Tanabata Matsuri – Orihime and Hikoboshi Star Festival

Japan has many festivals that are expected by many Japanese and foreigners. The Tanabata Matsuri, which is also known as the Festival of the Stars, and even as the Seventh Night Festival is one of the most anticipated of the summer, famous for the legend of Orihime and Hikoboshi and their tanzaku decorations.

The festival takes place on the seventh night of the seventh month of the year, starting on the 7th of July and lasting until August, but this date varies depending on the region and country where it is being celebrated. The festival is also celebrated in China, Taiwan, Korea,

Origin of the Tanabata Matsuri Festival

The Tanabata Matsuri Festival (七夕まつり) originated in China. The festival was brought by Empress Koken in 775, having its attribution in the Imperial Palace of Kyoto, in the Heian period. Being popularized in the Edo Period, having its mixture in the festival of Obon.

This festival is held throughout Japan on different dates during the summer, the place with the biggest celebration is in the city of Sendai, capital of Miyagi Prefecture, where more than 3000 bamboo poles are erected along the central streets, which attracts many visitors during the festival season.

Origin Legend – Orihime and Hikoboshi

The legend of the Tanabata festival consists of the love story of two stars, Orihime (Vega) and hikoboshi (Altair).

“A long, long time ago, there lived near the river of stars, Amanogawa (天の川 Milky Way), a princess who had the name of Orihime (織姫), who was called the “Weaver Princess”, because she wove beautiful clothes, however, she was always sad because she was always busy and didn't have time to fall in love.

Her father, Emperor "Tenkou-Sama (天工 Heavenly Lord)", noticed his daughter's sadness, so he introduced her to a young boy, who called himself "Hikoboshi (彦星 Prince Shepherd)", because he believed that he was the ideal match for her daughter.

The two fell in love, and from that moment on, their lives revolved around love, so they put aside their daily chores and obligations.

The Celestial Lord, saddened by the irresponsibility of the couple, decided to separate them, forcing them to live on opposite sides of the Milky Way.

Allowing them to meet only once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, as long as they fulfilled their obligations.

So every year, on this date, from the mouth of the Milky Way, a boatman from the moon takes Orihime to meet her lover, Hikoboshi. Although, in case the princess did not carry out her duties as well as possible, the Heavenly Lord would make it rain, flooding the river and preventing the boatman from coming to get her.

On these occasions, the Kasasagi (group of birds), helped the princess to cross the river, forming a bridge of birds over the Milky Way.”

Tanzaku – Decoration of the Tanabata

One of the decorations and act that are done in the Tanabata Matsuri, which contains great symbolism, is the Tanzaku (短冊).

It is a tradition that on the day of the Festival, people write wishes on small notes, and that at the end they place the notes tied to bamboo. This custom began in 1818.

Tanzaku tickets have the following colors and meanings:

• white (peace)
• Yellow (money)
• green (hope)
• Red passion)
• rose (love)
• Blue (protection of the skies)

At the end of the celebration, the tickets are burned, with the intention that the wishes reach the heavens. So that according to Legend, the stars Altair and Vega can fulfill their wishes.

Song by Tanabata Matsuri

There is a festival song that all children learn in school, the lyrics are as follows:

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Sasa no ha sara-sara Nokiba ni yureru Ohoshi-sama kira-kira Kin Gin sunago Goshiki no tanzaku Watashi ga kaita Ohoshi-sama kira-kira Sora kara miteru

笹の葉 さらさら 軒端 に ゆれる お星さま キラキラ 金 銀 砂ご 五色 の たんざく 私 が かいた お星さま キラキラ 空 から みてる

Bamboo leaves, murmur, murmur, fanning your ends The stars shine, shine, Like gold and silver dust On long, colored papers, I wrote (my wishes) The stars shine, shine, watching from the sky

Tanabata Matsuri in Japan

There are several Tanabata Festivals in Japan, each city takes place on a different date. It is not possible to present a list with the exact date, because things can change. For this reason, we will leave a list with the names of the festivals, city and month.

It usually happens on the sixth or seventh day of the month, or the entire first week. The best thing is to search on the official website of the prefecture in question. Just search for the name of the event that I will leave in Japanese, so you can find the exact date and location.

