New Year in Japanese style. Scenario KTD "New Year in Japan" History of New Year celebrations in Japan
MBOU "Secondary School No. 22" of the city of Kurgan
Teacher Lyashenko E.I.
Class hour : "New Year in Japan."
Quiet music is playing. Against the background of music, the presenters read poetry:
Japan is an interesting country
But she also celebrates the New Year.
Let the Christmas tree not be decorated like ours,
But everyone still celebrates the holiday.
Father Frost and Snow Maiden come out.
D.M.: Oh, I’m tired, granddaughter!
And so many children still need to be congratulated!
Snow Maiden: It’s okay, grandpa, sit down and relax,
But you know, there’s something I don’t understand - where are we going?
got it? How beautiful it is all around! What quaint houses!
What are these sounds?
The ringing of bells is heard. Girls in kimonos and boys come out.
Student: Hello! Omadeto gozaimasu! Omadeto gozaimasu!
We are glad to see you! Welcome! You have come from afar! Now we will tell you everything about our dear land of the rising sun - Japan.
Student:Can you hear the bells ringing"JOYA NO KANE." It is believed that a person who heard all 108 blows has been cleansed of the filth of the past year and is now completely clean. The sound of bells heralds the arrival of the New Year in Japan.
Student:According to ancient belief, each ringing “kills” one of the human vices. For example, greed, anger, stupidity, frivolity, indecision, envy. Then you need to throw a coin and clap your hands loudly to attract the attention of the deity and freeze for a few minutes in a prayer position with your palms folded in front of your chest and your eyes closed. Then be sure to go to bed.
Student:And with the first rays of the sun, be sure to go outside. Everyone should wish each other a happy new birthday."HATSUMODE." For the Japanese, New Year is a common birthday"HATSUMODE."
Student:In Japan, rake amulets are always given as gifts for the New Year.KUMADE . Every Japanese believes that it is necessary to have them in order to have something to rake in happiness for the New Year.They show such rakes.
Student:Or HAMAIMI - blunt arrows with white feathers that protect the house from troubles and evil forces.
Student:The house must haveKADOMATSU - greeting to the Deity of the New Year holiday. Usually made from pine, fern and tangerine branches. Evergreen pine is a symbol of longevity and fidelity, fern is a symbol of purity and fertility, tangerines are a symbol of well-being in the family.
The girls collect kadomatsu and tell the story.
Girls bring out treats: The following dishes must be present on the table:
Pupil:DOBA – long noodles, a symbol of longevity,
Pupil: MOTE - rice, a symbol of prosperity,
Pupil: THAI – carp fish, symbol of strength,
Pupil: O-SETI – beans, a symbol of health.
Students: The Japanese have a favorite food.
It’s always on the table for New Year’s!
Rice, noodles, beans and fish.
These dishes are necessary for them!
Pupil:We have our own Santa Claus. His name isSEGATSU-SAN , which translates as Mr. New Year.
Pupil:Round-faced, with a long artificial beard, wearing a red jacket and cap, belted with a black belt around his wide waist, 44 years old, isOfficial Santa Claus of Japan .
Pupil:He comes from the cold city of Sapporo, in the north of the Japanese islands, and he also playsmamba and is engaged bonsai .
Pupil:Japanese Santa is a very progressive Santa,SEGATSU-SAN There is a personal block designed for communication with children and their parents.
Student:In general, New Year (O-SEGATSU ) in Japan is the most beloved and most fun festival of the Japanese. This is one of the three main (SANDAISFCU ) holidays. Along with the Founding Day of the State and the Emperor's Birthday.
Student:A holiday when everyone sums up the results, evaluates the results and pays off debts.
Pupil:O-SEGATSU For the Japanese, it is not a family holiday, like for us, but a holiday of good deeds. They visit seriously ill people in hospitals, and also help the homeless with food and clothing.
Student:And, of course, what would a holiday be without dancing?
Girls dance.
