MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
OUTLINE OF TOPICS: Birth and birthdays; marriage; death and funeral;
mourning.—Holidays (national, local, class, and religions); the
“five festivals”; New Year’s holidays; the other four festivals;
floral festivals; religious festivals.—Games; wrestling.—Theatre;
scenery and wardrobes; chorus and pantomime; the _Nō_.—Music;
dancing-girls.—Occidentalization.—Folk-lore; superstitions about lucky
and unlucky days, hours, ages, years, etc.—Bibliography.
The three great events in the career of a Japanese are, of course,
birth, marriage, and death, each of which is, therefore celebrated
with much formality. When a child is born, he or she is the recipient
of many presents, which, however, create an obligation that must
eventually be cleared off. A very common but honorable present on such
an occasion consists of eggs in small or large quantities, according
to circumstances. When the first American baby was born in Mito,
she was favored with a total of 456 eggs, besides dried fish, toys,
Japanese robes, and other articles of clothing, etc., and her parents
were favored with universal congratulations, diluted with condolences
because the new baby was a girl instead of a boy! Japanese babyhood is
blithesome.[54]
The birthday of an individual, however, is not especially observed upon
its recurring anniversary; for New Year’s Day is a kind of national, or
universal, birthday, from which age is reckoned. And this loss of an
individual birthday is also made up to the boys and girls by the two
special festivals, hereafter described, of Dolls and of Flags.
The wedding ceremony[55] is quite simple but very formal.
The principal feature thereof is the _san-san-ku-do_
(three-three-nine-times); that is, both the bride and the bridegroom
drink three times out of each of three cups of different sizes. This
ceremony, however, does not affect at all the validity of the marriage;
it is purely a social affair, of practically no more importance than
the wedding reception in America or England. In Christian circles this
convivial ceremony is omitted, and a rite performed by a Christian
minister is substituted. As marriage is only a civil contract, its
legality rests upon the official registration of the couple as
husband and wife; and this formality is often neglected, so that
divorce is easy and frequent. And as “matches” are generally made by
parents, guardians, relatives, or friends, the _mariage de convenance_
prevails in Japan. But the new Civil Code throws safeguards around the
institution of wedlock; and the teachings of Christianity have already
caused considerable improvement in the way of elevating marriage from
its low standard to a holy rite.
To the fatalistic Japanese death has no terrors, especially as they
are a people who seem to take about as much care of the dead as of the
living. Funeral ceremonies[56] are very elaborate, expensive, solemn,
and yet somewhat boisterous affairs. The Shintō rites are much plainer
than Buddhist ceremonies. In the former, the coffin is long and low,
as in the West, but in the latter it is small and square, so that the
corpse “is fitted into it in a squatting posture with the head bent
to the knees.” There are other distinguishing features of the two
funerals: the bare shaven heads of Buddhist priests in contrast with
the non-shaven heads of Shintō priests; the dark blue coats of the
Buddhist pall-bearers in contrast with the plain white garb of the
Shintō pall-bearers.
The mourning code of Japan is rather strict, and contains two features:
the wearing of mourning garments (which are white), and the abstinence
from animal food. The regular dates for visits to the grave are
the seventh, fourteenth, twenty-first, thirty-fifth, forty-ninth,
and one-hundredth days, and the first, third, seventh, thirteenth,
twenty-third, twenty-seventh, thirty-third, thirty-seventh, fiftieth,
and one-hundredth years.
As is shown in another chapter (“Japanese Traits”), the Japanese are
a merry, vivacious, pleasure-loving people, who are satisfied with a
simple life. They give and take frequent holidays, which they enjoy to
the fullest extent. The national holidays are numerous, and come as
follows every year:—
Four Sides’ Worship, January 1.
First Beginning Festival, January 3.
Emperor Kōmei’s Festival, January 30.
_Kigen-setsu_, February 11.
Spring Festival, March 22 (about).
Jimmu Tennō Festival, April 3.
Autumn Festival, September 24 (about).
