Tsukimi: Difference between revisions

{{Nihongo|'''Tsukimi'''|[[Wiktionary:月見|月見]]}} or {{Nihongo|'''Otsukimi'''|お月見}}, meaning, "''moon-viewing"'', also known as {{Nihongo|'''Jugoya'''|十五夜}}, are Japanese festivals honoring the autumn moon, a variant of the [[Mid-Autumn Festival]]. The celebration of the [[full moon]] typically takes place on the 15th day of the eighth month of the traditional [[Japanese calendar]]; the [[Lunar phase|waxing moon]] is celebrated on the 13th day of the ninth month. These days normally fall in September and October of the modern [[solar calendar]].

Tsukimi refers to the Japanese tradition of holding parties to view the [[harvest moon]]. The custom is thought to have originated with Japanese aristocrats during the [[Heian period]]; influenced by the Chinese custom of [[Mid-Autumn Festival]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Tsukimi: Japan's Mid-Autumn Harvest Moon Festival - Japan Rail Pass |url=https://www.japan-experience.com/all-about-japan/tokyo/events-festivals/tsukimi-harvest-moon-festival |website=Japan Experience |accessdate=21 April 2022 |language=en |date=21 August 2019}}</ref> they would gather to recite [[poetry]] under the full moon of the eighth month of the [[solar calendar]], known as the "Mid-Autumn Moon."<ref>{{cite web |title="Tsukimi": The Japanese Tradition of Autumn Moon Viewing |url=https://www.nippon.com/en/features/jg00115/tsukimi-the-japanese-tradition-of-autumn-moon-viewing.html |website=nippon.com |accessdate=13 September 2019 |language=en |date=19 September 2018}}</ref> On the evening of the full moon, it is traditional to gather in a place where the Moon can be seen clearly, decorate the scene with Japanese pampas grass, and to serve white rice dumplings (known as ''Tsukimi dango''), [[taro]], [[edamame]], [[chestnut]]s and other seasonal foods, plus [[sake]] as offerings to the Moon in order to pray for an abundant harvest. These dishes are known collectively as {{nihongo|Tsukimi dishes|月見料理|tsukimi ryōri}}. Due to the ubiquity of sweet potato or taro among these dishes, the tradition is known as {{nihongo|Imomeigetsu|芋名月}} or "Potato harvest moon" in some parts of Japan.