by Ryan Ohara, GVJCI Community Outreach and Social Media Intern
It's that time of year again! New Years is just around the corner and everyone is getting ready to celebrate with lots of food, fireworks, and confetti! All the worries of last year are left behind as the coming year brings hope of a better future. New Years is an important holiday all across the world, and every culture celebrates it differently.
Have you ever wondered how New Years is commemorated in Japan? Well it turns out it's just as big, or even bigger than it is here in the U.S.! In fact, Oshougatsu, which is New Years in Japanese, is one of the most importantly holidays in Japan, with an abundance of honored traditions backed up by centuries of Japanese history. Households are cleaned and meals are prepared as people leave behind the old and start anew. It is not uncommon for employees and businesses in Japan to take off 3 days or even a week for this momentous occasion! Read on to learn more about what makes these beginning days so special!
Have you ever wondered how New Years is commemorated in Japan? Well it turns out it's just as big, or even bigger than it is here in the U.S.! In fact, Oshougatsu, which is New Years in Japanese, is one of the most importantly holidays in Japan, with an abundance of honored traditions backed up by centuries of Japanese history. Households are cleaned and meals are prepared as people leave behind the old and start anew. It is not uncommon for employees and businesses in Japan to take off 3 days or even a week for this momentous occasion! Read on to learn more about what makes these beginning days so special!
GIFTS
| Similar to how we send Christmas postcards to family and friends in the States, people in Japan send New Years greeting cards called nengajo to relatives. Many of these cards feature designs ranging from illustrations of kadomatsu and Mount Fuji to Chinese Zodiac Symbols to even modern pop culture references like Pokemon and Hello Kitty! The practice of sending out postcards on New Years started way back in the late 19th century during the Meiji period, where the post office would help to deliver these cards instead of going through the trouble of having family members all meet in person. From then on, the post office became committed to sending out these postcards before the New Years celebration ends (usually before January 3rd), as long as people submit their postcards before Christmas. To help combat the rise of popularity in digital communication such as email, the post office implemented a lottery system where every nengajo is essentially it's own lottery ticket with numbers written directly on the card. If you have any Japanese friends or relatives, make sure to surprise them with a nice postcard. You never know if you could be the next winner! |  |
 | In addition to nengajo, families also give monetary gifts called otoshidama to their children on New Years. The money is packaged in a lavish envelope called a pochibukuro and contains anywhere from 100 to 10000 yen depending on the age of the recipient, with the last otoshidama received around age 20. Many children are ecstatic to save (or spend) these generous donations! |
FOOD
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| Having the right food is also very important for New Years, as many of these dishes are not only delicious but also culturally significant . New Years dishes are often prepared way ahead of time with non-perishable ingredients so that they can be enjoyed fully without having to cook on New Years day. The most popular of these traditions, osechi-ryori, is a staple in Japanese households for both it's presentation and it's historical significance. These meals are often prepared in elegant bento boxes called jubako and filled with various delicacies like kuro-mame (black beans) and kazunoko (Herring Roe). What's more, every dish in the jubako has it's own meaning, carrying wishes such as good health , prosperity, and fertility into the new year. |
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| Another important staple of New Years tradition is the preparation of toshikoshi soba , or year-crossing noodles. The noodles are traditionally made from buckwheat, a crop known to survive harsh weather conditions, and thus the noodles are believed to imbue both strength and resiliency when eaten on New Years Eve. The thin, long noodles are are also indicative of a long healthy life, as long as you make sure you finish eating them before midnight! |
DECORATIONS
 | While many of us are busy setting up flashing lights and inflatable snowmen for Christmas, many Japanese people decorate their houses with shrines and ornaments to welcome the old deities. One of these special decorations is the kadomatsu, a wonderful arrangement of pine and bamboo shoots adorned with plum flowers and flowering kale. Both the bamboo and the pine tree are symbolic of a long healthy life and are used to encourage the New Years Deity (Toshigami-sama) to come and bestow a bountiful harvest for the new year. It's often customary to place two kadomatsu in front of the house, with one on each side of the door. |
| Much like the kadomatsu, kagami-mochi is also used to welcome deities to Japanese households. This exquisite decoration consists of one mochi stacked on top of a larger mochi, topped off with a leaf and a daidai Japanese orange. Some kagami-mochi are further adorned with dried kelp and decorative paper. It's name translates to “mirror rice cake” and originates from it's resemblance to old-fashioned round copper mirrors from ancient Japan. The stacking of the mochi represents the passing from the current year to the New Year and the daidai orange is symbolic of the continuity of generations and familial bonds. Unlike the kadomatsu however, it is recommended to place kagami-mochi in several different parts of the house such as the kitchen, living room, and fireplace, so that many deities can be welcomed to the household. |  |
ACTIVITIES
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| Finally, there's plenty of things to do closely approaching the start of the New Year. One of the most important traditions that occurs an hour before New Years Day is the ringing of the bell in a Buddhist Temple. The bell is rung a total of 108 times, symbolizing the purification of the 108 earthly passions and desires from Buddhist mythology (also known as the Bonnou). The reverberations from these bells can be heard all across Japan as hundreds of temples chime in for the new year. Once these wordly desires are rid from the body with the last tick right before midnight, the new year can start anew without the burden of last years problems. It must be a great feeling to not have to worry about anything! |
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| A very common practice for Japanese people once the New Years celebration begins is to visit a Shinto shrine or Buddhist Temple. Known as hatsumode, hundreds of thousands of people travel to these shrines and temples to pray for the new year and purchase good luck charms (omamori) and written oracles (omikuji) that predict your future. Because of this, the lines for these visits are very, very long, so it's important to arrive early! |
Of course this is only a glimpse into the bountiful history that Japan has to offer through New Years traditions. Many traditions are region-specific, bringing in their own flavor of customs and practices that can't be seen anywhere else. The coming of the New Year is an important time of reflection all across the world, and looking past the problems and desires that chained us to this year allows us to look forward to a bright and prosperous future. What family traditions do you have planned this New Years Day?
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