“Tanabata” ceremony
My favorite ceremonial day is July 7.This is “Tanabata” day. In my hometown, Sendai, the Tanabata ceremony is the biggest event. In this ceremony, many big ornaments are hung on bamboos. ?On Tanabata day, we can see Vega and Altair in the sky. Ancient people watched them and made a fairy tale. This is Tanabata tale. “Many years ago, a cowman who took care of cows very hard lived on the riverside. His name is Hikoboshi. And on the opposite riverside, a woman who made beautiful clothes lived. Her name is Orihime. They always worked very hard, but they were lonely. God pitied them, so he married Orihime to Hikoboshi. They became happy, but they became lazy. They talked together all day long. God got angry. He separated them, and said that, “Only once in a year, you can meet.” After that, this meeting day was called Tanabata.” On this story, Vega is regarded as Orihime and Altair is regarded as Hikoboshi. There are the stories of Tanabata in Korea and China, too. But those are little different from Japanese Tanabata tale. In Tanabata, people decorate bamboos. It is said that if we write our wishes on paper and hanging on the bamboo, our wishes come true.
Hiroaki
Last updated 6-Dec-2001