The view from my room in Tokyo, loved it <3 (family's friend family's house~ :D)
I spend one amazing New Year here at Japan~ In Finland New Year is usually concentrated to the New Year Eve and then... well, that's pretty much it^^' But in Japan the most important part are the first days of the New Year. You'll go visit the shrines and temples to greet the New Year and wish it to be a successful one. Maybe wish that u will make through the final exams or good health, or maybe u wish good luck with your business~ There are many ways to these and I'm quite sure I don't even know all of them ^^' but here are some I found out this New Year :)
1. The New Years Eve (December 31st): The Japanese New Year is a family celebrated event so people will travel back to their families and celebrate it with relatives and food. Also japanese people buy all-new-tableware for this event (or they can also use the ones meant for banquets, but definitely not the normal "everyday-tableware"). The usual New Year -food is called お節料理 "osechi ryori" and each of the foods represents a certain meaning, for example health or fertility. It looks like a big lunch box and can cost A LOT!! O.o Other New Year foods can be different dishes made out of mochi. About (this year) 19.30 pm there is a show called NHK Kohyaku Utau Gassen - NHK紅白歌合戦 ("red-white-singing-competition", this year it was 64th) which is basically a singing contest between two groups: red is for women and white is for men. Only the most popular singers at the moment get to occur in the show, so it 's very important to an artist's career. It is one of the most popular television programs of the year! Even I knew some of them~ And I don't really listen a japanese songs..^^' But it was worth watching :)
At midnight Buddhist temples all over the Japan ring their bells a total of 108 times (除夜の鐘 "joyanokane") to symbolize the 108 human sins in Buddhist belief and to get rid of the 108 wordly desires regarding sense and feeling in every Japanese citizen.
Note: There is a custom of giving money (お年玉 "otoshidama") in a special envelopes to children at New Years holidays.
The New Years bell, 除夜の鐘 "joyanokane"
2. The First New Year's Day: The First Shrine/Temple visit is called 初詣 "hatsumoude". The people usually visit during the first days of the New Year (there are many people visiting and all of them can't possibly go on a same day so choose carefully~). We payed our visit already on the New Year's Eve when there were not SO many people (still many though^^') and only visited the other shrines and temples the first day to see the traditions and people :)
Our visit to (神田明神) Kanda Shrine, Chiyoda-ku (Shinto Shrine) on 31st of December.
People lining to the temple on The New Years Day.
Daruma (達磨) Good Luck Dolls
Ueno Park (上野公園)
The view from the park~
Bentendo (弁天堂) hall temple at Ueno park
The view from the Kiyomizu kannon-do (清水観音堂) temple to the Bentendo hall shrine's way.
The alley while we were walking around~
The Choanji Temple (for Seven Lucky Gods)
The Choanji Temple (for Seven Lucky Gods) (picture 2)
Nezu Shrine (根津神社), Bunkyo-ku
People waiting to get in at Nezu Shrine~ Also, on the right in the picture, there is a wooden trash box and a man collecting trash from it. The Trash box is for all the goods and chattels from the last year that people throw away to get the new ones for this year~ (After trowing them away the trash get burned).
The drum performance at Nezu Shrine. The girl-group was really good and had a lot of energy~ Recommend!! ^^
The New Years shrine/temple visit. There are A LOT of people going at New Year's, so around the temple area there are usually also food stalls and tables for people to eat~
3. New Years wishes and lucky charms:
The meaning to line for the temple (or to in front of the temple) is To "pay a visit" and wish for a good year to come. Basically that means u will line for the temple and when u get to the front row, u throw money to in front of the temple (there is usually an isolated area for the money) and then u clap three times and wish. Then u can bow and movie aside (either or the sides) so that the next ones can come forward.
NOTE: It's believed that the bigger the money u throw the
Daruma Good Luck Doll, the traditional one is red but for example mine is silver (like in the pic). It'l a little more modern, though the purpose and usage is the same~ Firstly u will paint the left eye of the Daruma doll when u have a (pure) wish to achieve something. U will place the Daruma doll in a prominent or valued place (for example an altar) and after u have achieved tour goal, u will paint the second eye which marks the success.
Good luck charms at the shrine~ U can buy one usually about 1000 yen and there is a lot to choose from. I bought a "normal one" for a little luck for everything^^
U can also buy:
- お守り "omamori" = a good luck charm, a small "bag" with string that u can keep with u all the time (this is what I have)
- 破魔矢 "hamaya" = an arrow which destroys evil spirits (u will pace it inside your house)
- 御神籤 "Omikuji" = are random fortunes written on strips of paper. These are usually received by making a small offering (generally a five-yen coin as it is considered good luck) and randomly choosing one stick from a wooden box. The fortunes are either blessing (for example: great blessing 大吉 "dai-kichi") or curse (for example: great curse 大凶 "dai-kyō") others can be for example: middle, small, future or half blessings/curses. The good point here is, that if u manage to get a bad fortune, u can always try again^^ If your fortune is good-one, u will then tie it to a tree or a fence. NOTE: The fortune can also specify in which area the blessing/curse will effect in your life.
- 絵馬 "ema" = a wooden tablet that u write your wish (or thanks if a wish came true). Usually it has a picture of a horse on the back, and then hang the tablet at the temple or shrine. People long ago believed that the gods rode horses, and so an ema is a way of asking the gods to come and help.
- Also there is bigger ones like 門松 "Kadomatsu" to be put in front of your house (a bamboo kind of ikebana-looking = middle one) or a business place 熊手 "Kumade", which is a bamboo rake (left one). (Every year u should buy a bigger one for a good fortune for your business or family~). The normal one, that people usually buy is however a しめ飾り "shimekazari" is a door (or a wall) decoration of twisted straw rope (right one). They can stand for different meanings, such as to keep out the evil spirits or to welcome the gods.
4. あけましておめでとうございます: Happy New Year! ("akemashite-omedetou-gozaimasu"). People tend to say this every time they meet a person the first time on the New Year. I didn't know this at first, so I must have been very rude to some people^^' I apologize~
5. NOTES: For New Year's japanese people want to clear themselves from the past year and so they will clean the whole house and even cars (like our Christmas-cleaning in Finland) so that u wont be able to see a dirty cars anywhere near New Year..^^' Also, don't forget to send a New Year's cards to your friends. They usually portray the Chinese zodiac animal of the coming year (this year a horse).
That was pretty much what I did in this New Year and am probably still gonna visit some shrines, cause I didn't have time to do all the good luck talismans and fortunes^^ That is the one thing I love about Japanese culture, 'cause I'm a fanatic amulet/talisman/fortune fan~ <3 Though these year there was no fireworks to see, but I still think it was one of the best New Years~
All the best,
Laura
PS. If there is something missing or totally wrong I'll be happy to fix the errors so please message me^^ Thanks~
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