_Kanname_ Festival, October 17.
Emperor’s Birthday, November 3.
_Niiname_ Festival, November 23.
Some of the national holidays need a few words of explanation.
_Kigen-setsu_, for instance, was originally a festival in honor of
the ascension of Jimmu, the first Emperor, to the throne, and was
thus the anniversary of the establishment of the Old Empire; but it
is now observed also as the celebration of the promulgation of the
constitution (Feb. 11, 1889), and is thus the anniversary of the
establishment of the New Empire. The Jimmu Tennō Festival of April 3 is
the so-called anniversary of the death of that Emperor. The _Kanname_
Festival in October celebrates the offering of first-fruits to the
ancestral deities, and the _Niiname_ Festival in November celebrates
the tasting of those first-fruits by the Emperor. The Spring and Autumn
Festivals in March and September are adaptations of the Buddhist
equinoctial festivals of the dead, and are especially observed for the
worship of the Imperial ancestors. The Emperor Kōmei was the father
of the present Emperor, and reigned from 1847 to 1867. “Four Sides’
Worship” naturally suggests worship from the four principal directions.
This and the “First Beginning Festival” make the special New Year’s
holidays.
Besides these, there are a great many local, class, and religious
holidays, including Sunday, so that comparatively few persons
in Japan are kept under high pressure, but almost every one has
frequent opportunities to relax from the tension of his occupation
or profession. Even the poorest, who have to be content with a
hand-to-mouth existence, take their occasional holidays.
The five great festivals of the year fall on the first day of the
first month (New Year’s Day), the third day of the third month (Dolls’
Festival), the fifth day of the fifth month (Feast of the Flags), the
seventh day of the seventh month (Festival of the Star Vega), and the
ninth day of the ninth month (Chrysanthemum Festival). These are now
officially observed according to the Gregorian calendar, but may also
be popularly celebrated according to the old lunar calendar, and would
then fall from three to seven weeks later. And there are not a few
people who are perfectly willing to observe both calendars and thus
double their number of holidays!
The greatest of these is the New Year’s holiday or season, which
is often prolonged to three, five, seven, or even fifteen days. The
practice of making calls and presents still prevails, and, though quite
burdensome, illustrates the thoughtfulness, good cheer, and generosity
of the people.[57]
[Illustration: NEW YEAR’S GREETING]
The Dolls’ Festival is the one especially devoted to the girls; and the
Feast of Flags is set apart for the boys. The Festival of the Star Vega
commemorates a tradition concerning two starry lovers on opposite sides
of the Milky Way, or River of Heaven. The Chrysanthemum Festival seems
to have been overshadowed by the Emperor’s Birthday.
There are also many “flower festivals,” such as those of viewing the
plum, cherry, wistaria, iris, morning-glory, lotus, maple, etc.[58]
One of the most important of the Buddhist festivals is that in honor
of the spirits of the dead; it is called _Bon-matsuri_ and comes in the
middle of July. Buddha’s birthday in April is also observed. There is
a Japanese Memorial Day, celebrated twice a year in May and November,
when immense crowds flock to the shrines called _Shōkonsha_, and pay
their homage to the spirits of those who have died for their country.
Moreover, space would fail to tell of the numerous local shrines and
temples, Shintō and Buddhist, where the people flock annually or
semi-annually, to “worship” a few minutes and enjoy a picnic for the
remainder of the day. And, in Christian circles, Christmas, Easter, and
Sunday-school picnics are important and interesting occasions.
The common games are chess, _go_ (a very complicated game slightly
resembling checkers), parchesi, and cards. Flower-cards and poetical
quotations are old-style, but still popular; while Occidental cards,
under the name of _torompu_ (“trump”) are coming into general use.
Children find great amusement also with kites, tops, battledore and
shuttlecock, snow-men, dolls, cards, etc.[59] The chief sports of young
men are wrestling, rowing, tennis, and baseball. In the great American
game they have become so proficient that they frequently win against
the Americans and British who make up the baseball club of the Yokohama
Athletic Association!
