It's no coincidence that plum blossoms became connected to the enshrined goddess 'Konohanasakuya-hime' (木花咲耶姫), for 'konohana' (此の花) has long been used as an appellation for ume.

Just as at Tenman-gū shrines, ume are considered to be sacred symbols.

Offerings of ume trees were made throughout the centuries.

The scholar Motoori Norinaga (本居宣長 1730-1801) included this poem with his gift...

may a plum be planted,
nay, may a thousand
or eight thousand be planted
so that seen from afar
they appear as a sacred shrine fence.

It is the goddess of childbirth that we have to thank for the many plum trees growing in the grounds of Umenomiya Taisha.

The word for 'giving birth' (umu 産む) and 'plum' (ume 梅) sound similar, and as ume are some of the first trees to bloom after the winter they have come to symbolise new life.

Botamochi (牡丹餅) feature in a lovely little proverb (ことわざ 'kotowaza').

'Tana kara botamochi' (棚からぼたもち), lit. 'a botamochi falls down from the shelf'.

It means to 'receive a windfall' or get 'a lucky break'.

blades of grass
are plucked for their sake...
equinox dumplings
草の葉や彼岸団子にむしらるる
-Kobayashi Issa (小林一茶), 1805.
Trans. David G. Lanoue.

Botamochi (牡丹餅) and ohagi (おはぎ) are nowadays very similar sweets, but were previously distinguished by their shape and the texture of the azuki paste used.

Botamochi are named after peonies (spring) and ohagi after bush clovers (autumn), denoting when they were eaten.
#京都 #Kyoto #和菓子 #wagashi

'Heat and Cold last until Higan'
暑さ寒さも彼岸まで

Simply put 'shunbun' (春分) means 'spring division', indicating that hours of light and dark are balanced. As the (above) saying goes, the cold grip of winter should now fade to a slight chill.

In the past 'Higan-no-Nakaba' (彼岸の半ば 'Middle of the Equinoctial Week') was a time for visiting graves to honour ancestors.

It was also a time for spring cleaning and for making important changes (such as beginning a new hobby or finishing an important project).

#Kyoto #Japan #springequinox #

Originally the spring equinox was taken up by a Shintō festival called 'Shunki kōrei-sai' (春季皇霊祭), created in 1878 and centered around imperial ancestor worship.
In 1948 this was repackaged as a day for admiring nature and all living things.

In 1644 Tōfukumon-in, consort of Emperor Go-Mizunoo, was bequeathed the old hermitage of Jimyōin Motoko (持明院基子 ?-1644).

She suggested the emperor construct a new temple, and so in 1654 he established Reikan-ji (霊鑑寺) with his daughter Gekkō Sōchō (月江宗澄) as founding head.

winter wind-
camellia blossoms have fixed
their make-up
木がらしや椿は花の身づくろひ
-Kobayashi Issa, 1824.
Trans. David G. Lanoue.

Although predominantly considered a winter plant, camellias can be seen blooming for a large part of the year (from late fall to mid-spring)

Camellia flowers inspire a mind-boggling number of traditional sweets.

The most famous, and one of the oldest (an early version featuring in 'The Tale of Genji'), is 'tsubaki-mochi' (椿餅). Camellia leaves adorn a sticky rice cake, but unlike sakura-mochi the leaves act as decoration only.