Tenrikyo services are conducted as structured acts of gratitude and alignment with God the Parent, Tenri-O-no-Mikoto, with the aim of cultivating the Joyous Life. At the sacred center in Tenri City and at local churches, morning and evening services are held that involve the recitation or chanting of the Mikagura-uta, often accompanied by bowing toward the central sacred focus and the offering of food and drink such as rice, vegetables, fish, and sake. These daily observances are marked by a calm, reverent posture, with participants gathering before the altar to express thanks, seek protection, and pray for the well-being of others. The atmosphere is liturgical yet oriented toward joy, emphasizing purification of the heart and the steady nurturing of gratitude.

At the heart of Tenrikyo ritual life stands the Kagura Service, a carefully ordered performance that combines sacred dance, song, and music. Ten dancers, each representing one of the ten aspects of God the Parent’s providence, perform choreographed movements around the central sacred point, their gestures symbolizing the story of creation and the ongoing work of salvation. The Mikagura-uta provides the textual and melodic core, sung in rhythm with prescribed instruments such as drums, gongs, and wooden clappers. This service is understood as a concentrated prayer for world salvation and the realization of the Joyous Life, and its form is mirrored, in various degrees, in services at local churches.

Music and prayer permeate all Tenrikyo rituals, not as ornament but as an essential mode of worship. The sacred songs function as a shared script of faith, often performed in a call-and-response pattern between officiants and congregation, while hand and body movements give visible shape to inner intention. Offerings placed before the altar, together with collective prayers, articulate a relationship of dependence on and gratitude toward God the Parent. In this way, the ritual space becomes a training ground for the heart, where participants repeatedly practice the attitudes they seek to embody in daily life.

Beyond the formal services, Tenrikyo ritual life extends into practices such as the Sazuke and hinokishin. The Sazuke, a divinely granted form of healing prayer conferred through authorized channels, is used to pray for the health of others and thus expresses concern for the wider community. Hinokishin, voluntary and selfless service, functions as a lived ritual: acts of labor and assistance are offered as concrete expressions of gratitude and joy. Together, these practices show that Tenrikyo worship is not confined to the sanctuary but is meant to flow outward into compassionate action and everyday conduct.