Professional wrestling-matches[60] continue to draw large crowds to see
the huge masses of flesh measure their strength and skill. _Jūjutsu_
is a kind of wrestling in which skill and dexterity are more important
than mere physical strength.[61] Sleight-of-hand performers and
acrobats are quite popular.
The theatre[60] is a very important feature in the Japanese world of
amusements, and still remains about the only place where Old Japan
can be well studied. Theatrical performances in Japan are, of course,
quite different from those in the Occident, and seem very tedious to
Westerners, partly because they are so long and partly because they
are unintelligible. When the writer attended the theatre in Mito, the
play began, thirty minutes late, at 3:30 P. M., and continued, without
interruption, until almost midnight. Then, according to custom, a short
supplementary play of almost an hour’s duration followed, so that it
was about one o’clock when he finally reached home. The Japanese,
however, are accustomed to this “sweetness long drawn out,” and either
bring their lunches or slip out between acts to get something to eat
and drink, or buy tea and cake in the theatre.
The wardrobes and the scenery are elaborate and magnificent. The former
are often almost priceless heirlooms handed down from one generation
to another. Changes of wardrobe are often made in the presence of the
audience; an actor, by dropping off one robe (which is immediately
carried away by a small boy), entirely metamorphoses his appearance.
One convenient arrangement of the scenery is that of the revolving
stage, so that, as an old scene gradually disappears, the new one is
coming into view. The supernumeraries, moreover, though theoretically
invisible, are distinctly present, but seem to distract neither players
nor audience. The female parts are usually taken by men dressed as
women; and animals are represented by either men or wooden models.
The orchestra plays an exceedingly important part in a Japanese drama.
It consists of the _samisen_ (a guitar of three strings), the _fue_
(flute), and the _taiko_ (drum). It plays, not between the acts to
entertain the spectators, but, like the Greek chorus, during the scene,
to direct and explain the drama. Pantomime is an important element in
the play and exceedingly expressive. The pantomimic actions are guided
by the orchestra and the singers of the chants that furnish necessary
explanations. Japanese plays are mostly historical, though some depict
life and manners. It is quite interesting to note that in 1903 an
adapted translation of “Othello” was put on the Japanese stage with
marked success.
The _Nō_ “dances,” as they are sometimes called, were at first “purely
religious performances, intended to propitiate the chief deities of
the Shintō religion, and were acted exclusively in connection with
their shrines.” But they were afterwards secularized and popularized,
as lyric dramas. They are comparatively brief, and occupy only
about an hour in performing. They are now given chiefly as special
entertainments in high society or court circles to extraordinary
guests.[62]
Music, especially in connection with dancing, furnishes another
common means of amusement. The chief instruments of the old style
are the _koto_, a kind of lyre; the _samisen_, already described;
the _kokyū_, a sort of fiddle; lutes, flutes, fifes, drums, etc.;
while the violin, organ, and piano are coming into general use. These
instruments, moreover, are now being manufactured by the Japanese.
Individuals, bands, and orchestras, trained under foreign supervision,
furnish music, both instrumental and vocal, for private and public
entertainments; and concerts in European style are becoming very
popular.
It used to be that no evening entertainment was considered complete
without the dancing-girls (_geisha_),[63] whose presence is never
conducive to morality. But a strong effort is now being made, even
in non-Christian circles, to banish these evil features of social
entertainments. The Occidental mixed dances have not yet met with
great favor, except that in the court circle, which is cosmopolitan,
quadrilles, waltzes, etc., are encouraged.
The manners and customs, especially in the large cities, are
undergoing considerable Occidentalizing, which results at first in an
amusing mixture, or a queer hybrid. This is particularly true of social
functions in official or high life. It is, of course, true that the
great mass of the people, the “lower classes,” are not yet to any great
extent affected by the social changes in the world above their reach
and ken, and still conduct their social intercourse _more Japonico_,
that is, in the approved methods of their ancestors; but in the life of
the middle and upper classes, and especially in official functions, the
influence of Occidental manners and customs is quite marked.
