CHAPTER V
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
Outline of Topics: Birth and birthdays; marriage; death and funeral; mourning.—Holidays (national, local, class, and religions); the "five festivals"; New Year's holidays; the other four festivals; floral festivals; religious festivals.—Games; wrestling.—Theatre; scenery and wardrobes; chorus and pantomime; the Nō.—Music; dancing-girls.—Occidentalization.—Folk-lore; superstitions about lucky and unlucky days, hours, ages, years, etc.—Bibliography.
The three great events in the career of a Japanese are, of course, birth, marriage, and death, each of which is, therefore celebrated with much formality. When a child is born, he or she is the recipient of many presents, which, however, create an obligation that must eventually be cleared off. A very common but honorable present on such an occasion consists of eggs in small or large quantities, according to circumstances. When the first American baby was born in Mito, she was favored with a total of 456 eggs, besides dried fish, toys, Japanese robes, and other articles of clothing, etc., and her parents were favored with universal congratulations, diluted with condolences because the new baby was a girl instead of a boy! Japanese babyhood is blithesome.[1]
- ↑ "The Wee Ones of Japan," by Mae St. John Bramhall, can be recommended.
