Meiji Shrine hosts tanka ceremony on 18 October

Meiji Shrine (Meiji Jingu) hosts the 155th Tanka Convention in Tokyo on 18 October 2026, as part of the shrine's autumn grand festival. The programme links a public poetry gathering with the main shrine and Meiji Shrine Hall in the Shibuya district.

Meiji Shrine's tanka ceremony marks the autumn grand festival

The day begins at 10am on 18 October 2026 with a poetry recitation ceremony at the main shrine. From 1pm, the tanka convention takes place at Meiji Shrine Hall, where the organisers will announce the winning poems, present awards and offer comments on the selected works.

The official notice says that attendance does not require a participation fee and that visitors receive a collection of poems. The programme is organised by the Meiji Shrine Poetry Association and the Meiji Memorial Comprehensive Poetry Society. Its link to the autumn grand festival gives the event a defined place in the shrine calendar rather than making it a general Tokyo poetry meeting. The official programme for 18 October names both venues and the scheduled activities.

The 1920 shrine frames the October poetry programme

The precinct was completed on 1 November 1920 after 100,000 trees were donated from across Japan and young people carried out voluntary work. The shrine is dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken, whose tombs are in Kyoto. The present complex follows extensive wartime destruction in 1945 and revival work completed in 1958, as described by the custodian in its account of the shrine's establishment.

That history gives the October programme a specific setting. The morning ceremony is held beside the main shrine buildings, while the afternoon meeting moves to Meiji Shrine Hall for the literary and award programme. The surrounding forest was planned as a self-regenerating woodland, so visitors approach the poetry event through a landscape created with the shrine itself rather than through a separate urban arts venue.

Visiting Meiji Shrine: what travellers from Western Europe should know

• The 155th Tanka Convention takes place on 18 October 2026, with the recitation ceremony at 10am at the main shrine and the convention from 1pm at Meiji Shrine Hall.
• The event is presented as an autumn grand festival programme. The official notice identifies the two venues and does not announce a closure or restricted access to the wider shrine precinct.
• The address is 1-1 Yoyogi Kamizono-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-8557, Japan. The grounds are close to Harajuku Station and sit between the Shibuya and Shinjuku areas.
• The approach runs through a large planted forest. The custodian describes the woodland as covering 70 hectares, with paths leading through the trees towards the shrine buildings.
• Japanese is the official language and the national currency is the yen.
• Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.

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Frequently asked questions about Meiji Shrine

When does the 155th Tanka Convention take place at Meiji Shrine?

It takes place on 18 October 2026. The recitation ceremony begins at 10am at the main shrine, followed by the convention at 1pm in Meiji Shrine Hall.

What is Meiji Shrine?

It is a Shinto shrine in Shibuya, Tokyo, dedicated to Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. Its precinct was completed on 1 November 1920.

Where is Meiji Shrine and how do you get there?

It is at 1-1 Yoyogi Kamizono-cho, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-8557, Japan. The forested grounds are close to Harajuku Station.