At the end of the dance the following words are required:
AKEMASITE Omadeto gozaimasu! AKEMASITE Omadeto gozaimasu!
Happy New Year!
Japan! Japan!
Beautiful country!
It’s interesting how she celebrates the New Year?!
The Japanese are very kind people
We will always have respect for them!
Their mood is like the sun!
How do you see a Japanese person?
He always smiles and laughs.
No wonder this country
It's called the land of the rising sun!
AKEMASITE Omadeto gozaimasu! AKEMASITE Omadeto gozaimasu!
Happy New Year!
All children together with Father Frost and Snow Maiden:
We learned new traditions.
We showed you gifts and dance!
But the main thing still cannot be shown.
You just have to understand it with your heart!
We should all know the customs of countries and peoples,
May you and I live together in a beautiful world!
Children in different languages:
Happy New Year! Happy new year!
AKEMASITE Omadeto gozaimasu!
Literature:
* Grigorieva T.P. "Japanese artistic tradition"
* Iofan N.A. "Traditions of Japan"
* Konrad N.I. Art. "Japanese Theater"
* Sladkovsky M.I. "Japan"
* Tsvetov V. “The Fifteenth Stone of the Ryoanji Garden”
* Poems of my own composition
New Year in Japan is called O-shogatsu. This is the most beloved and vibrant holiday, and the New Year holidays, lasting from December 28 to January 4, are days of rest for absolutely everyone. During this time, almost all business life in the country stops. There were times when O-shogatsu was celebrated according to the lunar calendar, but since the end of the 19th century, the Japanese began to celebrate this holiday according to the generally accepted Gregorian calendar.
Japan is a country rich in diverse, interesting customs and traditions. This is very noticeable in New Year celebrations. They prepare for the holiday long before it arrives. Numerous New Year's fairs are held on the streets of Japanese cities, where everything is sold - from souvenirs and clothing to ritual items. For example, Hamaimi. These are blunt arrows with white feathers that protect the house from troubles and evil forces. Or Takarabune. This is the name of the boats with rice and other “treasures” on which the seven gods of luck sit. A very popular lucky charm is kumade (translated as “bear paw”). It resembles a rake made from bamboo. This little thing is supposed to “rakes in” happiness. With each purchase, store visitors are given a traditional figurine of an animal as a gift - a symbol of the coming year.
It is impossible not to talk about the traditional detail of decorating a Japanese home before the New Year, the so-called kadomatsu, which means “pine tree at the entrance.” Kadomatsu is a greeting to the New Year's Deity, usually made of pine, bamboo, rope woven from rice straw, decorated with fern branches, tangerines, or a bunch of seaweed and dried shrimp. Each of the details of this decoration is symbolic.
According to ancient tradition, the Japanese decorate the house for the New Year with bouquets of willow or bamboo branches with mochi hanging on them in the form of flowers, fish, and fruits. These decorations, called mochibana, are painted yellow, green or pink, attached in a prominent place or hung from the ceiling at the entrance, so that the New Year deity - Toshigami, “entering the house”, immediately begins his “duties”, namely , took care of the hospitable hosts in the coming year.
The arrival of the New Year at midnight from December 31 to January 1 has been announced for more than a millennium. 108 bells which are heard at midnight from Buddhist temples. According to the Buddhist religion, a person is burdened with six basic vices: greed, greed, anger, stupidity, frivolity and indecisiveness. Each vice has 18 shades. And every ring of the bell on New Year's Eve frees the Japanese from one of these misfortunes.
With the last blow, the Japanese go to bed, so that they can get up before dawn and greet the new year with the first rays of the sun. It is believed that it is at these moments that the seven gods of happiness sail to Japan on their magic ship.
It is also of great importance family New Year's dinner, which begins on the evening before the New Year. Dinner is quiet and orderly without noisy conversations or drinking songs. Nothing should distract you from thinking about the future.
