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Volume 13, Issue #3. Published on February 28, 2005
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Photo by Information and Culture Center of the Embassy of Japan
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The Dolls Festival exmplifies the artistic work put into each figure.
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Hina Matsuri
Japanese Dolls Festival.
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LiAnn Ishizuka
Asian Pacific Review
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The traditional Japanese celebration of Hina Matsuri (known as Doll's Festival or Girl's Day) commences on March 3rd, the third day of the third month in the lunar calendar.
Regarded as a major festival for girls in Japan, parents celebrate their daughter's future happiness, prospects for a blissful marriage and healthy life. Today, many Japanese American families still honor this culturally unique tradition and carry on the customs of the past.
Japanese families display ceremonial dolls on seven tiers of shelves, representing the members of early court life. Every step in setting up the display is precise and carefully executed. A red cloth is placed on each row and the complete set of 15 dolls is arranged atop the shelves.
Hina Matsuri displays, literally means "something small, lovely," and "festival," respectively. Initially begin a week before the third day of March, as daughters and their mothers assemble each piece individually.
When a baby girl is born, the maternal grandparents present the new family with a set of these dolls as dowry or either passed from generation to generation as ancestral heirlooms. Every year, a new piece is added until finally a complete set is collected, reflecting the beauty and manner of every addition to the final presentation.
The dolls are strictly used for display and are carefully put away following the Doll's Festival celebration. It is believed that by leaving the display out too long, the girl's future marriage will be delayed.
Assembled hierarchically at the uppermost tier is the empress and emperor; these precious dolls are exquisitely clothed with silk kimonos and cultural dress.
Behind the royal couple is a miniature gold screen that is also used as a background for displays of peach blossoms in vases or candleholders. Beneath the emperor and empress, follow three court ladies who are also beautifully clothed.
The third step shows a five-member band complete with a singer, flute player and three drum-players. Two ministers with a setting of rice cakes ornately layered in pink, white and green are followed, three court officials on the fifth tier and various doll furniture of the time-period on the sixth layer.
Lastly, a model of a carriage or palanquin and flowering cheery or orange trees are exhibited. The collaboration of furniture and carriage symbolize the dowry for the marriage of a daughter into a noble family. Additionally, the entirety of the display resembles a wedding celebration and honors lucky prospects for the daughter's future.
The Doll's Festival originated from the Heian Period some 1,000 years ago, where its name is derived from a childhood game, hiina, which mimicked court life using dolls and miniature models. In the later mid-seventeenth century, it marked the first festival during the Edo period.
Beginning modestly with two paper dolls, the festival gradually evolved to become the elaborate display that it is today.
As other cultural festivals and celebrations are repeated, Hina Matsuri, a festival that has spanned over ten centuries, is cherished and recognized as a historic date in Japanese history. It has mainstreamed to become a widely practiced tradition for Japanese descendants and remains a respected day to signify the feminine traits of refinement, tranquility, and serenity.
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