Essential Japanese Seasonal Decorations - Spring
Seasonality: Mid Spring/ March
Japanese Name: Hina-ningyo/ Dairi-bina/ Byobu/ Temari/ Hina-matsuri/ Momo no Sekku
English Name: Hina-dolls/ Imperial Palace-dolls/ Gold Folding Screen/ Handball/ Doll’s Festival/ Peach Festival
Hina-ningyo (雛人形) is the name for Hina dolls. In this decoration, the two dolls are known as the imperial palace dolls (内裏雛), also known as dairi-bina. These are the Emperor (男雛 O-bina) holding a ritual baton (笏 shaku) and Empress (女雛 Me-bina) holding a fan. This simple display also contains the byobu (屏風), or golden folding screen, that traditionally accessorizes the topmost level of Hina Matsuri display.
Hina Matsuri (雛祭り), also known as Momo no Sekku (桃の節句), traces its origins to a Heian period custom called hina-nagashi (雛流し, lit. “doll floating”), in which straw hina dolls are set afloat on a boat and sent down a river to the sea, supposedly carrying away one’s troubles or bad spirits. The customary drink for the festival is shirozake, a sake made from fermented rice. A colored hina-arare, bite-sized crackers flavored with sugar or soy sauce depending on the region, and hishimochi, a diamond-shaped colored rice cake, are served. Chirashizushi (sushi rice flavored with sugar, vinegar, topped with raw fish and a variety of ingredients) is often eaten. A salt-based soup called ushiojiru containing clams still in the shell is also served. Clam shells in food are deemed the symbol of a united and peaceful couple, because a pair of clamshells fits perfectly, and no pair but the original pair can do so. Families generally start to display the dolls in February and take them down immediately after the festival. Superstition says that leaving the dolls past March 4 will result in a late marriage for the daughter.
Temari (手まり), also known as “hand balls,” were once a common children’s toy made from remnants of old kimono. It’s was common for mothers of the aristocracy and nobility to craft them for their children, hence it was seen as a sign of wealth and status. Mothers today still make them for their children because they layer papers with goodwill wishes for her child between the various layers of fabric and stitching. It’s said that a mother never reveals the wishes she placed into the temari.
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