Engyoji TempleHimeji City, Hyogo Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Jizo ennichi (Jizo-ko)

    A Jizo service is held on the morning of the 24th of each month, the ennichi of Jizo Bodhisattva. The eve service once held on the evening of the 23rd was moved to the morning of the 24th in April 2019.

    Official website ↗
  • Nanaki JizosonKurume City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Jizo statue

    Jizo's day of grace

    Known as a Jizo who grants wishes, the 4th, 14th, and 24th of each month are set as days of grace (onbi). The 24th is the ennichi of Jizo Bodhisattva and is busy with worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Yagiyama Fukutokuin (Higiri Jizoson)Konan Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Higiri Jizo ennichi

    A Jizo hall enshrining Higiri Jizoson. Days ending in four (the 4th, 14th, and 24th) are ennichi, and worshippers also come on the 24th.

    Official website ↗
  • Yaba Jizo Seijoji TempleNaka Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・Jodo sect

    Jizo Bodhisattva ennichi

    The principal image is Enmei Jizo Daibosatsu, affectionately called Yaba Jizo. The 24th of each month is Jizo Bodhisattva's ennichi, and worshippers visit. August 24 is celebrated as the Yaba Jizo grand ennichi festival.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Atago monthly rites

  • Atago ShrineSendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 24th of every month before the deity revered for protection from fire.

    Official website ↗
  • Washio Atago ShrineFukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite of gratitude

    A monthly rite of gratitude to the kami is held on the 1st, 15th, 23rd, and 24th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Furumachi Atago ShrineNiigata City, Niigata Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    As the "Atago-sama" of fire protection, the shrine holds a monthly rite on the 24th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Sendai Atago ShrineTaihaku Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The shrine venerates a deity of protection from fire. A monthly rite is held on the 24th of every month. In the old days, the festival was held on June 24th according to the lunar calendar, but it was later changed to July 24th according to the new calendar.

    Official website ↗

25th

The 25th is the ennichi of Tenjin, Sugawara no Michizane, with the first observance of the year known as Hatsu-Tenjin. The date recalls both his death on February 25 and his birth on June 25. Tenmangu shrines throughout Japan hold ennichi observances and monthly rites, while Buddhist tradition assigns the 25th to Manjushri Bodhisattva.

Temples: Monju ennichi

  • Monjusenji TempleKunisaki City, Oita Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Monju Bodhisattva ennichi goma

    At 11:00 a.m. on the 25th of each month, the ennichi of Monju Bodhisattva, an ennichi goma is solemnly performed.

    Official website ↗
  • Zaikaji TempleToyokawa City, Aichi Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Monju monthly festival

    On the 25th of each month, the ennichi of Monju Bodhisattva enshrined in the Monju Hall, a goma prayer is held as the monthly festival, and a Monju-sama ennichi fair is also held.

    Official website ↗

Shrines: Tenjin ennichi and monthly rites

  • Kitano Tenmangu ShrineKamigyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Tenjin market (ennichi)

    The 25th of each month is the ennichi known as "Tenjin-san's day": stalls line the approach all day, and the grounds are lit up after sunset.

    Official website ↗
  • Dazaifu Tenmangu ShrineDazaifu City, Fukuoka Prefecture・shrine

    25th-day rite

    On the 25th, a day closely tied to Tenjin, a monthly rite is held to give thanks for the deity's virtue and pray for the prosperity of the nation and the peace of the people.

    Official website ↗
  • Osaka Tenmangu ShrineKita Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・shrine

    Kento ritual and monthly rite

    On the 25th of each month, the Kento (hot-water offering) ritual and a monthly rite are held.

    Official website ↗
  • Sugawarain Tenmangu ShrineKamigyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Beginning-of-month rite and monthly rite

    A beginning-of-month rite is held on the 1st of each month and a monthly rite on the 25th.

    Official website ↗
  • Kameido Tenjin ShrineKoto Ward, Tokyo・shrine

    Tenjin ennichi

    The 25th of every month is Tenjin's Day, and various Shinto rituals and festivals such as Kagura are held.

    Official website ↗
  • Domyoji Tenmangu ShrineFujiidera City, Osaka Prefecture・shrine

    Antique market (ennichi)

    An antique market is held on the 25th of each month, Tenjin's day.

    Official website ↗
  • Nagaoka Tenmangu ShrineNagaokakyo City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (ennichi visit)

    A monthly rite (ennichi visit) is held at 9:00 a.m. on the 25th of each month, and afterward participants enjoy tea with the chief priest.