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Festival	name in japanese	City/Province	Month
Mobara Festival	茂原七夕まつり	Mobara, Chiba	July
Hodachi Tanabata Chirico Festival	宝立七夕キリコ祭り	Hodachi-cho, Suzu, Ishikawa	August
Taira Festival	平七夕まつり	Taira, Iwaki, Fukushima	August
Fussa Festival	福生七夕まつり	Fussa, Tokyo	August
Oyama no Tanabata Nagare	尾山の七夕流し	Oyama, Kurobe, Toyama	August
Hachinohe Tanabata Festival	八戸七夕まつり	Hachinohe, Aomori	July
Noshiro Nebunagashi (Nodoka Festival)	能代役七夕（能代ねぶながし）	Noshiro, Akita	August
Tanabata Festival of the Iruma River	入間川七夕まつり	Sayama, Saitama	August
Tsuchiura Kirara Festival	土浦キララまつり	Tsuchiura, Ibaraki	August
Octa Festival	大分七夕まつり	Octa, Octa	August
Maebashi Festival	前橋七夕まつり	Maebashi, Gunma	July
Sendai Festival	仙台七夕まつり	Sendai, Miyagi	August
Morioka Festival	盛岡七夕まつり	Morioka, Iwate	August
Shimizu Festival	清水七夕まつり	Ala Shimizu, Shizuoka, Shizuoka	July
Metropolis Water Festival	水都まつり	Ogaki, Gifu	August
Myth Kinmon Festival (festival)	水戸黄門まつり	Myth, Ibaraki	August
Fukaya Festival	深谷七夕まつり	Fukaya, Saitama	July
Kamifukuoka Festival	上福岡七夕まつり	Kamifukuoka, Fujimino, Saitama	August
Shonan Hiratsuka Festival	湘南ひらつか七夕まつり	Hiratsuka, Kanagawa	July
Matsusaka Festival	松阪七夕まつり	Matsusaka, Mie	August
Ogawamachi Festival	小川町七夕まつり	Ogawamachi, Saitama	July
Funami Festival	舟見七夕まつり	Funami, Nyuzen, Toyama	July
Sanctuary Summer Festival	七夕神社夏祭り	Ogori, Fukuoka	July
Painting Lantern Festival	七夕絵どうろうまつり	Yuzawa, Akita	August
Launch of the Tanabata Balloon	七夕バルーンリリース	Tokushima, Tokushima	July
Yamaguchi Tanabata Lantern Festival	山口七夕ちょうちんまつり	Yamaguchi, Yamaguchi	August
Miki-machi Ikenobe Tanabata Festival	三木町いけのべ七夕まつり	Miki, Kagawa	August
Takaoka Tanabata Festival	高岡七夕まつり	Takaoka, Toyama	August
Toede's Tanabata Festival	戸出七夕まつり	Toede-machi, Takaoka, Toyama	July
Furumachi Tanabata Festival	古町七夕まつり	Furumachi, Chuo-ku, Niigata, Niigata	July
Keio University's Tanabata SFC Festival	慶應義塾大学SFC七夕祭	Fujisawa, Kanagawa	July
Kiryu Yagi-bushi Festival	桐生八木節まつり	Kiryu, Gunma	August
Hashimoto Festival	橋本七夕まつり	Midori-ku, Sagamihara, Kanagawa	August
Tanabata Festival at Osaka Shrine	機物神社七夕まつり	Katano, Osaka	July
Tanabata Festival in downtown Tokyo	下町七夕まつり	Taito Ward, Tokyo	July
Endoji Festival	円頓寺七夕まつり	Nagoya, Aichi	July
Echigo-Murakami Festival	越後村上七夕祭	Murakami, Niigata	August
Ichinomiya Festival	一宮七夕まつり	Ichinomiya, Aichi	July
Angel Festival	安城七夕まつり	Angel, Aichi	August
Asaya Festival	阿佐谷七夕まつり	Asaya, Suginami-ku, Tokyo	August
Festival of the Seven Nettles	けんか七夕まつり	Kesen-cho, Rikuzentakata, Iwate	August
Ugoku Tanabata Festival	うごく七夕まつり	Rikuzentakata, Iwate	August

Tanabata Matsuri in Brazil

In Brazil, the Festival das Estrelas was held for the first time in the city of assaí in the State of Paraná in 1978. Afterwards, the event was held annually in Bairro da Liberdade, in the city of São Paulo. Normally in Brazil, the festival takes place on the 7th and 8th of July.

Nowadays, the festival is held in many other Brazilian cities, such as Santo André and Ribeirão Preto, Araraquara and ABC. Having a typical colorful decoration, presentations, folk dances and even shows.