UVa Library Etext Center: Japanese Text Initiative

行事【ぎょうじ】 gyōji Observances

重陽【ちょうよう】 chōyō （ちょうやう）, Chrysanthemum Festival [literally "repeated sun"; approximately mid October] (late autumn)

重九【ちょうきゅう】 chōkyū Chrysanthemum Festival [literally "repeated nines", referring to the traditional date, the 9th day of the 9th lunar month]
菊の節句【きくのせっく】 kiku no sekku Chrysanthemum Festival [literal]

This festival is celebrated on the 9th day of the ninth lunar month and is one of the five sekku, or "seasonal festivals" (see the entry for 雛【ひな】 hina, (ceremonial) doll(s), in Spring for a list of the five festivals). It is called "Repeated Nines" or "Repeated Sun" because the number nine, associated with the sun in Chinese astrology, is repeated in the lunar calendar date. The topic of many classical Chinese poems, this was an important annual observance in ancient China, observed by going to the top of a mountain and drinking rice wine infused with the petals of chrysanthemum flowers, thought to ward off evil and promote longevity. Imported to Japan, it was established as a rite of the imperial court, celebrated by the composition of poetry and song and a banquet at which participants drank Chrysanthemum saké. In recent times, the festival is no longer widely observed in Japan.

草の戸や日暮てくれし菊の酒

芭蕉

kusa no to ya higurete kureshi kiku no sake

at the grass door . . .
dusk comes with a gift
of chrysanthemum saké

Bashō

[The "grass door" is synecdoche for a thatch-roofed cottage, humble circumstances in contrast to the old court rite of drinking chrysanthemum-flavored wine. This saké was brought by one of Bashō's disciples, Otokuni (乙州).]

重陽の山里にして不二立てり

水原秋櫻子

chōyō no yamazato ni shite fuji tateri

Repeated Sun
at a mountain village:
Fuji stands peerless

Mizuhara Shūōshi

重陽や椀の蒔絵のことごとし

長谷川かな女

chōyō ya wan no makie no kotogotoshi

Chrysanthemum Festival . . .
the lacquerware of the cups
a bit much

Hasegawa Kanajo

重陽の干して貧しき山の幸

高田秋仁

chōyō no hoshite mazushiki yama no sachi

Chrysanthemum Festival's
dried up and impoverished
mountain blessing

Takada Shūjin

籾蔵の戸が開いてゐる重九かな

宮岡計次

momigura no to ga aite iru chōku kana

the seed-rice
storehouse door is open
this Double Nine

Miyaoka Keiji

重陽の雨が叩けり真葛原

有働亨

chōyō no ame ga tatakeri makuzuhara

"Double-Sun"
rain-battered:
the field of kudzu

Udō Tōru

As if in spite of the auspicious date, September 9th, a fierce rain falls on a field full of kudzu (arrowroot) vines, battering its leaves. Since the leaves of the kudzu are large and wide, the noise is audible, and the word "batters" appropriate. The scene suggests the decline of interest in the festival in recent years.

終戦記念日【しゅうせんきねんび】 shūsenkinenbi War's End Memorial Day [15 August (1945); commemorates the end of WWII] (early autumn)

終戦日【しゅうせんび】 shūsenbi War's End Day
敗戦忌【はいせんき】 haisenki defeat anniversary
敗戦日【はいせんび】 haisenbi defeat day

敬老の日【けいろうのひ】 keirō no hi （けいらうのひ）, Senior Citizens Day [15 September] (mid autumn)

老人の日【ろうじんのひ】 rōjin no hi Venerables Day
年寄の日【としよりのひ】 toshiyori no hi Day of the Elderly

赤い羽根【あかいはね】 akai hane Red Feather [Community Chest donar symbol] (late autumn)

愛の羽根【あいのはね】 ai no hane Auspicious Feather / Love Feather

七夕【たなばた】 tanabata Tanabata / Festival of the Weaver [literally "seventh evening", referring to the traditional date, the 7th day of the 7th lunar month; about mid August, but now celebrated 7 July some places, 7 August others] (early autumn)