    Official website ↗
  • Oishigo Tenmangu ShrineJoso City, Ibaraki Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite (monthly ennichi)

    On the 25th of each month, a monthly ennichi is held as the tsukinamisai.

    Official website ↗
  • Iwatsu Tenmangu ShrineOkazaki City, Aichi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A monthly rite is held on the 25th of each month, Tenjin's day, together with a special prayer for success in examinations.

    Official website ↗
  • Katsuoka Tenmangu ShrineSendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Monthly rites are held on the 1st and 25th of every month.

    Official website ↗
  • Morioka Tenmangu ShrineMorioka City, Iwate Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    A Tenjin shrine of the Tohoku region, dedicated to Lord Sugawara no Michizane. A monthly rite is held on the 25th of each month; January 25 is Hatsu-Tenjin and December 25 is Shimai-Tenjin.

    Official website ↗
  • Shizuoka Tenmangu ShrineShizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Tenmangu Shrine is dedicated to the god of learning. A monthly rite is held on the 25th of every month, and anyone can attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Fumiko Tenmangu ShrineShimogyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Said to be the shrine where Tenjin devotion began, and also called the forerunner of Kitano Tenmangu. Monthly rites are held on the 16th and 25th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Hofu Tenmangu ShrineHofu City, Yamaguchi Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Tradition identifies this as Japan's earliest Tenjin shrine. A monthly rite is held in the main sanctuary at 9:00 a.m. on the 25th, while the Tenjin Market is held along the main approach.

    Official website ↗
  • Hatsukaichi Tenmangu ShrineHatsukaichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture・shrine

    Tenjin Kosha rite

    A shrine of Lord Sugawara no Michizane where people pray for success in examinations. The Tenjin Kosha rite is held on the 25th of each month; on January 25, May 25, and September 25 it is held on a larger scale from 1:30 p.m. as the Tenjin-ko Grand Festival.

    Official website ↗
  • Sugawara Shrine (Arahira Tenjin)Kanoya City, Kagoshima Prefecture・shrine

    Ennichi

    A Tenjin shrine set on a rocky hill jutting into the sea, also called Arahira Tenjin. The 25th of each month, Lord Sugawara no Michizane's monthly memorial day, is an ennichi that draws many worshippers.

    Official website ↗
  • Ikimi Tenmangu ShrineNantan City, Kyoto Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    Ikimi Tenmangu, said to be the oldest Tenmangu in Japan. A monthly rite is held from 8:00 a.m. on the 25th of each month to pray for household safety and the fulfillment of heartfelt wishes. Anyone may attend, and a monthly-rite goshuin and a commemorative gift are offered.

    Official website ↗
  • Umenoin Tenmangu ShrineNishi Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・shrine

    Monthly rite

    The shrine enshrines Lord Sugawara no Michizane. A monthly rite is held on the 25th of each month.

    Official website ↗

26th

The 26th is the ennichi of Aizen Myoo. A separate tradition of waiting for the twenty-sixth-night moon also survives. Few observances are unique to the date, but some temples unveil images of Aizen or perform goma rites.

Temples: Aizen ennichi and goma

  • Myokoji TempleOjiya City, Niigata Prefecture・Soto sect

    Aizen Myoo monthly festival

    On the 26th of each month, the temple holds a monthly rite and unveils its principal image, a seated statue of Aizen Myoo.

    Official website ↗
  • Mitsu-dera TempleChuo Ward, Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Aizen goma prayer

    On the 26th of each month, the temple performs a goma rite before Aizen Myoo, praying that worshippers may find good relationships.

    Official website ↗

27th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 27th is assigned to Rocana Buddha. Few observances are unique to the date, but some temples observe an ennichi of Aizen Myoo or hold a regular monthly service on the 27th.

Temples: Aizen ennichi and regular services

  • Kinpusenji TempleYoshino Town, Nara Prefecture・Kinpusen Shugen Honshu

    Aizen Myoo ennichi

    On the 27th of each month, Aizen Myoo's ennichi, the temple holds a prayer service in Aizendo Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Chinkokuji TempleMunakata City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Monthly ennichi Fudo goma

    At 2:00 p.m. on the 27th of each month, the temple performs a goma rite in the Okunoin Fudo Hall.

