Hina Matsuri is a Japanese festival celebrated every year on March 3 to pray for the health and wealth of the girl child.
Also known as the Japanese Doll Festival or Girls’ Day, the festival spans a doll display, traditional Japanese food and origami, among other traditions.
Here’s everything you need to know about Japan’s Hina Matsuri .
What is Hina Matsuri?
Hina Matsuri is a cherished annual celebration of the girl child, which takes place in Japan on March 3 every year.
Hina refers to a special doll gifted for the occasion and Matsuri is the Japanese word for a festival or holiday.
On the day, families and communities pray for girl children to be blessed with good health, happiness and prosperity.
What are hina dolls?
Hina dolls refer to a gift that’s given typically by a girl’s grandparents for her first Hina Matsuri. Some dolls may be passed down through generations of a girl’s family.
Beautiful and intricate, the dolls represent the royal court and are often displayed on a tiered stand – called hinadan – covered in a red cloth.
The display is prepared weeks before the festival, with around five to seven tiers filled with dolls that represent Emperor and Empress on the top tier followed by dolls for the guardians, musicians, and servants.
Small meal dishes, furniture pieces like small chests and fresh peach blossoms are also placed on the display.
The display also includes small meal dishes, small furniture pieces like chests and stands, and fresh peach blossoms.
After March 3, the display of hina dolls and other items is put away quickly because legend believes that not doing so will lead to girls in the family marrying late.
How is Hina Matsuri celebrated?
In addition to the display of hina dolls and praying for the girl child, celebrations for Hina Matsuri includes traditional food and drinks with symbolic meanings.
Some dishes include clear clam soup – because clam shells symbolise being united – as well as layered mochi where each coloured layer represents something special like chasing away evil spirits, purity or good health.
Activities on the day of Hina Matsuri also includes making dolls from paper and wood or with origami.
Happy Hina Matsuri! Wish every girl child plenty of health and happiness.
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