Newborn Baby in Japan

"Without my children, my house would be clean and my wallet would be full but my HEART would be empty" - Anonymous

As we all know, Japan is known as land of the rising sun and well developed from the aspects of their technology and building also their well-preserved culture. In Japanese culture of celebrating newborn baby, they are few ritual that they practicing for the newborn.

SHICHIYA-NO-WAI (Seventh Day Celebration)

This ritual is held on the seventh night from the baby’s birth. In the morning of this day, the family of the new born baby would offer a stack of rice cake on sanbou(square stand made of plain wood for putting offerings to the altar) with noshi(narrow hexagon paper) displaying it in tokonoma(alcove) and celebrate with red rice

MEIMEI (naming the baby)

A document of naming is written on a thick Japanese paper by folded in half horizontally and then in three. The baby’s name would be written in the center, his/her birth day and names of the parents on the left side

A document that contain the baby's name, their birth date and their parents name

MIYAMAIRI (shrine visit)

Naming should be done within seven days after the baby’s birth. Afterwards, the family would visit a tutelary deity to thank and to inform their baby’s birth. In the old times, they used to give visits 120 days after birth but today, boys usually visit on the 32^nd day, girls on the 33^rd day.

The baby and the family visit the tutelary deity (the one who wearing orange silk)

KUIZOME (first meal)

It has been a ritual since the Ashikaga period (14^th-16^th century) to pray for the child’s safe growth. It is done on the 120^th day after baby’s birth. The baby will eat a simple Japanese meal on this day. They prayed to keep away famine from the baby

Kuizome - first time meal for the baby