(The festival day for children aged seven, five and three)
Shichi-Go-San is a traditional rite of passage and festival day in Japan for three and seven year-old girls and three and five year-old boys, held annually on November 15. Shichi-Go-San is not a national holiday, it’s generally observed on the nearest weekend.
Today, parents celebrate shichi-go-san as their boys turn three and five years of age and as their girls turn three and seven. The boys don on haori jackets and hakama trousers, while the girls would wear a special ceremonial kimono when making their shichi-go-san visit. In recent years though, an increasing number of children are wearing Western-style suits and dresses.
Naturally, I went to a local shrine and dressed up for the Shichi-Go-San festival.Chitoseame (thousand year candy), is given to children on Shichi-Go-San. Chitoseame is long, thin, red and white candy, which symbolizes and ensures healthy growth and long life. It is given in a bag with a crane and a turtle on it, which represent long life and it’s a one of an auspicious sign in Japan.
