Japan New Year

The Japan New Year is celebrated since few centuries and has their own customs.
It is the most important celebration in the year and last several days.
In the past, the Japan New year has the same title of the Chinese, Korea, and Vietnam New Year. It was based on the Chinese calendar and was celebrated at the start of the spring. Since 1873, Japan function with the Gregorian calendar and the first January is become the official day of the Japan New year.
Japanese people like to begin the New Year with the good resolution. As they practice a big cleaning called “ōsōji” the last days of December, it’s the rite of purification of the house. People replace damage object and air the Tamami. Japanese people must settle all the currents affairs and pay all the debts before to start the “omisoka”, the New Year’s Eve of 31st of December.
In Japan, people decorate the door of their house with a “Kadomatsu” and “shimenawa”. They depose as well an offertory in the “tokonoma” of the house surmount with a “shimenawa” : a rice cake pile up called “Kagami mocha” with an bitter orange ”daidai”.

Temple

Around the midnight, Japanese people go to the Shinto temple or the Buddhist temple for the “Hatsumode”, the first visit in the temple and to prey and to know the prediction of the New Year. They drink a “Toso”, medicinal herb and permit to guarantee the good health during all the New Year.

Greeting and Christmas box

For politeness, Japanese people return a visit of their family and friends. They give Christmas box for the children called “otoshidama”. The second custom is to depose underside of pillow of children, a picture of “takarabune”, the ship of seven divinities of the luck, for to do good dreams.

Cooking

For the New Year’s Eve, Japanese people eat a hot soap with “soba” called “kake” (doubts), this food symbolize that people are paid all of doubts. They eat also “Zoni”, a stock with vegetables and soya sauce chocks tick.
During the first days of the New Year, the tradition is to do anything similarly the cooking. The mother must to prepare the cooking in advance.