Japan History and Culture

Hatsuyume (First Dream, 初夢)

Hatsuyume is the Japanese word for the first dream had in the New Year.

Hatsuyume, literally hatsu means first, yume means dream in Japanese,the night of  December 31 was often passed without sleeping, thus the hatsuyume was often the dream seen the night of January 1. This explains why January 2 (the day after the night of the “first dream”) is gives the name to the second day of the year in the traditional Japanese calendar.

Traditionally, the contents of the dream would foretell the luck of the dreamer in the ensuing year. There is an old saying, Mt. Fuji (Ichi-fuji, 一富士), a hawk (ni-taka, 二鷹) or an eggplant (san-nasubi, 三茄子or nasu, 成す), it indicates the three best things to have in your first dream. If you dream of three things, you will have good fortune during the year. This belief has been in place since the early Edo period but there are various theories regarding the origins as to why this particular combination was considered to be auspicious. One theory suggests that this combination is lucky because Mount Fuji is Japan’s highest mountain, a hawk is a clever and strong bird, and the word for eggplant (nasu or nasubi 茄子) has the same sound as the word “nasu 成す” which means achieving something great.