Tanabata Festival Held in


New York


On July 7, 2003, the Tanabata Festival, an annual Japanese cultural tradition, was celebrated by the International Shinto Foundation at the Interfaith Center of New York. The festival originates in an ancient legend of two stars who had fallen in love but were allowed to meet on only one day a year.

After formally offering a tea ceremony to the traditional Kami altar set up against one wall, officiating priest Rev. Mitsutaka Inui played Japanese flute as Shrine Maidens (Miko-san) performed the Miko-mai ceremonial dance. Participants then wrote their wishes on colored strips of paper to be tied to the branches of three potted bamboo trees. The event ended with distribution of Japanese sweets provided by Toraya, the well-known New York tea house and confectionary.

Rev. Inui, a priest of Kamigamo Jinja in Kyoto, is currently managing the International Shinto Foundation's New York center and performing Shinto rituals as requested by the local Japanese community. Ms. Eri Akamine and Ms. Kaoru Fukuda served as Miko for the ceremony and dance performance.












What is Tanabata festival ?
　　Tanabata （literary, the evening of the 7th）means the annual Star Festival in connection with Japanese culture. It is celebrated on July 7th or in rural areas a month later according to the lunar calendar.

　　The festival has its origin in an ancient Chinese legend involving the Cowherd Star, or HIKOBOSHI (Altair) and the Weaver Star, or ORIHIME (Vega) of the Milky Way. According to the legend, the two stars had fallen in love and did not work hard, so the tutelary god of the skies put them on the opposite side of the Milky Way and allowed them to meet only on that day of the year −if the weather is clear.

　　To pray for their happy reunion, Japanese people hang long narrow strips of colored paper and other decorations on bamboo branches which are placed outside of the house. Children also write their wishes on pieces of paper and hang on the bamboo branches as well. Thus, Tanabata Festival involves the whole family and is widely celebrated in homes and schools regardless of religious affiliation. If it rains on that evening, however, it is said that the Milky way will be flooded and the two lovers will lose their once a year chance to meet each other.

　　This legend assimilated to TAMA-matsuri which is traditional festival in Japan for many years to pray for and appease the souls of the dead, and it became a present style by merging with bon celebrations.