七夕祭【たなばたまつり】 tanabata matsuri Tanabata Festival / Festival of the Weaver
星祭【ほしまつり】 hoshi matsuri Star Festival
星迎【ほしむかえ】 hoshimukae star greeting / greeting stars
星合【ほしあい】 hoshiai star meeting / meeting stars
星今宵【ほしこよい】 hoshi koyoi the stars this evening
七夕竹【たなばただけ】 tanabatadake Tanabata bamboo [from which a card with a poem or other inscription on it is hung]
七夕流し【たなばたながし】 tanabata nagashi Tanabata send-off [objects such as Tanabata inscriptions thrown into a river or sea at the end of the festival]

Tanabata may refer either to the seventh day of the seventh month by the lunar calendar, the traditional date of the Weaver Festival, or to the festival itself. In many parts of Japan the festival is now celebrated on 7 July by the Gregorian calendar, though because this is before the end of the early summer rainy season, the stars thought to represent the Oxherd and the Weaver of legend, Altair (牽牛星【けんきゅうせい】kenkyūsei) and Vega (織女星【しょくじょせい】 shokujosei), are often not visible on the night of 7 July. The festival has its origins in the ancient Chinese legend of the Oxherd and the Weaver, introduced into Japan centuries ago, and a native Japanese cult of the Weaving Maid (棚機つ女【たなばたつめ】Tanabatatsume). On the morning of the 7th day, dew collected from the leaves of taro plants is used to grind ink, and a wish or a poem is written on a strip of heavy, colored paper (短冊 tanzaku). This is then tied to a stalk of bamboo grass (笹竹 sasadake). According to one ancient legend, the prayer or poem was to be written on the leaf of a paper mulberry tree. After the festival, these are taken down and thrown into a river or the sea in a "Tanabata send-off".

七夕や秋を定むる夜のはじめ

芭蕉

tanabata ya aki o sadamuru yo no hajime

Tanabata . . .
the beginning of nights when
autumn sets in

Bashō

七夕を流す海に祈りつつ

大野林火

tanabata o nagasu umi ni inori tsutsu

Tanabata poem card
cast into the ocean
with a prayer 

Ohno Rinka

七夕竹惜命の文字隠れなし

石田波郷

tanabatadake shakumyō no moji kakurenashi

Tanabata bamboo
words of a regrettable fate
unconcealed

Ishida Hakyō

天ざかる鄙に住みけり星祭

相馬遷子

amazakaru hina ni sumikeri hoshimatsuri

the sky distant
living out in the country--
Star Festival

Sōma Senshi

一夜経て七夕笹の古りにけり

岸風三楼

ichiya hete tanabatazasa no furinikeri

the night passes
Tanabata bamboo grass
has turned old

Kishi Fūsanrō

七夕や髪ぬれしまま人に逢ふ

橋本多佳子

tanabata ya kami nureshi mama hito ni au

Tanabata . . .
with my hair all wet
I meet people

Hashimoto Takako

On this night of the stars' meeting, she also meets people. However, she meets them with wet hair. Enthusiastically, she gives the vivid impression of a woman. This exactly describes a view of Tanabata.

盂蘭盆【うらぼん】 urabon Bon Festival / Lantern Festival / Festival of the Dead [13-16 August] (early autumn)

盂蘭盆会【うらぼんえ】 urabon'e Bon Festival / Lantern Festival / Festival of the Dead
盆【ぼん】 bon Bon Festival / Obon

