Yushima Tenmangū

In addition to national standardized testing, Japanese college admissions are marked by individual entrance exams for many schools. As such, hordes of senior high schoolers will descend upon a given college to take their exam. In hopes of aid in such ordeals, students also customarily visit Tenmangū shrines, dedicated to the patron kami (spirit) of learning, Tenjin. Tenjin was originally the exiled 9th-century scholar Sugawara no Michizane, deified after his death as it was believed he was causing misfortune for Kyoto.

The Tenmangū at Yushima in Tokyo is actually even older, dating back to 458 and originally dedicated to the god Ame-no-Tajikarao. It did not become a Tenmangū until 1355, and did not become particularly popular among scholars until the Edo period. The University of Tokyo (then called Imperial University) moved nearby in 1888, thereby solidifying the shrine’s academic importance.

The best time to see the shrine is action is of course whenever exams are being held, with students placing ema (votive tablets) asking for success. The shrine is also lively during its several yearly events, namely the Ume Matsuri (Plum Blossom Festival) in February, the Tenjin-sai in May, and the Kiku Matsuri (Chrysanthemum Festival) in November.