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Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony
August 6 @ 8:00 am - 9:00 am
Free
The Peace Memorial Ceremony is held each year in memory of the victims of the atomic bomb which was dropped on Hiroshima at 8:15am on August 6, 1945. On this occasion, those who lived through the event as well as those who lost loved ones play a special part in the proceedings.
People of all ages from Hiroshima, throughout Japan and the around the world, as well as a number of Japanese and overseas dignitaries, gather in front of the cenotaph in the middle of Peace Memorial Park. The current mayor of Hiroshima makes an appeal for the abolition of nuclear weapons and the achievement of everlasting world peace. The ceremony is usually broadcast on television stations worldwide and is streamed live here (2024 link).
The seating area is opened at 06:30, but the official events begin at 08:00. At 08:15, the time the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, the Bell of Peace and sirens are sounded and a 1 minute of silence is (mostly) observed. Speeches, a peace declaration, the release of doves and the singing of the Hiroshima Peace Song follow. Everything is finished by just before 09:00 and a day of demonstrations by both protestors on the left and the right, as well as various anti-nuclear groups take over the streets for much of the rest of the day.
Outline of the ceremony 8am-8:50am
・Opening
・Submission of the names of Atomic Bomb victims who have been identified or died in the past year
・Address
・Dedication of flowers
・Minute of silence and ringing of the Peace Bell (8:15am)
・Peace Declaration from the Mayor of Hiroshima
・Release of doves
・Commitment to Peace (by children’s representatives)
・Official addresses (by Prime Minister of Japan and other visitors)
Hiroshima ・Peace Song (music by Minoru Yamamoto and words by Yoshio Shigezono)
・Closing
It is usually extremely hot at even 8am and those who arrive early should be careful to avoid heatstroke and are encouraged to avail themselves of the cold water and chilled towels available below the piloti of the Peace Memorial Museum.
The ceremony is usually live streamed in Japanese and English:
You are also welcome to watch the ceremony on screen at Social Book Cafe Hachidori-sha, after which there is sure to be some open and lively discussion. You can also buy breakfast there.
Peace Memorial Park Entry restrictions (2024 details)
Access to the Peace Park is allowed until 5am on August 6, and anyone in the park at that time will be required to leave. Admission will be allowed once again via designated entrances at which people may be subject to security checks and the ban on carrying of items connected to protest or political messaging (new this year) will be enforced.
Free access to the Peace Memorial Park will resume from 9am.
Lantern Floating Ceremony
In the evening, people return to the Peace Memorial Park for the annual lantern floating event during which around 10,000 lanterns are put into the water next to the A-bomb memorial. This ceremony is less formal, with are no long speeches, but is very powerful as the light from the dome shines down on the water lit by the many colorful lanterns floating downstream.