murmurOnja Onja Fire Festival (Onisube Ritual)
Karatsu City · Karatsu Tenmangu Shrine
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Saga Prefecture Tourism Federation (Asobo Saga) · Last checked: Oct 10, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Wed, Jan 7, 2026 （Ended） 18:00–21:30
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually early January
- How the date is set
- Changes from year to year
- Venue
- Karatsu Tenmangu Shrine
- City
- Karatsu City, Saga
About
Onja Onja is a New Year fire ritual to drive off demons at Karatsu Tenmangu Shrine, carried on since the Edo period. A huge torch some 10 meters tall and 1 meter wide is shouldered around the neighborhood, and then a tower piled with New Year decorations in the shrine grounds is set alight and burned down, with prayers for good health and a safe household in the coming year. The flames leaping into the night sky are dramatic, and crowds gather to wish for a happy year. The name is said to be a local twist on "oni ja, oni ja" ("it's a demon!"). Watching is free. The shrine has no parking, so walk the roughly 10 minutes from JR Karatsu Station.
Sources
- OfficialSaga Prefecture Tourism Federation (Asobo Saga) www.asobo-saga.jp
Last checked: Oct 10, 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.