Tango no sekku

Overview

Tango no Sekku is a Japanese annual event held each year on May 5, an event praying for the healthy growth and success in life of boys. Counted as one of the Five Seasonal Festivals (gosekku), it is now widely beloved as the national holiday Children's Day. Various customs are handed down, such as displaying armor, helmets, and May dolls, raising carp streamers (koinobori) in the garden, soaking in a shobu-yu (iris bath), and eating kashiwa-mochi (rice cakes wrapped in oak leaves) and chimaki (rice dumplings). Originally a Chinese-derived event for warding off evil spirits at the turn of the season, it developed in Japan, by way of warrior society, into an event celebrating the growth of boys. The carp streamers swimming in the beautiful early-summer sky of fresh greenery can still be seen throughout the country today as a seasonal feature symbolizing May in Japan.

History and Origins

The origin of Tango no Sekku dates back to ancient China. The tan of Tango means beginning, and go refers to the horse of the twelve zodiac signs. That is, Tango originally meant the first horse day of the month, but eventually, because the sound of go and the sound of five (go) were interchangeable, it came to refer to May 5. In ancient China, the fifth month was considered a month of much illness and calamity, and at this time of seasonal change, there was a custom of warding off evil spirits and praying for good health using strongly scented iris (shobu) and mugwort (yomogi). People warded off misfortune and prayed for health by inserting iris under the eaves and drinking sake steeped with iris.

This Chinese custom was transmitted to Japan and incorporated as an annual event of the imperial court. At first it was an evil-warding event using iris and kusudama (scented balls), but as time passed and warrior society rose to prominence, Tango no Sekku greatly changed its character. Because shobu (iris) is a homophone of shobu (esteeming the martial) and shobu (contest), this festival came to be valued among warrior families, and eventually developed into an event celebrating the birth of boys and praying for their healthy growth, martial fortune, and success.

Among warrior families, the custom of displaying armor and helmets at Tango no Sekku spread. Armor and helmets were originally military equipment for protecting the body on the battlefield, and from this came to carry the wish to protect the child's body from calamity and illness. This custom spread from warrior families to the common people and connects to the present custom of displaying May dolls. Also, in the Edo period, the custom of raising carp streamers was born among townspeople. After the Chinese tale of the Dragon Gate (toryumon), that is, the legend of a carp that becomes a dragon after climbing a rapid current, people came to raise streamers shaped like carp, praying for their children's success in life.

Highlights

Tango no Sekku has various lucky charms and customs, each carrying the meaning of praying for a child's growth. First, representative are the May dolls (armor displays and helmet displays). Armor and helmets are displayed as symbols of protecting the child's body from calamity, entrusted with the wish that the child grow up brave and splendid. Warrior dolls and dolls shaped like Kintaro and Momotaro are also displayed, carrying the wish that the child grow strong and sturdy.

Coloring the outdoors are the carp streamers. The sight of the black magoi (true carp), the red higoi (scarlet carp), and the blue and green child carp swimming in the sky catching the early-summer wind is a scene representative of Tango no Sekku. After the tale of the Dragon Gate, it carries the parents' wish that the child overcome any difficulty and grow up splendidly. In recent years, koinobori festivals, in which many carp streamers are strung across rivers, are held in various places, gaining popularity as a seasonal feature of early summer.

And indispensable is the shobu-yu. On May 5, there is a custom of soaking in a bath with iris leaves floating in it. The strong scent of iris has long been believed to have the power to ward off evil spirits and remove misfortune. By entering the iris bath, one prays for the year's health. As for food, kashiwa-mochi is eaten chiefly in the Kanto region, and chimaki chiefly in the Kansai region. Because the oak (kashiwa) leaf does not fall until new buds emerge, it is considered a lucky charm for an unbroken family line (prosperity of descendants), and chimaki derives from an ancient Chinese tale. Through these customs, Tango no Sekku is when families celebrate a child's growth.

Event Information and Access

Tango no Sekku is held each year on May 5. This day is designated the national holiday Children's Day and is also a day of Golden Week. Children's Day was established in 1948 as a day to respect the personality of children, to seek the happiness of children, and to give thanks to mothers. The traditional event as Tango no Sekku and the national holiday as Children's Day overlap, and it is now widely established as a day for families to celebrate a child's growth.

Tango no Sekku is an annual event celebrated in homes throughout the country and is not held at a specific venue. In each home, people display May dolls, raise carp streamers, soak in the iris bath, and celebrate by eating kashiwa-mochi and chimaki. On the other hand, as community events, koinobori festivals raising large numbers of carp streamers over rivers and plazas are held in various places. These are also popular as early-summer tourist events, and there are famous carp-streamer spots throughout the country, such as in Gunma, Saitama, and Kochi Prefectures. The sight of several hundred to more than a thousand carp streamers swimming in the sky is spectacular, and many spectators visit. When visiting such events, it is best to confirm in advance the holding period and access through the tourism information of the host location.

Around the Area

As Tango no Sekku is an annual event common throughout the country, one can touch its customs throughout Japan, not limited to a specific region. Visiting an area where large-scale carp-streamer events are held, one can encounter the overwhelming sight of countless carp streamers filling the early-summer blue sky. For example, events in which wires are strung across both banks of a river to raise large numbers of carp streamers are held in various places, including Gunma and Kochi Prefectures, and combined with the natural scenery of each land, they create impressive landscapes.

Also, in areas where long-established doll shops handling May dolls and carp streamers gather, one can touch the beauty of festival decorations as traditional crafts. The Iwatsuki district of Saitama City in Saitama Prefecture and the area around Asakusabashi in Tokyo are known as doll towns, where one can see elaborate May dolls made by craftsmen's handiwork. Furthermore, after the iris, in May, Japanese iris reaches its peak in gardens and botanical gardens in various places. The season of Tango no Sekku is a time of beautiful fresh greenery, comfortable for spending time outdoors. Through this traditional event praying for a child's growth, one can touch the changing of Japan's four seasons and the culture of valuing family bonds.

Related Information

Details on Tango no Sekku can be found in materials on various annual events and in tourism information for regional carp-streamer events. This event is one of the Five Seasonal Festivals held on May 5, a traditional Japanese annual event praying for the healthy growth and success in life of boys. Originally a Chinese-derived event for warding off evil spirits with iris and the like at the turn of the season, it developed in Japan, by way of warrior society, into an event displaying armor, helmets, and May dolls and raising carp streamers to celebrate the growth of boys. It is now widely beloved as the national holiday Children's Day and is handed down in homes throughout the country, together with the customs of soaking in the iris bath and eating kashiwa-mochi and chimaki. Tracing the meaning carried by each custom—that iris is a homophone of esteeming the martial and of contest, that carp streamers derive from the tale of the Dragon Gate—the depth of parents' wishes for their children, nurtured by this event over a long history, comes into view.

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