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TANABATA FESTIVAL
by Sandy Dickson

     Tanabata, meaning Seven Evenings, is a Japanese star festival held on July 7 celebrating two mythical lovers: Orihime, a weaving princess and daughter of the Sky King, (or universe itself)
King Tenkou. She wove beautiful clothes by the bank of the River of Heaven, called Amanogawa. (or Milky Way.)  Her father, King Tenkou, loved her work, so, knowing that, she worked hard all day to weave beautiful cloth. However, in doing so, she mourned not having the time
to meet someone special and fall in love. Tenkou, concerned for his daughter, arranged for her to meet Hikoboshi, a handsome cow
herder star who lived on the other side of the Amanogawa.

Four-year-old Paulina Moran had fun making oragamy swans with her mother Terra Moran at the Bowen Park's Tanabata festival July 7th.

   It was love at first sight for these two and they were married shortly thereafter. However, after marriage, they spent all their time together and neglected their duties. No cloth was being woven and Hikoboshi let his cows stray all over Heaven. Tenkou was very angry over this, and decided to separate them by putting one on each side of the river: the Milky Way.

     Orihime became so despondent and sad over the separation from her husband, she cried many tears before finally asking her father if they could meet again. Moved by his daughter’s tears, he said he would allow the pair to meet on the 7th day of the 7th month every year if she got all her weaving done before that day each year.

From left Zion's Lee Donnonwirth and Judy Welkes of Beach Park hung their written wishes and put them on the tree to come true at the Tanabata festival.

When the first year came, they couldn’t cross the river because there was no bridge. Orihime cried so much, a flock of magpies promised to form a bridge with their wings on which she could cross. However, if it rains, the magpies cannot come, so the tryst of the two lovers is delayed another year.

     The legend was created during a time when boys wished for better handwriting, and practiced this by writing wishes on a piece of paper.
At the same time, young girls wished for an ability to sew and weave well. 

     Traditions that have come from this are that bamboo branches are decorated with long strips of colorful paper and ornaments. On the paper, are often written wishes or romantic aspirations, often in the form of poetry. The decorated bamboo branches are tied to a pole and placed in front of the family’s house. Young girls fully believe that if they observe the festival earnestly enough, they will acquire a skill of sewing and weaving.

      At the end of the Tanabata festivities, usually around midnight, the decorated bamboo branches are either thrown into the river, to be carried away, burned for the ashes to rise to the sky, or placed in rice paddies as a means of repelling insects or as a thanksgiving and hopeful offering for a bountiful harvest.

     Included in modern day version of Tanabata, are paper stars and cranes (birds) created in origami to represent the Milky Way and the bridge.
    
    

Copyright © 2007 Sandy Dickson. All rights reserved.