Japan History and Culture

Sacred straw festoon (Shimekazari, 玉飾り)

Shimekazari(標飾り)is one of New Year’s decorations, many house and companies   hang on the top of the house entrance or in the kitchen above the stove for block the invasion of bad luck or wards off evil spirits and welcome the gods (Shintoism God). Some even decorate the front of their cars with shimekazari after a car wash. These are made from sacred twisted straw rope hung with strips of white paper and pieces of straw ,shaped into one or more rings.

These consist of propitious decorations, most commonly an orange because orange (daidai is a small citrus)) sounds like “many generations”. It is a wish for fertility and lots of descendants, kelp (Konbu) sounds similar to the word, yorokobu (to be happy), a lobster, ferns with white-backed leaves, folding fan and attached to them. It has a modest and simple one. The lettering says daikichi, which means best luck, and that little cat is a manekineko. It is holding a golden coin in one paw and beckoning with the other. It is beckoning for more coins. each one of those decorations is significant, symbol of a prayer for longevity, academic success, prosperity and so on.

Omikuji (御御籤,おみくじ)
The omikuji, literally mean “sacred lottery or crowned lottery” are random fortunes written on strips of paper from a container or box (Nowadays, these are often coin-slot machines or red vending machines,自動販売機) found at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples all over Japan

Fortunes were originally lots written by hand one by one from container or box, but they can now be purchased from a red vending machine. The omikuji  falls out of a small hole, scrolled up, when the piece of paper is unfolded, paper reveals the fortune written on strips of paper ,one’s fortune is listed as one of several categories: Great blessing (daikichi,大吉) , very lucky (chūkichi,中吉), lucky or Blessing( kichi,吉), somewhat lucky or Small blessing (shōkichi,小吉), barely lucky (suekichi,末吉) , Half-blessing (半吉), Near-small-blessing (末小吉), Curse (凶), Small curse (小凶), Half-curse (半凶), Near-curse (末凶), Great curse (大凶).The fortune may also include predictions different subjects about love, lost articles, study, family,money, travel, childbirth, and other matters, in other words, predictions for all needs.

Another one, you usually have to shake a box waiting for a numbered wooden stick (there’s a number written) to come down from a little hole. You have to take a piece of paper from the bow with the same number. After reading it, if the fortune tells is bad luck you should to make the paper is folded into a stripe tied around the branch of a tree, or pillars or in a special place where the shrine indicates, so the predicted bad luck won’t follow you. But if the fortune brings a message of good luck you can take it with you or put it on your wallet.

The Japanese often go to consult the omikuji before a significant event (voyage, marriage, etc) and in particular the New Year’s Day.

The opening of New Year’s rice cakes (Kagami biraki,鏡開き)

Kagami Biraki also known as the “Rice Cutting Ceremony”, literally “Mirror opening “or” Breaking of the Mochi.” means “to break the image of ourselves and our actions of the previous year. Many martial arts dojos hold such ceremonies to mark the beginning of the New Year. It traditionally celebrated on the January 11 (odd numbers are associated with being good luck in Japan).It refers to the opening of a Kagami mochi was offered to the Gods. Kagami biraki not cut with a knife, and instead the mochi(a round cake made of rice) was broken with one’s hands , wooden hammer or a wooden Taru (sake barrel) and to the opening of a cask of Sake at a party, wedding banquets, sporting events, starting a new company, ceremony, etc. People bake mochi into smaller pieces are roasted and put in zenzai or shiruko (sweet soup of boiled beans) or zoni (vegetable and meat soup) or eat it with salt or soy sauce.

Golden Dolphins ( shachihoko,鯱)

The shachihoko is a symbol of Nagoya. “shachihoko”, it refers to the mystical animal, it is a kind of tiger fish, an animal with the head of a tiger and the body of a carp or dolphins. In Japanese mythology, it was believed that this animal could cause the rain to fall, and as such, temples and castles were often shibi adorned with in this shape, in order to protect them from fire. You can see a pair of shachihoko on the top of the roof of Nagoya castle.They was put there mainly for the purpose to show the power of the lord of the
castle.

Health and Sports Day  , Undokai or taiiku no hi

Health and Sports Day or Sports Day is a national holiday in Japan held annually on the second Monday of October. It was established to commemorate the opening of the 1964 Summer Olympics  Games being held in Tokyo (October 10-24). It has been a public holiday since 1966. Until 1999 the holiday was on October 10, but beginning in 2000 it has been moved to the second Monday of the month. It’s a day to promote physical and mental health of the people through the enjoyment of sports and one of the best opportunities in Japan to see children and their families up close.

This day annual events staged by many elementary schools in which elementary children participate in competitive, often with the aim of winning prizes. Usually their parents, grandparents and many people from the neighbourhoods go along to watch and enjoy a community experience.

Many sports events and fun games are held on this day. In this sports day typically consist of a range of physical events ranging from more traditional track-and-field events such as the 100 metres , 200m running, 4 x 100 metres relay match, rope pulling (tsunahiki), and a lot of recreation games competing two or three groups. as the tug of war and the mock cavalry battle (kibasen???,) and a lot of recreation games competing two or three groups,the reversible red and white caps which allow pupils to play for either side. As the autumn weather is particularly conducive to sport, a number of other national and regional contests are held at this time. The winning team is decided based on the efforts of the team as a whole. Individuals are not specifically identified.

Lunch is a traditional handmade bento (lunchbox) and the children eat with their relatives on a picnic blanket.