    Official website ↗
  • Shinshu Honbyo (Higashi Honganji Temple)Shimogyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shinshu Otani school

    Regular Dharma talks at Shinran Koryukan

    Regular Dharma talks are held at Shinran Koryukan at 10:00 a.m. on the 12th and 27th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Kiyoshikojin Seichoji TempleTakarazuka City, Hyogo Prefecture・Shingon Sanpo sect

    Monthly Sanbo festival

    The temple enshrines Sanbo Kojin, deity of fire and the hearth. The 27th and 28th of each month are observed as the monthly Sanbo festival and Kojin-san's ennichi. Stalls line the approach, and a service featuring a revolving recitation of the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra begins at 10:00 a.m. on the 28th.

    Official website ↗

28th

The 28th is the ennichi of Fudo Myoo, with the final observance of the year known as Osame-Fudo. Dainichi Nyorai is also assigned to the 28th. Fudo temples throughout Japan hold great goma rites and ennichi observances each month, making this one of the principal dates for goma practice.

Temples: Fudo ennichi and goma

  • Takahata Fudoson Kongoji TempleHino City, Tokyo・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo ennichi and Gozare market

    The 28th of each month is Fudo's ennichi. From 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., the approach becomes a pedestrian zone for the Gozare Market and a goma rite.

    Official website ↗
  • Toyonaka Fudoson (Toyonaka Fudoji Temple)Toyonaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo ennichi great goma

    At 10:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month, Fudo Myoo's ennichi, the temple solemnly performs a grand goma rite, during which a priest gives blessings with a shakujo staff.

    Official website ↗
  • Banshoji TempleNaka Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・Stand-alone

    Ennichi goma

    At 3:00 p.m. on the 28th of each month, the temple performs an ennichi goma rite for Migawari Fudo Myoo. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Kawagoe Betsuin HongyoinKawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudoson ennichi and flea market

    On the 28th of each month, Fudo's ennichi, the temple solemnly performs a goma rite and about 100 flea-market stalls open.

    Official website ↗
  • Hojuji TempleHigashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    On the 28th of each month, Fudo's ennichi, the temple solemnly performs goma rites at 7:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m., and 2:00 p.m. A Dharma talk follows each rite.

    Official website ↗
  • Fudoin FudokakuGifu City, Gifu Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma prayer service

    At 11:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month, the temple holds an ennichi goma prayer service for Namikiri Fudo Myoo.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Yokohama Annex (Nogeyama Fudoson)Nishi Ward, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Ennichi goma

    On the ennichi dates of the 1st, 15th, and 28th of each month, the temple solemnly performs Fudo Myoo goma rites and accepts prayer requests from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Senzoji TempleTaito Ward, Tokyo・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo goma

    At 11:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month, the temple performs a roughly 40-minute Fudo Myoo goma rite accompanied by drums. Admission is free.

    Official website ↗
  • Ninnaji TempleUkyo Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Fudo goma

    On the 28th of each month, the temple performs a Fudo goma rite in Daikokudo Hall, praying for the wishes written on goma sticks.

    Official website ↗
  • Bodaisan Shoryakuji TempleNara City, Nara Prefecture・Bodaiyama Shingon Sect

    Goma gathering

    On the 28th of each month, Fudo Myoo's ennichi, the temple's monks gather for the Goma-no-kai. It is not held in November.

    Official website ↗
  • Miyajima Misen DaishoinHatsukaichi City, Hiroshima Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Misen Fudo-e

    On the 28th of each month, Fudo Myoo's day of merit, the Misen Fudoe service is held on Mount Misen from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Kurume Branch Myoji TempleKurume City, Fukuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Ennichi great goma

    At 11:00 a.m. on the ennichi dates of the 1st, 15th, and 28th of each month, the temple solemnly performs a grand Fudo Myoo goma rite lasting about 50 minutes.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Makyuji TempleAsahikawa City, Hokkaido・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo Myoo goma service

    At 1:00 p.m. on the 28th of each month, the ennichi of its principal image Fudo Myoo, the temple solemnly performs a goma service. It is the first temple of the Hokkaido Thirty-Six Fudoson Sacred Sites and is known as Asahikawa Fudoson.

    Official website ↗
  • Kamidera Fudoson Shokeiin TempleMisato Town, Miyagi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudoson ennichi great goma prayer

    From 11:00 a.m. to noon on the 28th of each month, the temple solemnly performs the Fudoson Ennichi Grand Goma Prayer Rite. It is the 27th temple of the Tohoku Thirty-Six Fudoson Sacred Sites.

