Shichi-Go-San (Seven-Five-Three) Festival
Shichi-Go-San is a festival for children, which occurs on November 15th. This festival (though it's not a national holiday) is significant because odd numbers are considered lucky numbers in Japan. Girls of age three and seven and boys of age three and five are celebrated on Shichi-go-san. On November 15 or the closest weekend, the children visit a Shinto shrine dressed up in kimono to pray for the child's good health and growth. Long candies in bags that are decorated with turtles and cranes are given to the children. The candy, the crane, and the turtle, all symbolize longevity.
But as my Japanese friends tell me, most Japanese families are not very religious and therefore, instead of praying at Shinto shrines, they dress up their girls in kimono and take pictures (either at a shrine or in a photo studio). So, lacking both the proper kimono and Shinto faith, we skipped the shrine. But we were especially lucky to have an opportunity to take photos wearing kimono this weekend at a Yokosuka Cultural Exchange Festival. Don't remind me how far from "3" I am this year, I just couldn't resist playing dress-up with Sydney to celebrate her 3 years!
Shichi-Go-San is a festival for children, which occurs on November 15th. This festival (though it's not a national holiday) is significant because odd numbers are considered lucky numbers in Japan. Girls of age three and seven and boys of age three and five are celebrated on Shichi-go-san. On November 15 or the closest weekend, the children visit a Shinto shrine dressed up in kimono to pray for the child's good health and growth. Long candies in bags that are decorated with turtles and cranes are given to the children. The candy, the crane, and the turtle, all symbolize longevity.
But as my Japanese friends tell me, most Japanese families are not very religious and therefore, instead of praying at Shinto shrines, they dress up their girls in kimono and take pictures (either at a shrine or in a photo studio). So, lacking both the proper kimono and Shinto faith, we skipped the shrine. But we were especially lucky to have an opportunity to take photos wearing kimono this weekend at a Yokosuka Cultural Exchange Festival. Don't remind me how far from "3" I am this year, I just couldn't resist playing dress-up with Sydney to celebrate her 3 years!
2 comments:
I showed these pictures to Danielle. She nearly died from acute toxic cuteness. So, basically, you nearly killed my wife. What kind of people are you?
Actually, this photo is a little scandelous, I'm told. This is a kimono for a single woman. Yet, here I am alone with my child. See? You should've joined us, Brian!
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