The morning of January 1st begins for every resident of Japan with reading congratulations(nengadze) and scrupulously checking the correspondence of the list of sent postcards and the list of received ones. If there are inconsistencies, then the missing congratulations are sent immediately and delivered to the addressee in the coming days. In the afternoon, it is customary for the Japanese to visit people. By the way, according to custom, in this country it is not customary to come to visit without notifying the hosts in advance. However, it happens that a person simply leaves his business card on a tray specially placed for this purpose.
The Japanese give each other "oseibo"- traditional, simple gift sets. These could be jars of canned food, pieces of aromatic toilet soap. And of course, other things necessary in everyday life. According to historians, this tradition originated in the Middle Ages, when samurai at the end of December certainly exchanged offerings that strictly corresponded to their position in the feudal hierarchy. To this day, Japanese children believe that their dreams will come true if they put a drawing of a “dream” under their pillow on New Year’s Eve. You can offend a Japanese person if you give him flowers for New Year. It is believed that only members of the imperial family have the right to give flowers. A Japanese will not accept a flower from a mere mortal.
It is one of the favorite holidays in Japan. After all, the holidays, which last from December 28 to January 4, stop almost all business life in the country. On these days, employees of any field of activity have a rest. This holiday is also called in a special way: O-shogatsu. Since the end of the nineteenth century, it has been celebrated according to the generally accepted Gregorian calendar, and before that time the celebration took place according to the lunar calendar. Japan, rich in traditions and customs, celebrates the New Year beautifully, brightly and tasty.
Preparation for the holiday
One of the most beautiful and brightest events in Asia is the New Year in Japan. Customs and traditions carry symbolic meaning in every detail.
The Japanese begin to prepare long before the holiday itself. The most striking event on the eve of the New Year is the numerous fairs where you can buy everything: from the necessary holiday paraphernalia to famous oriental souvenirs.
For example, the world famous arrows with white feathers, which are called Hamaimi. According to ancient legends, they reliably protect the house from evil spirits and troubles. Another popular talisman is the kumade or “bear paw”; it looks like a bamboo rake and, according to the Japanese, brings happiness to the owner.
Takarabune - a boat with rice or some other “treasures”. The seven gods of luck sit on it, and it is also an important talisman.
The eyeless Daruma wish doll is a popular New Year's gift. Its owner must make his most cherished wish and draw one pupil; if the wish is fulfilled, then the other eye is drawn, but if not, the doll is burned a year later in the traditional New Year's bonfire.
When making any purchase at the fair, the generous Japanese give everyone a figurine of an animal, which is a symbol of the coming year.
Home decorations
New Year in Japan is distinguished by its traditions and customs. Instead of the usual Christmas tree with colorful balls, the homes of these people are decorated with the so-called kadomatsu, which means “pine tree at the entrance.” It is usually made from pine and bamboo, which are woven with rice straw rope. Kadomatsu is a traditional greeting to the Deity of the New Year festival. These products are decorated according to personal preferences, usually with fern branches, tangerines, bunches of seaweed or dried shrimp. Of course, every detail of the decoration carries a symbolic meaning.
The Japanese decorate their homes with bouquets of bamboo or willow branches, and hang mochi (dough products) in the form of flowers, fish or fruits on them. This decoration is called motibana, it is painted in yellow, green, and pink colors. Such products are an integral part of the traditional Japanese New Year, because, having seen this decoration, the deity of the holiday Tosigami begins his duties - taking care of the owners.
Bells chime
New Year in Japan comes with 108 bells ringing at midnight from Buddhist temples.
According to religion, a person has six vices: he can be greedy, greedy, evil, stupid, frivolous and indecisive. Each of them has eighteen shades. The sound of the bell frees the Japanese from one of these misfortunes.
The main thing in this ritual is that everyone can take part in such an important act. The bell is not rung by Buddhist priests, but by those lucky people who lined up early in the morning to make it in time. Each blow is carried out by groups of 8-12 people, so a thousand people have time to have a hand in the main festive action.
