The Significance of the Crane Symbol

Tea Ceremonies

The process of preparing and drinking green tea dates back to its introduced to Japan in the 8th century from China. The main purpose, besides drinking the tea, is for the guest to enjoy the hospitality of the host in a calming atmosphere, and to take a break from the fast pace of life. Tea ceremonies have varying levels of formality.

Initially, tea was used for medicinal purposes amongst the upper class. However, between the Muromachi Period of 1333-1537, tea became popular in all social classes, and became a luxury drunk for pleasure. Around the same time, tea parties with Zen-inspired simplicity and links to Buddhism developed. They stemmed from a Buddhist monk called Sen no Rikyu, and provided the basis for modern tea ceremonies.

A full tea ceremony is a multi hour event with varying levels of formality. It begins with a traditional meal and is followed by a bowl of thick tea and then a bowl of thin tea, however, ceremonies are often shorter. The mannerisms in a tea ceremony are specific to exact hand movements, and attendees are expected to wear modest clothing and avoid strong perfumes or other scents, as to not distract guests from the tea’s aroma.

Tea ceremonies take place in a tatami room; a traditional Japanese room with an open style and simplistic furniture. The doors are often low, forcing guests to bow and display humility. Participants are expected to sit in a seiza position, and the decorations in the room are carefully selected before each ceremony. Generally, a tea room is surrounded by a tranquil and peaceful garden, but this is not always the case for more modern ceremonies. The traditional garden does not have any bright or strong scented flowers, but there is a stone basin near the entrance to the tea room, where the visitors can wash their hands in the basin before entering the room.

To summarise, tea ceremonies are important in Japan because they represent and display key aspects of Japanese culture, including: Respect, tranquillity, harmony, humility, politeness, and courtesy.

Japanese Marriage – Meiji Era (1868 – 1912)

Before the Meiji Era, only the samurai class had the privilege of having a family name. In 1870, the Meiji government allowed all citizens to have a family name and during the following year the Census Registration Law was enacted, turning the lineal family into one unit of registration known as an ie, meaning that even if several families of the same ancestor lived separately, they were still registered as one ie. The ‘ie’ concept is the basis of the family system, and was strengthened by the establishment of the Civil Code in 1898. Under this system, the eldest male in the family was granted special rights, including the right to approve a marriage, decide the residence of family members, and manage and inherit family property. The Civil Code also stipulated that a wife enters the ie of the husband and bears the husband’s family name. Marriage in the Meiji Era meant a union of two families, or more precisely, an absorption of a wife by a husband’s family. This was because people couldn’t freely marry without the legal consent of their family heads.

Before the establishment of the Civil Code, marriage among common citizens was more flexible, with people able to easily marry, get a divorce, and remarry. However, the establishment of the ie system made marriage more rigid and spread the idea that marriage was to be lifelong. Marriage was not just a social norm, but also a necessity for people to be able to make a living – as many people during this period worked as farmers who needed the extra labour. Marriage was usually arranged by relatives or local matchmakers, so it was not uncommon for a bride and groom to meet for the first time at the their wedding ceremony. The ie system was inherently patriarchal, husbands were even legally allowed to murder their wives for infidelity until 1908.

Japanese Marriage – Showa Period (1926-1989)

The post-war Constitution (1946) abolished the system of marriage approval by family heads and made it so that marriage now took effect solely based on an agreement by a man and woman. The Civil Code was also revised in 1947, stating that a married couple can choose either family name to use on an equal basis, abolishing the system where a wife entered her husband’s family. The Census Registration Law, which made the lineal family one unit of registration, was revised to make the nuclear family their own separate unit. However, the revision didn’t go far enough to make the registration on an individual basis, and the legacy of the ie carries on even today. Marriage went through a rapid change during the high economic growth of 1955-1973. The economic shift from agriculture to industrialisation meant that there was a large increase in the number of salaried employees living in urban areas who formed their own nuclear families. There was a widespread belief that marriage meant a better life and a guaranteed rise in income. It was due to this belief that the population of those who remained unmarried was extremely low.

Despite these changes, half of all marriages were still arranged until the 1960s and married women would mark themselves by blackening their teeth and shaving their eyebrows. However, this changed during a period of high economic growth, as ‘love-based’ marriages surpassed arranged ones. The population of those who stayed unmarried was extremely low until the mid-1970s, when the 1973 oil crisis and the following low economic growth marked a turning point in views toward marriage. Slow economic growth meant that not everyone could expect to experience a better standard of living to come with marriage. More women had access to higher education and had better careers during this time too, and the average age of marriage began to rise in the mid-1970s.

Japanese Marriage – Heisei & Reiwa Period (Modern Day)

Today Japanese law stipulates that: The male partner must be 18 years of age or older and the female partner must be 16 years of age or older. A person who is under 20 years of age cannot get married in Japan without a parent’s approval. There is a form of common-law marriage but it does not have the same rights as a traditional marriage; a common law marriage is a legally recognized marriage between two people who have not purchased a marriage license or had their marriage solemnized by a ceremony. Arranged marriages still occur, but it’s a less serious affair and the bride and groom have more say.

