Marian Stanescu :: My Journal

Shichi-go-san literally means seven, five, and three. When children reach these ages, they are taken by parents or grandparents to a Shinto shrine in the neighborhood to celebrate their growth on November 15th.

Originally, this was a custom done by the families of the warriors and aristocrats but since the Edo period ordinary families have started to practice it as well.

Girls who’ve reached the ages of three and seven and boys who are five are dressed in traditional kimonos: long sleeved ones for girls and haori and hakama with a fake sword for boys. They are given chitoseame at shrines, shich are long red and white candies.

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* Excerpt from An English Introduction to Japan and its People by Yoshie Matsumoto, Nova Books, 2000.

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