After the last blow, residents and visitors of Japan go to bed to wake up with the first rays of the sun and meet the first sunrise of the new year. It is generally accepted that it is at this time that the seven gods of happiness arrive on a ship.
Meeting the first sunrise of the year
This unchanging ritual has been observed by the Japanese for several centuries in a row. After the bells ring, older people go to bed until dawn, while young people and tourists continue the celebrations in various entertainment venues.
In these places, the New Year atmosphere is maintained thanks to many foreigners. The usual chaos of fun and a decorated Christmas tree are guaranteed to you. Celebrating the New Year in Japan can be turned into a completely familiar European vacation for yourself and your company.
Family dinner
How do large families celebrate New Year in Japan? The dinner that takes place the evening before is also of considerable importance in traditions. Since at this time each family member is busy thinking about the future, the feast takes place quietly and decorously. You will not find any noisy conversations, no loud songs, or long toasts at such a dinner.
New Year's celebrations in Japan for the indigenous people are quiet and not solemn. Most often, they use the winter holidays to restore strength and gain new ones before working days.
New Year's morning
The first day of a new life begins the same for everyone. On the morning of January 1st, all Japanese are busy reading New Year's greetings, which are called nengajo. They scrutinize the list of postcards sent and received. In case of the slightest discrepancy, a new card is immediately sent with congratulations and apologies for the delay.
Japan Post is one of the few services that operates during the New Year holidays. After all, postcards are purchased and sent in hundreds. The number of letters reaches 4 billion during the holidays. To rid people of scribbling, there are ready-made templates on sale, in which you just need to enter the name of a relative, colleague, acquaintance or boss.
In the afternoon it is customary to visit people. Usually such visits are made without warning.
How do young people celebrate New Year in Japan? In noisy groups, in restaurants and bars, they set off bright fireworks and exchange small gifts.
New Year gifts
The New Year in Japan, the traditions of which originated in the Middle Ages, also involves the exchange of simple “oseibo” gifts. Usually these are jars of canned food, cosmetics sets and essentials. This custom, according to historians, is directly related to the samurai and their offerings, which had to strictly correspond to their hierarchical position.
Japanese children also have their own traditions. On New Year's Eve, they put an exact drawing of their dream under their pillow, confident that it will come true.
It is not customary to give each other flowers on this holiday. It is believed that this right can only be used by bearers of the imperial family, who do not accept flowers from ordinary Japanese.
A mandatory pre-New Year marathon is the time of cleaning and recycling last year's souvenirs. The Japanese are convinced that the New Year should be celebrated in a new way, getting rid of junk and old things.
Program for children
Winter holidays are the favorite time of year for schoolchildren and students. How is it customary for children to celebrate New Year in Japan? For them, this holiday is shrouded in a beautiful and mysterious fairy tale.
It is at this time that Tokyo Disneyland organizes magnificent enchanting shows that will appeal not only to children, but will also captivate adults. Colorful performances, fireworks, and a variety of attractions will make the night unforgettable. Children will remember such an event for the rest of their lives. New Year in Japan can be full of Asian traditions, but you can also turn it into the usual European one - with champagne and chimes. It all depends on your personal preferences.
New Year in Japan: celebration traditions
It is believed that the best way to celebrate this holiday is to have a hearty dinner with your family, listen to the sound of bells, sleep, and then watch the first sunrise of the year. The main dish served is buckwheat pasta. Like everything associated with the New Year, this has a symbolic meaning - this is how the Japanese wish themselves a life as long as these noodles. In the following days, people eat food from special boxes. They are collected exclusively for the holidays and are sold with great excitement.
Like any other people, the Japanese hope for a calm, prosperous life, therefore they attach symbolic meaning to all traditions associated with the New Year and a new life. Everything: from gifts to food consumed at the festive table - is carefully selected and endowed with expectations and hopes for a happy future.
