murmurGoryo Shrine Festival and Menkake Gyoretsu (Masked Procession)
Kamakura City · Goryo Shrine and the Sakanoshita neighborhood
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Kamakura City Tourist Association · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Fri, Sep 18, 2026 （Ended） Masked procession from about 14:30 to 15:30
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually mid September
- How the date is set
- Every year on September 18 The masked procession is cancelled in rain
- Venue
- Goryo Shrine and the Sakanoshita neighborhood
- City
- Kamakura City, Kanagawa
About
Goryo Shrine in Kamakura's Sakanoshita neighborhood holds its annual festival on the death anniversary of its deity, the warrior Kamakura Gongoro Kagemasa. The highlight is the Menkake Gyoretsu, a masked procession designated an Intangible Cultural Property of Kanagawa Prefecture. Led by Sarutahiko in a tengu mask and a lion head, 10 masked figures walk through the streets, among them an old man, a demon, a long-nosed goblin, a crow tengu, a fire-blower, the god Fukurokuju and a heavily pregnant Okame. Okame's clowning with the midwife fanning her always draws laughs. At the shrine, Kamakura kagura is performed, with bamboo leaves used to spray boiling water as a prayer for good crops, and the mikoshi tours the area around Hoshinoi-dori. The masks are normally stored in the shrine's treasure house.
Sources
- OfficialKamakura City Tourist Association www.trip-kamakura.com
- OfficialKanagawa Prefecture Tourist Association www.kanagawa-kankou.or.jp
Last checked: Oct 11, 2026. Event information is based on official announcements, but changes may not always be reflected here. Please check each official website for accurate details.
Other events this month
On the day, see what locals are murmuring on the murmur map
murmur is an app that shows short, anonymous posts on a map, right where they were written. On festival day, open the map around the venue and see what people nearby are saying.