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Kaminarimon gate of Senso-ji with its huge red paper lantern and crowds passing through
Photo: Daderot, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Tokyo · temple

Kaminarimon Gate

雷門

Asakusa's symbol at the entrance to Sensoji, famous for its giant red lantern. Guarded by the wind and thunder gods, it marks the start of the temple approach.

Front view of the red Kaminarimon gate with its dark tiled roof in Asakusa, Tokyo
Photo: Kakidai, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Street in front of Kaminarimon with the Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center and Tokyo Skytree
Photo: 江戸村のとくぞう (Edomura no Tokuzo), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The front entrance to Sensoji

Kaminarimon (Thunder Gate) is the somon (the outermost main gate) of Sensoji, a temple in Asakusa, Tokyo. Its official name is Furaijinmon, the Gate of the Wind and Thunder Gods. Nobody knows exactly when it was first built, but tradition says it began when Taira no Kinmasa rebuilt Sensoji's buildings in 942.

Since then the gate has burned down in fire after fire. After it was destroyed in a great fire in 1865, the temple went without a gate for a long time, until in 1960 it was rebuilt for the first time in about 95 years, thanks to a donation from Matsushita Konosuke, the founder of Matsushita Electric (today's Panasonic).

The wind and thunder gods and the giant lantern

On either side of the front of the gate stand statues of Fujin, the god who rules the wind, and Raijin, the god who rules thunder. In the great fire of 1865 only their heads survived, and their bodies were remade in the Meiji period. On the back of the gate are statues of Tenryu and Kinryu, dragon gods who rule water.

The giant chochin (a lantern made of paper stretched over a bamboo frame) hanging in the centre of the gate is 3.9 m tall, 3.3 m wide and weighs about 700 kg. It is remade roughly every ten years, most recently replaced in 2020. The bottom of the lantern is decorated with a carved dragon.

From Kaminarimon to Sensoji

Once you pass through Kaminarimon, the approach to Sensoji's main hall begins. Tradition says Sensoji began in 628 when a statue of Kannon (the Buddhist goddess of mercy), caught in the net of two brothers fishing in the Sumida River, was enshrined there.

Opposite Kaminarimon is the Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center, which offers tourist information in Japanese, English, Chinese and Korean. From its 8th-floor observation terrace you can look out over Tokyo Skytree and the streets of Asakusa.

To get there, walk about 5 minutes from Asakusa Station on the Tokyo Metro Ginza Line, Toei Asakusa Line, Tobu Skytree Line or Tsukuba Express.

Tips

  • The main hall's opening hours change with the season (from October to March it opens later in the morning). If you also want to pray there, check the times on Sensoji's official website.
  • The giant lantern on Hozomon, Sensoji's other gate, was taken down in May 2026 to be replaced, and the new lantern is due to be unveiled on 25 October 2026.
  • At the Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center, directly opposite Kaminarimon, you can change foreign currency as well as get tourist information.

Sources

Updated 28 September 2026. Opening hours and prices change, so check the official site before you go.

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