Hello once again! I’m already looking forward to the summer (what is it with me always thinking about the next season?). So, I’ve decided to tell y’all about the Tanabata Festival that takes place in Japan on July 7th. The story goes something like this:
In heaven, the princess Orihime was a weaver who made the cloth for the people of heaven to wear and was the daughter of the emperor Tentei. One day she met the herdsman named Kengyuu and they fell in love. At first everyone was pleased as their happiness was a joy to see. However, they began to spend so much time together that they began to neglect their work. Eventually, the people had no cloth to make clothes and the cows began to get sick. The people protested to Tentei and he decreed that the two must be separated. Orihime wept for many days till the emperor allowed the lovers to meet one night every year. Happy once again Orihime began to weave the most beautiful cloth again. So on the one night a rear Orihime and Kengyuu get in boats and meet each other halfway in the river. If you look in the night sky you’ll find Orihime on the east and Kengyuu shining brightly on the west side of the Milky Way.
Note: depending on the version of the story, the lovers sometimes cross a flock of magpies who form a bridge.
To celebrate the Japanese people put little bamboo trees in their garden and they hang papers with wishes written on it. Usually the bamboo tree is put out by grandparents or the people of Honshu (that’s the main island of Japan). People in Hokkaido (the northernmost island part of Japan) actually celebrate this festival sometime in August.
Here are some pictures to look at :)
Sources:
(313 words)
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