Japanese literature is immensely rich in stories of adventure, most
interesting historical and biographical incidents, folk-lore, and fairy
tales. All of these are quite familiar to the Japanese child, whether
boy or girl, whose mind feasts upon, and delights in, the heroic and
the marvellous. The youth and the adults, also, are not at all averse
to such mental pabulum, and flock, for instance, to the hall of the
professional story-teller, who regales them with fact and fiction
ingeniously blended. Yoshitsune, Benkei, Momotarō, Kintarō, and others
are common heroes of folk-lore and fiction; while “The Tongue-Cut
Sparrow,” “The Matsuyama Mirror,” “The Man who Made Trees Bloom,” are
examples of hundreds of popular fairy tales. Japanese folk-lore is an
instructive and most interesting subject, which must, however, be now
dismissed with references.[64]
To an audience of Athenians on Mars Hill, Paul said: “Ye men of
Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are altogether superstitious.”
One might likewise stand before an audience of Japanese and say:
“Ye men of Nippon, I perceive that in all things ye are altogether
superstitious.” For most faithfully and devoutly do the mass of
the people still worship their innumerable deities, estimated with
the indefinite expression “eight hundred myriads”; and most firmly
do they continue to believe in the efficacy of charms and amulets
and to hold to inherited superstitious ideas. It is only where the
common school and Christianity have had full sway that these “foolish
notions” disappear. And while we have not space for a methodical study
of Japanese superstitions, we ought at least to present, even in a
desultory manner, some illustrations, culled at random from various
sources.[65]
The days of each month were named, not only in numerical order, but
also according to the animals of the Chinese zodiac. And the latter
names were perhaps more important than the numerical ones, because,
according to these special names, a day was judged to be either lucky
or unlucky for particular events. “Every day has its degree of luck
for removal [from one place to another], and, indeed, according to
another system, for actions of any kind; for a day is presided over in
succession by one of six stars which may make it lucky throughout or
only at night, or in the forenoon or the afternoon, or exactly at noon,
or absolutely unlucky. There are also special days on which marriages
should take place, prayers are granted by the gods, stores should be
opened, and signboards put up.” Dr. Griffis informs us in “The Mikado’s
Empire,” that “many people of the lower classes would not wash their
heads or hair on ‘the day of the horse,’ lest their hair become red.”
On the other hand, this “horse day” is sacred to Inari Sama, the
rice-god, who employs foxes as his messengers; and “the day of the rat”
is sacred to Daikoku, the god of wealth, who, in pictures, is always
accompanied by that rodent. As for wedding days, Rev. N. Tamura says:
“We think it is very unfortunate to be married on the 16th of January,
20th of February, 4th of March, 18th of April, 6th of May, 7th of
June, 10th of July, 11th of August, 9th of September, 3d of October,
25th of November, or 30th of December, also on the grandfather’s or
grandmother’s death day.” These dates are probably applicable to only
the old calendar. “Seeds will not germinate if planted on certain days”
(Griffis).
The hours were named, not only according to the numerical plan, but
also according to the heavenly menagerie in the following way:—
1. Hour of the Rat 11 P. M.-1 A. M.
2. Hour of the Ox 1-3 A. M.
3. Hour of the Tiger 3-5 A. M.
4. Hour of the Hare 5-7 A. M.
6. Hour of the Dragon 7-9 A. M.
6. Hour of the Serpent 9-11 A. M.
7. Hour of the Horse 11 A. M.-1 P. M.
8. Hour of the Goat 1-3 P. M.
9. Hour of the Monkey 3-5 P. M.
10. Hour of the Cock 5-7 P. M.
11. Hour of the Dog 7-9 P. M.
12. Hour of the Boar 9-11 P. M.
The “hour of the ox,” by the way, being the time of sound sleep, was
sacred to women crossed in love for taking vengeance upon a straw image
of the recreant lover at the shrine of Fudō.