Generally, this Buddhist (memorial) service for the ancestral spirits is held from July thirteenth to the fifteenth. Urban regions observe this according to the new calendar, while rural regions tend to go by the old calendar or observe it a month later, from August thirteenth to fifteenth. The specific way the actual mass is held varies according to each region, but usually involves an alter called "bon shelf" (盆棚 [ぼんだな], bondana) or "soul shelf"（魂棚[たまだな], tamadana）. This is the sacred shelf which celebrates the ancestral spirit (精霊棚　[しょうりょうだな]) and is covered by spreading out a sheaf of water oats. On this shelf, one places an offering of vegetables, fruits, and a bon flower decoration; one also places a figurine of a cow made of eggplant or a horse carved of cucumber. In the evening of the thirteenth, there is a Lantern Festival bonfire, (迎火[むかえび], mukaebi), the sacred fire to welcome departed souls home; in the evening of the fifteenth or on the sixteenth, there is another bonfire for speeding (escorting) the spirits of the dead (送火[おくりび], okuribi). Buddhist monks are invited to family homes for sutra-chanting during this bon period, performing a memorial service to the ancestral spirits. The service ends on the sixteenth, when the offerings made for bon are floated down the river. Terms and phrases to note: bondana (盆棚 [ぼんだな]), tamadana (魂棚　[たまだな]), shōryōdana (精霊棚　[しょうりょうだな], "spirits' shelf"), and nasu no gyūba (茄子の牛馬　[なすのぎゅうば], cattle figurines made with eggplants), uri no gyūba (瓜の牛馬 [うりのぎゅうば], cattle figurines made with cucumbers).

御仏はさびしき盆とおぼすらん

一茶

mihotoke wa sabishiki bon to obosuran

the revered spirit,
what a cheerless bon
it must think

Issa

焼跡に盆の衣きて子はあそべ

石田波郷

yakeato ni bon no kinu kite ko wa asobe

at the fire-ravaged ruin
wearing clothes for bon
a child plays

Ishida Hakyō

島人の盆の晴着は簡単着

清崎敏郎

shimabito no bon no haregi wa kantangi

for these islanders
the dress-up for bon
is a simple one

Kiyosaki Toshio

山川にながれてはやき盆供かな

飯田蛇笏

yamagawa ni nagarete hayaki bongu kana

flowing along
the mountains and the rivers—and how quickly—
the bon offerings

Iida Dakotsu

The streams that run through the mountains are often rapids. The bon offerings are carried away too swiftly on these streams, leaving very little time for people to meditate on the ancestors. The poet is struck by the speed with which the offerings disappear along the stream, and feels at once touched and overwhelmed.

墓参【はかまいり】 hakamairi （はかまゐり）, grave visit / visiting graves [in preparation for Bon Festival] (early autumn)

墓参【ぼさん】 bosan grave visit
展墓【てんぼ】 tenbo visiting grave(s) [includes notion of cleaning up]
掃苔【そうたい】 sōtai brushing moss [off the grave or gravestone]
墓洗う【はかあらう】 haka arau (to) wash/clean the grave/gravestone

流燈【りゅうとう】 ryūtō （りうとう）, floating lantern [in connection with Bon Festival] (early autumn)

燈籠流し【とうろうながし】 tōrō nagashi floating lanterns send-off
精霊流し【しょうりょうながし】 shōryō nagashi spirits send-off

踊【おどり】 odori (Bon Festival) dance/dancing [note that while this is the common word for dancing, in haikai it always means dancing at Obon unless otherwise specified] (early autumn)

盆踊【ぼんおどり】 bon odori Bon Festival dance/dancing
踊子【おどりこ】 odoriko dancing woman / dancing girl
踊の輪【おどりのわ】 odori no wa ring/circle of dancers
踊唄【おどりうた】 odori uta dancing song
踊櫓【おどりやぐら】 odori yagura (Bon Festival) dance stand [elevated platform with musicians and singers around which people dance in a ring]

秋祭【あきまつり】 aki matsuri autumn festival (all autumn)

村祭【むらまつり】 mura matsuri village festival
在祭【ざいまつり】 zaimatsuri local festival

子規忌【しきき】 shiki-ki Shiki's (Death) Anniversary / Shiki's Memorial Day [19 September, in honor of 正岡子規【まさおか・しき】 Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902), modern haiku and tanka poet, essayist, critic] (early autumn)

糸瓜忌【へちまき】 hechima-ki Sponge-gourd Anniversary [after the 糸瓜【へちま】 hechima sponge-gourd plant, used as medicine against phlegm for his tuberculosis, featured in many of his haiku]
獺祭忌【だっさいき】 dassai-ki Otter Festival Anniversary [after Shiki's important newspaper column 「獺祭書屋俳話【だっさいしょおくはいわ】」 dassai sho-oku haiwa, "Haiku Talks from the Otter's Den"]