Spring in Japan comes only when the ume-matsuri (plum tree) blooms. The sakura trees awaken next. The blossom has been spread throughout the country from mid-March to April-May. This year it is expected from March 13 to April 24.
The ume and sakura blossoms move from South to North, filling up all of Japan with color and fragrance. The ume blossoms first, despite the slight chill of early spring. This probably made her a symbol of courage and overcoming hardships. And the heat-loving and delicate sakura develops its potential only at a temperature of 18°C.
Yes, their lush presence is felt all over the island, but their beauty is almost elusive and lasts only 7-10 days. So when the magic happens, even the busiest Japanese run into the gardens. With friends and loved ones, they enjoy a picnic and philosophical conversations about the transience of life.
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The Legend of the Sakura
The impermanence of this enchanting beauty is so deeply embedded in the subconscious of the Japanese, that they created the legend of the sakura:
One day the god Ninigi descended from the high heavens upon Japan. Two daughters of the mountains were offered to him as an offerings. The name of the younger one meant “blooming,” and the older one “high rock.” Ninigi chose the younger daughter as his wife, while he found the older one ugly and sent her back. The choice was fatal. The mountain god became furious and uttered a prophecy: if Ninigi had chosen his eldest daughter to be his wife, the life of his descendants would be as enduring and lasting as the rocks and mountains. And since the choice was made in favor of blooming beauty, his descendants would live a stormy and rich life, but one as short as a sakura blossom.
History
In addition to incredible legend and admired sayings, there is also a true story. The traditional admiration of the blossoms (hanami) comes from ancient times. In the 3rd century, during the Heian era, the Emperor’s servants liked to spend exquisite leisure time under the ume branches. They entertained themselves with games, drank delicious drinks, and composed poetry.
The ume was first imported from China. The Japanese regarded the ume as a symbol of China, because they revered China as the ancestor of high living standards. Buddhism, writing, tea, applied arts, and the precious ume came to Japan from there. Years later, along with the mountain plum, sakura and other flowering trees began to be revered. Thus the boundaries of tradition became even broader and more beautiful.
The philosophy of hanami
The Japanese have a very deep sense of life as they remind themselves every year of its characteristic of ending. The sakura, as an image of our temporary presence here, occupies a key position in Japanese culture. The strength and freshness with which the sakura enters spring end in a few days with the falling petals. But, falling beautifully. The sad fascination of things (mono no aware) is a Japanese aesthetic, the ability to look at somber things and see a special sad beauty in them.
In Sei Shonagon’s “Notes by the Headboard,” there is a very clear depiction of this perception:
“I like it if the house where a woman lives alone has a decrepit, abandoned appearance. Let the fence fall down. Let the water grasses drown out the pond, the garden overgrown with wormwood, and green stems treading through the sand on the paths….
How much sadness and how much beauty in it!
I hate the house where a lonely woman looks like an expert housewife to mend and mend everything, where the fence is solid and the gate is bolted.
The beauty of impermanence was even used in military propaganda during World War II. In the “Song of the Japanese Youth”, there is an appeal to warriors who are ready to die “like sakura blossoms”. Eternity stands relentlessly before the eyes of the Japanese. Even in such a low thing as propaganda, they have added deep meaning to the falling sakura blossoms.
Where to go for hanami
The earliest blooms can be caught in the South in mid-March. And, if you’re going to start in the North, you should go to Japan in early April. Many people only choose Tokyo, but there are plenty of inexpensive provinces in Japan where you can admire cherry trees:
- Kairakuen Garden (Mito).
- Atami Plum Orchard (Shizuoka)
- Murayama Park (Kyoto)
- Fort Goryukaku (Hokadate)
- Kema Sakuranomiya Park (Osaka)
- Nara Park (Nara)
- Hiroshima Peace Park (Hiroshima)
- Hizushiyama Park Shibazakura Hill (Chichibu)
- Takamatsu Park (Morioka)
- Matsumoto Castle (Matsumoto)
- Hanamiyama Park (Fukushima)
- Hirosaki Park (Hirosaki)
- Osaka Castle (Osaka)
- Arashiyama, Tenryuji Shrine (Kyoto)
- Kaminoyama Castle and Yamadera Shrine (Tohoku)