The way the New Year is celebrated in Japan - traditions, customs, stories - is extremely interesting and unique. If you find yourself on the streets of Tokyo at this time of year, you will forever remember the splendor and abundance of cultural and historical treasures of this people.
New Year is a special holiday that each of us wants to celebrate in a place that will set the tone for the whole coming year. Some choose a snow-covered fairytale of a ski resort, others a leisurely vacation on the shores of a turquoise beach or the vibrant festivities of a large metropolis. But there is a place in the world where in this holiday one can feel the real symbolism of the beginning of the countdown. Japan is not only the land of the rising sun, where the clock strikes midnight earlier than in other parts of the world, it is also the land of centuries-old traditions of celebrating the new year.
A great many Buddhist rites and Shinto customs that arose during the celebration of this holiday according to the lunar calendar have migrated to our times, when counting is carried out according to the Gregorian calendar.
Come to Japan a few days before the New Year and taste the New Year's mood of the Japanese preparing for the big holiday. Everything is carefully removed and cleaned, unnecessary things are thrown away and souvenirs and amulets of the outgoing year are scrapped. Temples and monasteries prepare especially carefully for the holiday, because it is here that thousands, or even millions of visitors, both Japanese and tourists, will flock on New Year's Eve. If you're lucky, you might even see monks climbing onto the Big Buddha in Nara and polishing it until it shines.
In large department stores there is a bustle - New Year's gifts for colleagues and business partners are carefully selected and packaged in several layers of "oseibo", New Year's cards "nengadze" are printed, which every acquaintance should receive and certainly before January 1st. Pre-New Year's bonenkai and white-collar parties will die down in offices and educational institutions, and students will leave major cities a day or two before the holiday to spend time with their families.
The period from December 31 to January 3 is the time to come to Tokyo, Yokohama or Osaka to see the metropolis taking a break from the everyday bustle and feel the “family” nature of the holiday. Everything is orderly, quiet, calm, without loud festivities and all-night explosions of firecrackers that accompany New Year's Eve in our country. There is also no custom here to accompany the New Year with sumptuous feasts; a set of several dishes, endowed with a certain symbolism, is prepared for the holiday. In the lacquered Juubako food boxes you will find long soba noodles, the so-called Toshikoshi soba, which symbolizes longevity, black beans as a symbol of health, dried sardines - a symbol of a rich harvest in the coming year, herring caviar - as a wish for a large number of children... and another one and a half a dozen other ingredients, neatly separated from each other by the sides of the box cells. All these products are well stored and are designed to relieve Japanese housewives of the burden of cooking for three New Year's days, when all they should do is relax, make wishes for the coming year and visit loved ones. Come try New Year's dishes and feel their “charge” for well-being in the coming year!
Around midnight on December 31st, go to a major temple such as Meiji Shrine in Tokyo to listen to the 108 tolls of the bell and be freed from 108 human sins that may have been committed this year. In Shinto shrines, too, there is nowhere for the apple to fall - the crowd slowly moves to a kind of altar to clap their hands and throw a coin for good luck. By the way, do not forget to return your old amulet and buy another one - with the symbols of the new year. During the holidays, almost all churches and monasteries are open, so you can see with your own eyes how obsolete symbols and amulets are burned. In the first days of the new year, a calm and peaceful atmosphere will reign here; it’s time to devote the first hours of the year to adjusting to a harmonious mood.
Only in the land of the rising sun, meeting the first dawn of the year is an unchanging ritual that every self-respecting Japanese observes. To do this, it is not necessary to stay awake all night; many simply set an alarm clock and get up to meet the sun, which begins a new countdown.
But if you like to “light up the night”, go to Roppongi Hills, fun parties in the entertainment venues of the complex are waiting for you. The atmosphere of a futuristic city, coupled with fun, which is set by foreigners in local bars and clubs, will help you spend part of New Year's Eve in the usual chaos of festive fun.
