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The New Year, or Oshogatsu, is one of the most important and celebrated holidays in Japan. It is a time of reflection, renewal, and unity as families and friends come together to usher in the new year with traditional customs and practices. The holiday season lasts for several days and is marked by various customs and traditions that are unique to Japanese culture.

Cleaning and Preparing for the New Year

In Japan, the end of the year is a time for cleaning and preparing for the new year. This is called Osoji, and it involves deep-cleaning homes and workplaces to purify them and get rid of any bad luck from the past year. It is customary to clean every corner of the house, making sure that every nook and cranny is spotless. People also decorate their homes with traditional symbols of the new year, like kadomatsu, pine and bamboo arrangements.

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day

New Year’s Eve, or Oomisoka, is a time for families to come together and eat a traditional meal called toshikoshi soba, or year-crossing soba noodles. Eating the noodles symbolizes leaving behind the previous year’s hardships and moving forward into the new year with a fresh start. At midnight, temples across Japan ring their bells 108 times, symbolizing the 108 worldly desires and temptations that humans must overcome to achieve enlightenment.

On New Year’s Day, families gather at the shrine or temple to pray for a prosperous and healthy new year. They offer prayers, burn incense, and make donations. It is also customary to eat a traditional New Year’s meal called osechi ryori, which consists of various dishes that symbolize good fortune and prosperity. Children receive gifts, usually called otoshidama, and many people also send nengajo, or New Year’s postcards, to friends and family.

The First Seven Days of the New Year

The first seven days of the new year, or shogatsu, are also important in Japanese culture. Each day is associated with a different auspicious activity, like visiting relatives, going to a shrine or temple, or praying for success in the new year. It is also customary to eat mochi, a sticky rice cake, during this time.

Overall, the New Year in Japan is a time of reflection, gratitude, and community. It is a time to leave behind the old and embrace the new, and to start the year off with positivity and hope for the future.