murmurShimekake Shinji (Laughing Ritual) at Hiraoka Shrine
Higashiosaka City · Hiraoka Shrine, Izumoi-cho, Higashiosaka
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Hiraoka Shrine · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates not confirmed
- 2026
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually mid December
- How the date is set
- The 3rd Sunday of December Third Sunday of December from 2026 (previously December 23 every year)
- Venue
- Hiraoka Shrine, Izumoi-cho, Higashiosaka
- City
- Higashiosaka City, Osaka
About
Known to most people as the "Laughing Ritual," Hiraoka Shrine's year-end Shimenawa-kake Shinji is a folk cultural property of the city. Inspired by the myth of the Heavenly Rock Cave, a large crowd laughs together to chase off the year's misfortunes and welcome good luck, and the shrine encourages everyone to laugh about the year's ups and downs and "open the rock door of the heart." It begins at 10 a.m. For a long time it was held on December 23, but the shrine's current calendar lists it on the third Sunday of December. In 2025 a record of more than 3,500 people attended, food stalls lined the approach and an Ama-no-Iwato ritual followed in the evening.
Sources
- OfficialHiraoka Shrine www.hiraoka-jinja.org
- OfficialHiraoka Shrine www.hiraoka-jinja.org
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.