Autumn equinox day in Japan (23/09)

«And heat and cold — until the days of Hegan». This is what they say in Japan during both the autumn and spring equinoxes.

In the calendar, this day is designated as the Day of the Autumn Equinox (Japanese). 田の日), but Japan celebrates not so much a unique astronomical phenomenon as it performs the rituals of the Buddhist holiday Higan (Japanese) that go into the depths of history. 河, «other shore»).

According to the Law «On National Holidays» on the day of the autumn equinox, which is a public holiday, the corresponding meaning is also included: «Respect ancestors, honor the memory of those who have passed into another world».

The day for the celebration was established by law in 1948, and it falls, as Japanese sources say, « on approximately September 23». The exact date of the autumn equinox for next year is determined by the National Observatory on February 1 of this year, making appropriate celestial measurements and calculations. Astronomers have already calculated that from 2012 to 2044, Autumn Equinox Day falls: in leap years — on September 22, and in normal years — on September 23.

But let's return to the Higan holiday, whose customs fill the lives of Japanese people these autumn days. The Buddhist concept of «higan» can be translated as «th shore», that is, the world where the ancestors went and where their souls settled. Autumn Hegan Days — is a week that includes three days before and after the autumn equinox and the autumn equinox itself.

Before Hegan begins, the Japanese thoroughly clean the house, especially the home altar with photographs and supplies of departed ancestors, refresh flowers, and display ritual dishes and offerings. During the days of Hegan, Japanese families go to venerate the graves of their ancestors, order prayers and provide the necessary ritual honors.

Ritual dishes are prepared exclusively by vegetarian — reminders of the Buddhist prohibition of killing a living creature and eating the meat of the murdered person. The menu consists of beans, vegetables, mushrooms, broths are also prepared on a plant basis. Inari sushi is also always present on the table, which these days is filled with carrots, mushrooms and beans. From sweets — traditional ohagi-mochi or just ohagi. In the old days, they were served for a meager afternoon snack in peasant families, and in our time they have become a favorite dessert of the Japanese.

Much of the Buddhist concept of Hegan has acquired a special meaning in Japan, but the tradition of remembering ancestors has remained a saint for the Japanese for many centuries.

By September 23, the peak of summer sweltering heat and daytime heat passes (remember that « heat — until the days of Hegan»), and the fertile sunny season of « Indian summer» begins. There is also a saying in Japan: «Autumn Hegan looks like spring Hegan».

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