Kiku Matsuri - Chrysanthemum Festival / Yushima Tenjin

Kiku Matsuri (Chrysanthemum Festival) has been held in the shrine yard of Yushima Tenjin.
Now is the Shichi-Go-San season. There were some Kimono girls in the shrine yard. (Explanation of the Shichi-Go-San is Here)

There were various kinds of chrysanthemum everywhere.

Let me introduce the type of the chrysanthemum.

Atsu-zaki (Thick flowering)

The most orthodox chrysanthemum. Making three flowers from one stalk is very popular.

Atsu-bashiri (Thick and running(?) flowering)

Adding dynamic taste on Atsu-zaki.

Kuda-zaki (Tubal flowering)

These flowers are consisted with tubular petals. The sensitive curl of petal ends is the charm point of Kuda-zaki....the signboard said so.

Edo-Giku (Edo chrysanthemum)

The old type of chrysanthemum established in Edo-era. Actually, I had never seen this type of chrysanthemum.

Tomoe Nishiki (Sorry I couln't translate it)

These are also the old type of chrysanthemum. They were established 200 years ago. Inside of petal is crimson red and outside is golden yellow. Very gorgeous, huh?


Senbon-zaki (1000 branch flowering)

I couldn't believe but these flowers came from just one stalk. According to the signboard, producers of these chrysanthemum started to grow the base stalk from last autumn, made branch repeatedly, then made 250-400 floral buds, and finally, blow the same size of flowers simultaneously.

The upper is a little bit too early to appreciate, but good for learning the structure of Senbon-zaki.

I'd like to take off my hat to the producer's skil and effort.

Kiku Ningyo (Chysanthemum Dolls)

The theme of this year's Kiku ningyo was NHK's period drama "Atsu Hime (Princess Atsu)" .

When I was a child, Kiku ningyo dolls could be seen frequently at the place people gather like public park or amusement park in autumn. But, I heared that many of Kiku ningyo festivals have been aborted recently because of the unpopularity. I feel sorry that such a traditional exhibition, started in Edo-era, has been ebbing away.

FYI: Kiku Matsuri of Nan-yo city in Yamagata is the most famous Kiku ningyo festival having the longest history in Japan. Please look at the Kiku ningyo photos on the website. They are amazing.

This one is also a kind of the chrysanthemum doll?

This festival will be held until 23rd Nov.

Regarding the Yushima Tenjin, I have writen that history in the 2008 February posting.

Yushima Tenjin is near by the University of Tokyo. The closest station is Yushima of Chiyoda-line(Tokyo Metro).

Are you looking for the accomodation?
For a great selection of places to stay with discount prices visit Tokyo Hotels for more information.

The story of "Yaoya Oshichi" / Enjo-ji temple, Hakusan, Bunkyo ward

There is an old and tiny temple, named Enjo-ji, near the Hakusan station of the Mita line(Toei Subway). Lee and I are often passing by the front of this temple on the way of weekend walking to the Nezu shrine. I don't know why but Lee wanted to walk into this temple whenever we walk by there.



This temple is famous as the locale of the story "Yaoya Oshichi". Let me introduce the story.

There were many fires in Edo(old name of Tokyo). According to the record, there were 96 big fires, which burned out the huge area over 15cho(approximetly 1.6km) radius, during the Edo era(1603-1867). Approximately once a 3 years.

Oshichi was a daughter of a greengrocer(Yaoya) who lived in Hongo area. When the big fire occurred in 1682(Tenna-fire), Oshichi and her family took refuge in the Enjo-ji temple. Young Oshichi found the boy who was employed in the temple, then she was falling in love with him. They had a good time during her evacuation. Even after she came back home, she couldn't forget about him, however, it was very difficult to meet him. Then, she hit upon an awful idea; she decided to make the same situation as she had met him without any hurdles. She attempted arson, and, she was arrested. It was 1683, the next year of the Tennna-fire.

Criminals committing attempted arson deserved the death penalty in Edo era. They had to suffer at the stake, if they were older or equal to 16years old. At that time, she was 16. (In Japan, the age was counted as follows; the newborn baby was 1year old, then the baby became 2years old on upcoming New years day, after that he/she got older on every New years days. So, actually, Oshichi was at a mere age of 14years.)

The judge pitied her because she was so childish and guileless. He wanted to save her from the brutal penalization, then asked her, "Girl, you are 15 years old, aren't you?". But she insisted that she was 16 years old, and accepted to be burnt alive.

3 years after her death, the popular writer Ihara Saikaku wrote about her story in his novel. As soon as it was released, her story became a best-seller and the authors of the Kabuki and the Joruri(the traditional puppet play) scrambled to make plays of Yaoya Oshichi.