For tourists, January 1 is not only an opportunity to stroll through noticeably deserted streets and temples, but also a wonderful opportunity to soak in the Hakone hot springs while admiring the snow-covered peak of Mount Fuji. Onsens are a must-see for anyone who wants to experience Japan. The hot, mineral-rich onsen water is incredibly relaxing and leaves your skin feeling incredibly velvety. Two or three dives into the onsen and you will see no trace of fatigue from yesterday’s party in Roppongi!
January 2 is a special day, one of the few (January 2 and December 23) when the Imperial Palace in Tokyo will open its doors to visitors. Starting from 10 a.m. until 2:20 p.m., the emperor and members of his family will greet the people gathered in front of the palace, making brief appearances on the balcony. We would, of course, advise you to pay special attention to exploring the garden around the palace, because such an opportunity comes very rarely, even for Tokyo residents.
If you are celebrating the New Year in Tokyo with children, or even without them, Tokyo Disneyland should become a mandatory part of your New Year's program. After all, the New Year is a holiday when it’s so nice to feel like a child and not just believe in a fairy tale, but see it with your own eyes. Colorful performances and shows, fireworks, incredibly steep slides and other attractions to inject adrenaline - perhaps even a day will not seem enough... but there are still so many interesting things worth seeing in Japan.
Every little detail, decoration, and New Year ritual in Japan is done with meaning and taste. It’s so easy here to really feel the New Year, and not just celebrate it. Start the year right, and the best way to do this is to learn from the Japanese.
New Year in Japan - O-shogatsu - is one of the main holidays for residents of the Land of the Rising Sun, along with the Founding Day of the State and the Emperor's Birthday. Until 1873, the Japanese celebrated the New Year according to the Chinese lunar calendar, but with the beginning of the Meiji era they began to celebrate it according to the Gregorian calendar. Once upon a time, celebrations lasted throughout January. Now the official holiday lasts from December 28 to January 4.
In general, any holiday in Japan is subject to strictly defined rules and rituals. Nothing is done just like that.
Preparations begin in early December.
Holiday fairs and bazaars open. This is where you can buy basic gifts, souvenirs, amulets, other talismans and ritual items necessary to celebrate the New Year. Hamaimi are blunt arrows with white feathers that protect the house from troubles and evil forces.
Takarabune - boats with rice and other treasures, on which sit seven gods, symbolizing prosperity and happiness. Such boats, as well as pictures depicting the seven gods, are placed under the pillow on New Year's Eve to have a prophetic dream.
Daruma is a Buddhist deity, a doll similar to a tumbler made of wood or papier-mâché. Daruma initially has no eyes. One eye will be drawn on it by its owner when he makes a cherished wish. But not every daruma has a second eye. It is drawn only if a wish is fulfilled within a year. Then the doll will be given the most honorable place in the house. And, if the wish does not come true, then the doll will be burned along with other attributes of the New Year. And hopes will be placed on the next doll.
A must-have talisman for good luck is kumade (bear paw). It looks like a rake made from bamboo. It is believed that they are very convenient for “raking in” happiness.
Hagoita (shuttlecock rackets) add a special flavor to bazaars and fairs. On the back of the racket board are portraits of Kabuki theater actors or scenes from its performances. Many hagoita make up colorful panels, and therefore these fairs and markets are often called “hagoita-iti”. Such a racket is considered an expensive gift. For every purchase, a Japanese person will definitely receive a traditional figurine of an animal under whose sign the new year will pass.
One of the most obligatory rituals in anticipation of the New Year is cleaning the home (susu harai - cleaning from soot and soot). Literally every corner must be cleaned. A dirty, untidy home will not be visited by the Shinto Deity of the Year Tosigami, and then luck will bypass this house.
Then the home is decorated.
On both sides of the entrance to the house there are kadomatsu - “pine tree at the entrance”. This is a greeting to the deity of the New Year holiday, made up of bamboo trunks, pine branches, fern branches, tangerines and other decorations. All components of New Year's decorations symbolize something. Instead of Kodomatsu, you can find shimenawa - a rope made of rice straw, twisted in a special way, and decorated with tangerines and fern leaves. These compositions invite happiness, good luck and health into the house.