    Official website ↗
  • Akibayama Daihoin TempleIshinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma prayer

    At 10:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month, the ennichi of its principal image Fudo Myoo, the temple solemnly performs a goma prayer rite. This observance has continued since the earthquake.

    Official website ↗
  • JikoinAoba Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo goma

    The 28th of each month is kept as Fudo Myoo's ennichi, and a Fudo goma is performed at the altar before the principal image, with goma sticks offered into the fire to pray for wishes to be fulfilled.

    Official website ↗
  • Mitaki Fudoson Kinzoji TempleFunabashi City, Chiba Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Fudo goma prayer

    The temple is affectionately known as Otaki Fudoson. It solemnly performs a goma prayer rite at 11:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Myoo-in TempleKamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Fudo goma service

    Located in Junisho, Kamakura, the temple holds a goma service at 1:00 p.m. on the 28th of each month. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Mt. Sunao Hashiba-dera Temple Fudo-in TempleTaito Ward, Tokyo・Tendai sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    The temple is known as Hashiba Fudoson. It observes an ennichi on the 28th of each month and performs a goma rite at 2:00 p.m. in January, May, and September, and at 10:00 a.m. in all other months.

    Official website ↗
  • Takinotani Eihoji TempleKikugawa City, Shizuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    From 11:00 a.m. to noon on the 28th of each month, the temple performs an ennichi goma rite for Fudo Myoo. Visitors may enter the main hall freely.

    Official website ↗
  • Koganzan Chorakuji TempleHamana Ward, Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo goma

    Located in Kiga, Hosoe, the temple keeps the 28th of each month as the ennichi of Fudo Myoo and performs a Fudo goma with prayers.

    Official website ↗
  • Mt. Oshukusa Dainichi-in Temple Toen-ji TempleOshino Village, Yamanashi Prefecture・Tendai sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    The 28th of each month is observed as Fudo Myoo's ennichi, when the temple performs a goma rite and offers prayers.

    Official website ↗
  • Kurikara Fudoji TempleTsubata Town, Ishikawa Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo ennichi goma and Dharma talk

    This special head temple stands at Kurikara Pass. The 1st, first Sunday, and 28th of each month are ennichi dates, when the doors before the principal image, Fudo Myoo, are opened. A Dharma talk is held in the mountaintop main hall at 11:00 a.m. on the 28th.

    Official website ↗
  • Yukayama Rendaiji TempleKurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo Myoo goma offering

    The 28th of each month is observed as Fudo Myoo's ennichi, with a goma service beginning at 11:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Shingozan Ichinomiyaji TempleTakamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Omuro school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    This is temple 83 of the Shikoku Eighty-Eight Temple Pilgrimage. At 10:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month, Fudo's ennichi, the temple performs a goma rite. A Dharma talk and settai hospitality follow the service.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Fudoji TempleOkagaki Town, Fukuoka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma practice

    The first and third Sundays and the 28th of each month are observed as ennichi dates. Goma rites begin at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Tanso Fudoson Myoji TempleHita City, Oita Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo Myoo goma prayer

    The 28th of each month is Fudo Myoo's ennichi, when the temple holds a goma prayer rite at 10:00 a.m. Anyone may attend.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Sapporo Betsuin Shineiji TempleChuo Ward, Sapporo, Hokkaido・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    This is the Sapporo branch temple of Daihonzan Naritasan Shinshoji. On the 28th of each month, Fudo Myoo's ennichi, the temple performs its regular goma rites in the morning and afternoon. On this day, worshippers may approach the goma altar to pay their respects.

    Official website ↗
  • Naritasan Hakodate Annex Hakodateji TempleHakodate City, Hokkaido・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo ennichi goma

    This is the 28th temple of the Hokkaido Thirty-Six Fudoson Sacred Sites. The 1st, 15th, and 28th of each month are ennichi dates. On the 28th, the temple performs a morning goma rite at 7:00 a.m. and an evening goma rite at 2:00 p.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Mitakiyama Fudoin TempleAoba Ward, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudoson ennichi goma

    Located in Sendai's central shopping district, this temple is known for blessing prayers and for enshrining Sendai Shiro, a deity of good fortune. On the 28th of each month, Fudoson's ennichi, the temple solemnly performs a goma rite before the principal image.