Actually, I kind of think calling her "idiot" would be easy. She could not make appropriate judgement and ended up committing the crime.
However, her purity for love was remarkable. I think that is why people have been moved by the story of Yaoya Oshichi.



There is the grave of her in the Enjo-ji temple yard.

Ume (prunus mume) 2 / YushimaTenjin, two weeks after

On March 2nd, The ume flowers in Yushima Tenjin were full bloomed.
It was only 9:00 am, a bit early for sightseeing, however there were many Ume-watcher in the shrine yard.

Most of ume of this shrine were Hakubai (white Ume), which were full bloomed.
....and there were some Koubai (red Ume), too.

The pile of Ema was growing larger than 2 weeks before.

The students who had succeeded their entrance exam were hanging "Thank you-Ema".
You can find there are several piles of Ema all around the shrine yard.

As I mentioned in previous post, this place is recognized as a mecca for examinees.

Ume (Prunus Mume) / Yushima Tenjin shrine

Ume flower is often described as a harbinger of spring in Japanese literature or songs. The combination of "Ume and Uguisu[Japanese Nightingale]" is very popular as a golden battery that marks the end of winter. During Sunday morning walking with Lee, I found some Ume flowers began to bloom. Although the cold weather has been continuing even now, spring is actually coming here in Tokyo.

I had heard the Ume Matsuri[Ume festival] was held in the yard of the Yushima Tenjin, so Lee and I went there to see the Ume bloosoms.

The temprature has been still cool and there were some snow remaining on the pavement (11th Feb.).

Yushima Tenjin is famous shrine that enshrines Sugawara-no-Michizane. Michizane was a top ranking elite bureaucrat in Heian-era who excelled in scholarship, and now a day, he's defined as Tenjin-sama or Kami[God] of academics. At the end of his life, he fell into a political trap of his rival and demoted to the officer of far west area. At the day of departure, he made a "waka"[short poem] regarding Ume flower.
"Kochi hukaba nioiokoseyo Ume no hana, nushinasitote haru wo wasuruna" [When you feel the east wind, Ume flower, remind yourself to bloom, even if I am not there. (I'm so sorry my terrible translation)].
According to his regend, an Ume tree, which was loved by Michizane, flied out to his far west house from Kyoto (the regend of Tobi-Ume[flying Ume]). Ume flowers thus became to be recognized as the theme flower of Tenjin shrines (Tenman-gu) across Japan.

Since he is a Kami of scholorship, many students preparing for their college/highschool entrance exam visit there and pray for their success. Students hang Ema[wooden plaque] in which their wishes were written.
It was a entrance exam season, thus so many Emas were hanging there.(11rd Feb.)

And , below is the photo taken on 17th Feb. Students who succeed their exam visit to thank Tenjin-sama for thier success.

Anyway, it was too early to enjoy full bloomed Ume bloosoms.
We'll try to get there again in the end of Februaly. Ume Matsuri will be held until early March.

Yushima Tenjin is near by the University of Tokyo. The closest station is Yushima of Chiyoda-line(Tokyo Metro).

Hydrangea @ Hakusan shrine / Bunkyo ward

The rainy season is coming. Speaking of the rainy season, "hydrangea and snail" has been a core battery in my mind.

I've hated rainy day but I liked finding snails on leaves of hydrangea when I was a kid. Recently, I restarted snail watching with my daughter after long(30years!) absence, , , , but, where have they gone? I cannot find them easily like I did 30 years ago. Besides, if I can find some but those are really smaller than I had gotten. What's happen?

Fortunately, we can enjoy hydrangea like before. Lee and I went to Hakusan shrine to see hydrangeas.

From 9th to 17th June, ajisai-matsuiri (hydrangea festival) has been held in the hakusan shrine. There are 3,000 pieces of hydrangea in the shrine yard.

Gaku-ajisai (Hydrangea macrophylla).

Gaku means picture frame. As you can see, tiny flowers(just like buds but are really flowers) are surrounded by bigger flowers(just like petals but are really calyx). Someone thought that these bigger flowers looked like the frame of picture, then it has become to be called Gaku-ajisai.

Someone says the pH or some elements of the soil determine the color of hydrangeas, like a litmus paper. I heard that certain criminal novels describe the scene in which a victim's body found beneath the different color hydrangea tree in hydrangea colonies. Is that color really not depends on the variation of hydrangea trees but the character of the soil? Does anyone know that?

----poster of ajisaimatsuri---

Hakusan shrine: the closest station is Hakusan of subway Mita line. A small and cozy but historically important shrine. I will post the historical aspect of this shrine on the other day.