In their homes, instead of our traditional Christmas trees, the Japanese place willow or bamboo branches decorated with mochi balls, flowers and fruits. This - Motibana Christmas tree. Small balls made from glutinous rice are dyed in different colors and strung on twigs.
Mochibana are painted yellow, green or pink and installed in a prominent place or hanging from the ceiling at the entrance, so that the New Year's deity - Tosigami, "entering the house", immediately remembers his "duty" to take care of the hospitable hosts in the coming year. According to legend, at the end of the festivities, each family member had to eat as many koloboks of motibana as he or she turned that year, as this gives special powers.
Mochi is also used as decoration in Japanese homes. A pyramid of two flat cakes of different sizes, topped with a Japanese citrus daidai. This decoration is called "kagami-mochi".
On New Year's Eve, the Japanese not only decorate their homes, but also tidy themselves up: take a bath (furo) and put on a new festive kimono. Children under 12 years of age must celebrate the New Year in new, never worn clothes.
The most important pre-New Year ritual is sending out New Year's greeting cards (nengajo) with the image of the symbol of the coming year - one of the twelve eastern zodiac signs. This tradition is given such great importance that even in the elementary grades of school, children are taught to write postcards correctly.
Many Japanese still write their own text and put a calligraphic signature on a finished printed postcard, which indicates special respect for the addressee. But you can also buy a blank postcard to write and draw whatever your heart desires on it.
Postcards are sent in the thousands. After all, you need to congratulate literally all relatives, acquaintances and friends. Moreover, if you received a postcard from someone to whom you did not send it yourself, then you need to immediately correct the situation. It is advisable to send a response postcard before January 3rd. At the very least, before the 7th, but with an apology for being late. Those who have had someone die in the past year are exempt from sending postcards. They must notify everyone in advance that they do not wish to receive congratulations this year.
In the last days of the year, all debts must be paid. Otherwise they will move on to next year.
Holidays in Japan: main resorts and attractions
Countries like Japan cannot be visited or explored in one visit. Only you can catch the atmosphere and form a general impression. And a long, complex wish list for the next visit. Let's try to highlight the most popular and characteristic destinations for the country from the variety of resorts and cities.
For most Japanese, work comes first. And celebrating holidays with colleagues is also an unbreakable tradition. All Japanese companies hold bonenkai (old year oblivion parties) for employees. They celebrate right at work or rent a restaurant. This evening (the only time a year) status boundaries are erased. There will be no punishment for familiarity and disrespect towards superiors.
Gifts are usually given on New Year's Eve. Juniors give gifts to their superiors (seniors, teachers, relatives). Such gifts are called o-seibo. The cost of a gift to colleagues is clearly determined by rank. The gift can be ordered in advance in a special department of any store throughout December. It will be packaged and delivered on the appointed day. Usually - in the first week of January.
Another type of gift is called otoshidama (treasure of the year). These are colorful envelopes, decorated with a special bow, containing money. As a rule, fathers give such envelopes to their children. And in general, any older relatives are given to younger ones. Relatives of the older generation and people of the same position, as a rule, do not give each other anything.
For the evening meal (omisoka) On December 31st the whole family gathers. There are no random products on the table. Everything is just with meaning. Thin buckwheat noodles symbolize longevity and well-being of the entire family.
Cold New Year's food (o-seti) is laid out in a four-story lacquer box. All these exotic dishes may not be the most delicious, but they contain a deep meaning and a whole philosophical system, for each product symbolizes some good. Thus, juubako (eating various types of boiled fish, vegetables and eggs) contributes to human perfection, giving him calmness, vigor, and determination. Kazunoko – salted herring caviar in broth with soy sauce gives happiness in family life and many healthy children. Kuromame – sweetened boiled black soybeans for health and longevity, kagami-mochi – wealth. For joy - seaweed prepared in a special way, for success in business - roasted chestnuts. All New Year's dishes are so skillfully and beautifully arranged in combination with flowers and utensils that it is not for nothing that they say figuratively about the Japanese: they eat with their eyes, not with their mouths.