“After 5 P. M. many people will not put on new clothes or sandals”
(Griffis). From “Superstitious Japan”: “If one swallows seven grains of
red beans (_azuki_) and one _go_ of _sake_ before the hour of the ox on
the first day of the year, he will be free from sickness and calamity
throughout the year; if he drinks _toso_ (spiced _sake_) at the hour of
the tiger of the same day, he will be untouched by malaria through the
year. On the seventh day of the first month if a male swallows seven,
and a female fourteen, red beans, they will be free from sickness all
their lives; if one bathes at the hour of the dog on the tenth day [of
the same month], his teeth will become hard.”
There are also superstitions about ages. Some persons, for instance,
“are averse to a marriage between those whose ages differ by three or
nine years. A man’s nativity also influences the direction in which
he should remove; and his age may permit his removal one year and
absolutely forbid it the next.” There are also critical years in a
person’s life, such as the seventh, twenty-fifth, forty-second, and
sixty-first[66] years for a man, and the seventh, eighth, thirty-third,
forty-second, and sixty-first[66] years for a woman. There is a similar
story to the effect that a child born (or begotten?) in the father’s
forty-third year is supposed to be possessed of a devil. When such a
child is about one month old, it is, therefore, exposed for about three
hours in some sacred place. Some member or friend of the family then
goes to get it, and bringing it to the parents, says: “This is a child
whom I have found and whom you had better take and bring up.” Thus
having fooled the devil, the parents receive their own child back.
From Inouye’s “Sketches of Tōkyō Life” we learn that aged persons
provide against failing memory by passing through seven different
shrine gates on the spring or autumn equinox. An incantation against
noxious insects, written with the infusion of India ink in liquorice
water on the eighth day of the fourth moon, Buddha’s birthday, will
prevent the entrance of the insects at every doorway or window where
it is posted. January 16 and July 16 were and are special holidays for
servants and apprentices, and considered sacred to Emma, the god of
Hades. At the time of the winter solstice doctors would worship the
Chinese Esculapius. “The foot-wear left outside on the night of the
winter equinox should be thrown away; he who wears them will shorten
his own life. If you cut a bamboo on a moonlight night, you will find a
snake in the hollow of it between the third and fourth joints.” “During
an eclipse of the sun or moon, people carefully cover, the wells, as
they suppose that poison falls from the sky during the period of the
obscuration.” “If on the night of the second day of the first moon, one
dreams of the _takara-bune_ (treasure-ship), he shall become a rich
man.” The first “dog day” and the third “dog day” in July are days for
eating special cakes. “The third dog day is considered by the peasantry
a turning-point in the life of the crops. Eels are eaten on any day
of the bull [ox] that may occur during this period of greatest heat.”
The author was once warned by a Japanese woman that he must not take
medicine or consult a doctor on New Year’s Day, because such acts would
portend a year of illness.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
There are many good books which portray the manners and customs of
the Japanese people; and as for magazine and newspaper articles on
the subject their name is legion. The works of Griffis, Chamberlain,
Rein, Hearn, Lowell, Miss Bacon, Miss Scidmore, Miss Hartshorne,
Mrs. Isabella Bird Bishop, and Mitford’s “Tales of Old Japan” may be
recommended. Good novels, like “Mito Yashiki” (Maclay), “Honda the
Samurai” (Griffis), “In the Mikado’s Service” (Griffis), etc., give
an insight into Japanese life. This may suffice, as more particular
references have been given in connection with many of the topics of
the chapter. “A Japanese Boy” (Shigemi), “When I was a Boy in Japan”
(Shioya), “Japanese Girls and Women” (Miss Bacon), and “The Wee Ones
of Japan” (Mrs. Bramhall) give good pictures of child-life; and Dr.
Griffis has edited an edition of Mrs. Chaplin-Ayrton’s valuable
“Child-Life in Japan.” “Japanese Life in Town and Country” (Knox),
and “Every Day Japan” (Lloyd) also contain good material in this
connection.