murmurKamiari-sai at Izumo Taisha (Gathering of the Gods)
Izumo City · Izumo Taisha Shrine and Inasa Beach
Dates and details can change. Always check the official website before you go.
Izumo Taisha · Last checked: Oct 11, 2026
Dates
Dates confirmed with official sources
- 2026
- Nov 18–25, 2026 From the evening welcoming rite on Nov 18 to the farewell rite at 4 p.m. on Nov 25
- 2027
- Dates have not been announced yet. Please check the official website.
- Usual timing
- Usually mid November
- How the date is set
- Changes from year to year Held in the tenth month of the old lunar calendar, so the dates shift each year
- Venue
- Izumo Taisha Shrine and Inasa Beach
- City
- Izumo City, Shimane
About
During the tenth month of the old lunar calendar, the gods of Japan are believed to meet at Izumo Taisha to decide on the ties that bring people happiness, so while other regions call it the month without gods, in Izumo it is the month with gods. The first evening begins at Inasa Beach, about a kilometer west of the shrine, with a rite to welcome them; the dragon-serpent deity guides the gods to the shrine, where a reception ceremony takes place in the worship hall. Over the following days the main sanctuary hosts Kamiari-sai rites and matchmaking ceremonies, and evening kagura prayers are offered in the Kaguraden. On the final evening the Karasade-sai in the worship hall sends the gods off as a priest calls out "O-tachi!" Anyone can attend the beach rite and walk with the procession to the shrine.
Sources
- OfficialIzumo Taisha izumooyashiro.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.