    Official website ↗
  • Kiganji Temple Mikamo FudosonTochigi City, Tochigi Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo ennichi goma

    This Fudoson is known for goma rites praying for prosperity in business, protection from misfortune, and good fortune. On the 28th of each month, Fudo Myoo's ennichi, religious practice begins at 10:00 a.m. and the goma rite at 11:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Yamakawa Fudoson Daieiji TempleYuki City, Ibaraki Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    The temple is formally called Myoozan Fudoin Daieiji, and its principal image, a seated Fudo Myoo, is said to have been carved by Kobo Daishi. The 28th of each month is its ennichi, when a goma service is held and stalls line the street before the gate.

    Official website ↗
  • Ugyutamayama Kannonji TempleTsushima City, Aichi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Tachikiri Fudoson goma prayer

    The temple has long been preserved as the jinguji temple of Tsushima Shrine. Its principal image is Tachikiri Fudoson, revered for severing harmful ties. A goma prayer rite is held at 10:00 a.m. on the 28th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Fumonji TempleToyohashi City, Aichi Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    A famous autumn-foliage site enshrining Fudo Myoo and Yakuyoke Kannon. On the 28th of each month, Fudo Myoo's ennichi, goma prayers are performed from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m.

    Official website ↗
  • Koyasan Jimyoin TempleTakano Town, Wakayama Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo goma

    A temple lodging and special head temple on Mount Koya, whose principal image is Fudo Myoo. Goma is performed on the 13th and 28th of each month.

    Official website ↗
  • Zennozan Fudoson Hakuryuji TempleAkaiwa City, Okayama Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo goma

    The main image is Fudo Myoo. Fudo goma is performed at 11 a.m. on the 28th of every month, and anyone is welcome to visit.

    Official website ↗
  • Head temple Zentsuji GomadoZentsuji City, Kagawa Prefecture・Shingon sect Zentsuji school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    The goma hall in the grounds has Fudo Myoo as its principal image and is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property. On the 28th of each month, Fudo-sama's ennichi, goma prayers are offered in the goma hall.

    Official website ↗
  • New Naritasan Kakushoji TempleSaga City, Saga Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Fudo ennichi goma

    The principal image is Fudo Myoo. On the 28th of every month, on Fudo's ennichi, the temple holds an ennichi goma rite from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m..

    Official website ↗
  • Daishozan Fudoji TempleToyonaka City, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect Daigo school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma prayer

    The principal image is Fudo Myoo. On the 8th and 28th of each month from 2:00 p.m., an ennichi goma is performed in the goma hall, and on the 28th a special goshuin is also given.

  • Naritasan Manpuku-in TempleNaka Ward, Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi great goma

    The Naritasan temple in Sakae, Nagoya, enshrining a jo-roku seated Fudo Myoo. Its ennichi falls on the 1st and 28th of each month, and on the 28th a great goma is held at 7:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.

  • Seisosan Shoyuji TempleNose Town, Osaka Prefecture・Shingon sect

    Fudo Myoo goma prayer service

    On the 28th of each month, a goma prayer service is held before the Black Fudo Myoo in the goma hall.

  • Arafunefudo (Enmanji Temple)Saku City, Nagano Prefecture・Shingon sect Chizan school

    Fudo Myoo ennichi goma

    An old temple known for its wisteria, enshrining Arafune Fudo. The 28th of each month is kept as Fudo Myoo's ennichi, with a goma offering and prayers for the fulfillment of wishes.

  • Jizozan Kongoji TempleTakasago City, Hyogo Prefecture・Koyasan Shingon Buddhism

    Fudo Myoo ennichi

    Temple 79 of the Harima Shikoku Pilgrimage, enshrining Fudo Myoo. The 28th of each month is kept as Fudo Myoo's ennichi.

29th

In the Thirty Buddhas of the Month, the 29th is assigned to Yakuo Bodhisattva. Few temples or shrines hold a regular monthly service on the 29th.

30th

The 30th is the ennichi of Shakyamuni Buddha and concludes the cycle of the Thirty Buddhas of the Month. As misoka, the final day of the month, it is observed at some temples with memorial services in ossuaries and related rites for the deceased.

Temples: End-of-month memorial services

  • Daihonzan Hasedera TempleSakurai City, Nara Prefecture・Shingon sect Toyoyama school

    Memorial service at the ossuary

    On the 30th of each month, or the 28th in February, the temple holds a memorial service in the ossuary where divided ashes and memorial tablets are interred.

    Official website ↗

Further Reading

Articles on Byodoji's principal image and history.

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