Make a wish: the Tanabata matsuri
- Cri
- Nov 19
- 4 min read
Hi guys, it has been months since the last article, hasn’t it? Between moving and getting a new job I couldn’t find any time to write or even scribble something 🙂
But now I’m finally back, and what better way to start writing and drawing again if not to talk about the beloved Tanabata Matsuri?
The legend of the two stars in love
Also known as the Star Festival (星祭り, Hoshi matsuri), the Tanabata (七夕) is all about love and wishes. It falls every year on July 7th, and celebrates the two star-crossed gods known as Orihime (織姫 , or Tanabatatsume) and Hikoboshi (彦星, or Kengyū) , respectively the stars Vega and Altair. According to the legend Orihime was the Weaving Princess, daughter of the Celestial King Tentei (天帝), to whom she wove the most beautiful dresses.
She always worked on the banks of the Celestial River Amanogawa (天の川), the Milky Way, without talking to anyone. Sad and lonely, the girl longed to fall in love. Moved by her daughter’s cries, the King arranged the meeting with Hikoboshi, the Cowman Star.
Soon the two fell in love and married, but also started to disattend their duties, which prompted the King to punish them by separating them on the two sides of the river.
Orihime started to wilt for the loss of her husband, and begged her father to let her see Hikoboshi again. Tentei decided then to allow her to meet him once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month.
On this day, every year the goddess crosses the river by walking on a bridge made by magpies’ wings, as the birds decided to help her after hearing her cries.
From China to modern Japan
This legend originated in Chinese folklore and we can say that the Tanabata is in realty the Japanese interpretation of the Chinese Qixi Festival, which also sparked the Korean Chilseok and the Vietnamese Thất Tịch.
We know from historical sources that this tradition was introduced in the Japanese court by the Empress Kōken during the Nara period (VII century). Initially it was dedicated to the Weaving Goddess Tanabatatsume, venerated by young women to gain skills in weaving and calligraphy. Later the festivity spread to commoner girls too, which prayed to her by writing their wishes on small five-colored pieces of paper called tanzaku (短冊), representing the five Chinese elements, which were then tied to bamboo branches. Mastering these abilities was considered a must for future wives, and because of that the deity was often prayed to by young girls in search of a husband.
From the Edo period onward, men started hanging poems and small origamis too, mostly to better their penmanship. A good example from this period is Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s print Tanabata, in which we can see two girls and one boy hanging tanzaku and origami on bamboo branches.
Today Tanabata is often celebrated by families and in elementary schools, where it’s common for teachers to tell students about the two lovers. After listening to this story, the children write their wishes on tanzaku and hang them on bamboo branches, with origami that symbolize each a different wish. The most common are:
Kamigoromo (紙衣) – Origami Kimono against bad health and calamities
Orizuru (折り鶴) – Origami Crane for a long life
Kinchaku (巾着) – Origami bag for business luck
Toami (投網) – Origami nets for fishing luck
Kuzukago (くずかご) – Origami trashcan for cleanliness
Fukinagashi (吹吹き流し) – Paper streamers for weaving skills
Kusudama (薬玉) – Dahlia-shaped origami boxes typical of the Sendai area, where the most famous Tanabata festival is held
The bamboo is then thrown into the river or burnt, while the folk song chants:
The bamboo leaves rustle,
And sway under the eaves.
The stars twinkle
Like gold and silver grains of sand.
The five-color paper strips
I have written them.
The stars twinkle,
Watching from above.
笹の葉さらさら
軒端に揺れる
お星様きらきら
金銀砂子
五色の短冊
私が書いた
お星様きらきら
空から見てる
Sasa no ha sara-sara
Nokiba ni yureru
Ohoshi-sama kira-kira
Kingin sunago
Goshiki no tanzaku
watashi ga kaita
Ohoshi-sama kirakira
sora kara miteru
Tanabata in pop culture
I’m sure that most people interested in Anime and Manga came across this tradition at least once. In fact, it’s a recurrent trope, almost to the level of the iconic “beach/matsuri episodes” 😛
In the famous Haruhi Suzumiya a major plot point revolves around this festival, so much so that last year a special Tanabata-themed event was held in Akihabara starting on July 7th.
Another notable example is Inoue Orihime from Bleach. Named Vega Highwell in translations, as a reference to the Vega star, she is featured with Ichigo in the pilot as the love-struck goddess.
In videogames, Orihime and Hikoboshi appear as easter eggs in We Love Katamari. In fact, in the stage Roll Up the Sun you can roll up both Vega and Altair, that scream the names of the lovers once caught.
Lastly, how can I not show you a snippet of my Animal Crossing: New Horizon’s Island? Look at my cute character while she reads her villager’s tanzaku!
References
BROWN Ju / BROWN John, China, Japan, Korea: Culture and Customs (2006)
Japan Report, “The annual rendez-vous of the celestial lovers” (1968)