How do Japan and South Korea parade in kimonos on Tanabata, make wishes, offer pancakes, kowtow and pray
Original title: Oriental Valentine's day or traditional Qiqiao day? See how Japan and South Korea celebrate Tanabata
'tanabata tonight to see Bixiao, Petunia weaver girl crossing the river bridge; Every family looks at the autumn moon and wears tens of thousands of red silk. " On the annual Tanabata Festival, cowherd and Weaver Girl meet at magpie bridge in the sky, and the world ushers in 'Oriental Valentine's Day'.
However, this festival originated from China still retains the most authentic custom in Japan and South Korea - girls wear needles on the moon and beg for dexterity.
Therefore, Tanabata Festival, also known as Qiqiao Festival. In ancient times, 'Qiqiao' was mostly connected with praying for a happy marriage, but now Japanese and Korean women are more and more 'Buddhist' & hellip& hellip;
What festival is Tanabata? Chinese Valentine's day, Japan and South Korea Qiqiao day
As early as in ancient Chinese folklore, the seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the day when girls make wishes to the weaver girl in the sky and beg for a pair of skillful hands. When night falls, they wear a needle in the courtyard to the bright moon. If the red line passes through the eye of the needle, it is called 'Deqiao'.
In the ancient concept, women are dexterous, just like men's literary talent. Being good at needlework is the best 'sign' for women in the waiting room. Waiting for her in the future may be a satisfactory husband and a happy marriage.
However, with the changes of the times, now China's Tanabata Festival is more like 'Valentine's Day'. People pray on this day and get more love and celebrate. It is also a rare gathering of lovers like Cowherd and weaver girl.
Our neighbors, Japan and South Korea, have retained the custom of "Qiqiao" on the Tanabata Festival from China.
How do Japan and South Korea parade in kimonos on Tanabata, make wishes, offer pancakes, kowtow and pray
In the Nara era, the Tanabata custom was introduced into Japan. Every year on Tanabata, the weaver girl in the sky should not only give Japanese girls' a pair of skillful hands', but also meet all kinds of wishes. People get together, write down their wishes and hang them on the bamboo tree on Tanabata. These wishes are diverse, such as good health, beautiful appearance, early marriage, family happiness and so on.
Even the Disneyland in Tokyo, Japan, does as the Romans do. It not only allows Mickey Mouse and Minnie to wear kimonos and dress up as Cowherd and Weaver Girl for the parade, but also sets up a 'wishing platform' in the park for tourists to write cards and pray. This is the only theme park in the world to celebrate Tanabata Festival.
Korean women will put melons, cucumbers and other fruits on the table on Tanabata, kowtow and pray for Vega to give them dexterous hands and make their weaving skills better and better.
How do Japan and South Korea parade in kimonos on Tanabata, make wishes, offer pancakes, kowtow and pray
In addition, every family will put clean well water on the altar on the Tanabata day, offer fresh fruits and pancakes, and pray for family peace.
N ways of Tanabata: the watch of two trees and the persistence of a group of people
More than 800 years ago, the male trees of a pair of "husband and wife ginkgo trees" on the Korean peninsula were uprooted by the flood and floated to the sound island alone. Local fishermen salvaged the tree and planted it on the island. The male and female trees kept watch from the two places. People on both sides understood the "pain of lovesickness between husband and wife trees" through the custom of joint sacrifice.
After the North-South split, the male tree of 'couple ginkgo tree' was in South Korea and the female tree was in North Korea. The practice of joint sacrifice between the two places was also interrupted. Fortunately, on the seventh day of last year, in the peaceful atmosphere of the Korean Peninsula, South Korea held the reunion ceremony of "husband and wife ginkgo tree", so as to "reunite" them by hanging huge pictures of female trees next to male trees.
Kim Jong Jin, director of the Korean cultural heritage agency, said at the time: "the couple ginkgo tree, like separated families, has experienced a long period of separation. We plan to promote the plan of jointly holding sacrifices through North South cooperation. "
In fact, there are many ways for Japanese and Korean people to welcome Tanabata. Not only will businesses launch romantic and fashionable 'Valentine's Day' activities, but all localities will also give special significance to Tanabata in combination with their own characteristics.
After Japan abolished the lunar calendar, the Tanabata Festival became July 7 of the Gregorian calendar every year. During this year's Tanabata Festival, many places in Kitakyushu held "summer Valentine's Day" activities, and issued "lover certificate" with on-site photos of lovers, which was very popular.
The certificate is written with the words' hereby certify that the two are happy lovers'. Many people come to prove their love, and some couples who have achieved good results come to 'report' their marriage.
Korean people like to 'find something to do' on the eve of Tanabata. Before Tanabata, houyanli village, Shuchuan County, South Korea, carried out village cleaning and weeding with the participation of all residents. This is a traditional activity that the village adheres to every year, and this year is no exception.
Japan and South Korea's' Buddhist 'marriage and love view: the childe goes north, and the girl doesn't want to get married
In Japan and South Korea, whether women follow the traditional Tanabata custom, beg for dexterity, or celebrate the fashionable 'Oriental Valentine's Day', there are fewer and fewer people who really want to get married with their lovers.
The legal age of marriage for Japanese men and women is 18, but a survey in previous years showed that the proportion of unmarried women aged 50 in Japanese women is about 14.1%, which is defined as the 'lifetime unmarried rate', which means that on average, one in seven women is unmarried for life.
How do Japan and South Korea parade in kimonos on Tanabata, make wishes, offer pancakes, kowtow and pray
Why are Japanese women so 'Buddhist' about marriage? This Japanese drama entitled "I can't get married, just don't want to" may provide the most intuitive answer.
In fact, many Japanese women believe that marriage means giving up their career for their family, because after marriage, they will be expected to withdraw from the labor market and assume the role of housewife. For many women, marriage, having children, raising children and supporting their parents are bound together. They want to enjoy the ease of single life more than carrying this heavy 'marriage burden'.
In Japan, women's single travel is becoming a fashion, 'traveling alone, without taking care of this and that, can really relax themselves'. Women's single travel also creates unlimited business opportunities for the tourism market. Some tourists joked that if you want to mix in the Japanese tourism market in the future, you must learn to 'please' women.
The statistical report on marriage and divorce in 2018 released by the Korean statistics office also shows that the number of registered marriages per 1000 people in the Korean population in 2018 was 5, the lowest since 1970. Another survey shows that the reason why many unmarried Korean women don't have heterosexual intercourse is "for a free and comfortable life."