Before eating food, one is supposed to drink o-toso, a ceremonial drink. "Toso" means breaking evil spells and uplifting the human spirit. Sake for o-toso is prepared from an infusion of medicinal plants according to a Chinese recipe. Japan is obsessed with the ceremony of preparing the various components of o-sechi, mochi rice cakes and zoni soup.
Then the smartly dressed Japanese gather at the temples. First in Buddhist ones. Here they pray, thank the gods for all the good things in the past year and ring the bell to attract their attention in the coming year. Ringing the bell for the New Year is especially lucky. But the most important element of farewell is the most interesting New Year’s ritual of cleansing from all sins. The largest copper bell is struck 108 times with a heavy log suspended on chains, thus signaling the end of the old year and the beginning of a new one.
According to Buddhist beliefs, a person can have six vices: greed, anger, stupidity, frivolity, indecisiveness and greed; each of them, in turn, has 18 different shades. Thus, a person is burdened with 108 harmful passions. And every ring of the bell on New Year's Eve drives away one of these misfortunes.
In general, Japan celebrates the New Year with the cleansing ringing of bells coming from all the temples.
Having cleansed themselves, the Japanese go to Shinto shrines, where stacks of barrels of Japanese vodka - sake - are already waiting.
True, fun, dancing and shouting "Kampai!" (a toast meaning “let’s drink”, “to your health”) will come a little later. First, a new fire will be lit - okera mairi. The dried roots of okera (Japanese chrysanthemum) are used on December 31st to light sacred lanterns in temples. From the lanterns, the Japanese will light their straw ropes and carry the fire into their homes to light the first fire in the dwelling or a fire next to it. For happiness and health in the New Year.
According to another tradition, on New Year's Eve the Japanese go to bed early to celebrate the new year at dawn. At the first rays of the sun they clap their hands in front of them. This ritual is called "kashiwade".
Then everyone again goes to the temples, where they throw coins onto special white cloths and pray. After this, the Japanese buy wooden tablets on which they write appeals to the gods and omikuji - paper strips with fortune telling.
Returning home, the Japanese wash themselves with special “young” water. Again, for happiness and wealth, they will drink “happiness tea” with pickled plums and eat it all with ozoni stew made from beans, vegetables, mushrooms, fish, shrimp, chicken and... mochi!
Then they will go on a visit. Moreover, such visits are often purely symbolic. All you have to do is walk there and leave your “I was here” business cards on a special tray.
January 2 is dedicated to getting things started. The first competition of schoolchildren in calligraphy, the first tea ceremony, And... the Japanese make their first purchases at the first auction. Of course... for good luck!
And then another one or two weeks are devoted to festive events. Someone competes in knowledge of traditional Japanese poetry. Boys fly paper kites (tako-ge). Girls play shuttlecock (hanetsuki) with the same rackets (hagoita). In the northern regions of Japan, snow festivals (yuki motsuri) are held. The festival in Sapporo is especially famous, where fortresses, cities and historical figures are sculpted from snow.
Yes. What about “Santa Claus”? Of course, it also exists in Japan. His name is Segatsu-san (Mr. New Year). He is wearing a sky blue kimono. During the pre-New Year (golden) week, he goes to homes and offices and congratulates the Japanese on the upcoming New Year. But he doesn't give gifts. Therefore, in recent years, more and more little Japanese people give preference to Oji-san (actually Santa Claus), who appeared in Japan not so long ago, but... with gifts that he brings by sea.
The New Year holidays end with the farewell of the Toshigami Deity with a fire in which all decorations and decorations are burned. This symbolizes the expulsion of evil spirits and the bestowing of healing properties on people.