Japanese New Year Essay -- Japan History Holidays Essays

Japanese New Year Introduction: In Japan one of the most celebrated festivals is New Years. The Japanese New Year, or Oshogatsu (‚ ¨Ã‚ ³Ã…’Å ½), is given more preparation than any other festival. There are many traditions and activities that happen at this time. Oshogatsu is a time to visit temples, forget the troubles of the past year, and wish for good fortune in the new. Many festivals around this time also reflect the values and ideals of New Years. History: During the time of the Empress Suiko (593-628), Japan was influenced greatly by the religion and beliefs of China. In A.D. 604 Japan officially adopted the Chinese calendar. gThe new calendar was a lunar- solar one that has its months based on the lunar cycle. Casal writes gThe month begins when the sun enters the sign of the Fishes: the first day of the year, therefore falls on a day between January 20th and February 19th, and this is much nearer to spring (2). This system was in effect until the introduction of the Gregorian calendar in 1872. This is important because the seasons fall in line better with the lunar calendar than the modern one. In rural areas, many farmers still apply the Chinese calendar to their trade. Japanese people believed that the New Year started when the plants began to sprout life again, a new beginning. This happens throughout most of Japan in mid Jan. in line with the lunar calendar. In todayfs society Oshogatsu always falls on the same day (Jan. 1st), there are other festivals, which fall into the lunar calendar that have the same values of purification and new beginnings. Another influence from China at this time was Buddhism, which had been praised by Prince Shotoku Taishi, and became the official religion in 621.... ...nt from, and happier than, we do on ordinary days.h(Casal 1) Bibliography Festivals.com. 28 Nov. 2003 Seattle, Washington, http://www.festivals.com/search/display_event.aspx?eid=mYJmQbyD5jQ%3d&srid=3&page=1&bycountry=1&RID=jp&PROV= http://www.festivals.com/search/display_event.aspx?eid=lvluK1qWwM8%3d&srid=7&page=1&bycountry=1&RID=jp&PROV= (7) Japan Cultural Network Homepage. 28 Nov. 2003 http://www.hevanet.com/miyumi/december.htm http://www.hevanet.com/miyumi/january.htm http://www.hevanet.com/miyumi/february.htm Japan-Guide.com 2 Dec. 2003 Casal, U. A. The Five Sacred Festivals of Ancient Japan. Ruttland, Vermont &Tokyo Japan: Charles E. Tuttle Company Inc. 1967 Bauer, Helen & Carlquist, Sherwin. Japanese Festivals Doubleday & Company Inc. Garden City, New York, 1965 gHadaka Mairih Akita sakigake (Newspaper) 20 Jan. 2003 (1, 26)