A public opinion poll on divorce conducted by the Prime Minister’s Office in 1997 shows that more than 50 percent of both men and women supported the idea that a couple should divorce if they are not satisfied with each other, whereas in 1972, the support rate stood at around 20 percent. Another example of changing views about marriage is calls for revising the Civil Code to legally recognize separate family names between a married couple.

Same-sex marriage is still not recognized in Japan. However, as of 8 January 2021, there are 71 municipalities and 3 prefectures that issue same-sex partnership certificates. These aren’t legally recognised as marriage certificates but are still useful in civil matters such as hospital visitation rights and housing. Luckily, things seem to be moving in the right direction with numerous opinion surveys showing high levels of support for same-sex marriage among the Japanese public – notably among women and the younger generation.

Significant Japanese Traditions

• Yamayaki – Mountain Burning: In the Japanese language, they have a single word for burning down a mountain; “Yamayaki.” It’s an ancient ceremony which involves the burning down of vegetation before springtime, and, in the eyes of the Japanese, it’s a visually stunning event, with fireworks also being burnt fireworks to add to the display. The tradition itself dates back to when there were ancient disputes about land, and when the nation had a major problem with wild boars. One notable Yamayaki is the burning of Mount Wakakusa, meaning ‘young grass’, located in Nara, the former capital. It takes place on the fourth Saturday of each January, where citizens burn the mountain’s grass.
• Ojigi – Bowing: Ojigi is an extremely significant tradition in Japan, preformed at a variety of situations from sports events to weddings. It involves a person lowering their head or the upper part of their torso to convey: salutation, reverence, gratitude or apology. Ojigi was commonly related to the Samurai, a member of the military nobility and officer of Japan from the 12th century. The Japanese prefer to bow rather than shake hands, as it is considered to be respected and appreciated, showing courtesy. A handshake, if done, must be limp with little to no eye contact.
• Hatsuhi – Sunrise: Hatsuhi translates into English as ‘first sun’, and is the Japanese tradition of waking up at sunrise on New Year’s Day to see the first new sun of the year. In Japan, families like to have a large, traditional breakfast consisting of steamed rice, fermented soy beans, and seasoned dried seaweed. The day is not just connected to Hatsuhi, but numerous rituals and pastimes, such as the ringing of bells at Buddhist temples; which, along with Shinto, is the joint prime religion of Japan.
• Ehomaki – Sushi Rolls: Ehomaki is a Setsubun tradition which involves eating a whole, uncut sushi roll, whilst facing a lucky direction that changes annually. It used to be practiced in Osaka, but has spread nationwide due to marketing in Japanese convenience stores. Eating in Ehomaki is considered to be a special event which must be done in silence, and if the person carrying out the tradition faces in the lucky direction, they are said to be protected from the appearance of demons.

Women in 20th/21st Century Japanese Society

Women were given equal rights to men after the Second World War, however social prejudices remained as well as the expectation of traditional domestic roles. Economic and professional barriers still remain for women to this date. Legally, there are equal opportunities in the workplace, and there is a higher proportion of female Japanese workers than in the United States. Despite this, women continue to feel dominated by men professionally. 

• Women were given the right to vote in 1945. 
• Post-war reforms were written into the constitution in 1946, granting women civil rights. 
• Japan ranks 121st out of 153 for the Global Gender Gap.
• In a global survey of women in Parliament, Japan ranked 123rd out of 189.
• The average Japanese woman earns 40% less than her male colleague. 

The majority of working women have clerical positions, for example: secretarial positions. Women tend to fill part time jobs to care for children, and the majority of working women do have children. In 2003, the Japanese Government aimed to have 30% of senior roles filled by women. By 2015, this figure had reached a mere 3.5%. In 2020, to account for the low figure, the target was set at 7%, with 15% in private settings. Historically, Japanese women have stayed at home, looking after their children, whilst their husbands went to work. It is only since the Second World War that these social perceptions have changed legally but it is a battle that continues to be fought today, for greater freedoms and rights.

The role of women is often referred to as the ‘three submissions’: a traditional belief. It is thought by many that young women should ‘submit’ to their fathers, married women to their husbands and older women to their sons. This is still regarded as philosophy in contemporary Japan, highlighting the importance of culture and traditions today. The term ‘submit’ meant tending to housework and domestic roles: cooking cleaning, looking after children etc. Half of all women by the 1960’s had been forced into arranged marriages. Until 1908, it was legal for men to murder their wives for infidelity, highlighting the disparity between the sexes.

The Bento or Obento box is a tradition embedded in Japanese culture. It is a portion of rice, fish and vegetables usually provided for lunch. Over time, creative liberties have been taken, and packed lunches became competitive. Food would be made to look like anime characters, building or flowers. Although it seems to be a wholesome tradition, there has been much speculation about about what it represents for Japanese society. Women would make bento boxes for their children and husbands, again highlighting gender disparity. Ann Alison gave an interpretation of the bento box in her book (1991), describing it as ‘an ideological state apparatus’. 

To conclude, the role of the Japanese woman in society has changed exponentially over time, and change is still accelerating today. Women have gone from working in domestic roles to working in professional settings in clerical environments. Whilst this is a welcome change, gender disparity still exists in Japan, often embedded in the culture, for example, the bento box.

Traditional Japanese Costume

Traditional Japanese costume, is inextricably linked with status, take for example the ‘Furisode’ Kimono which is worn by single females to formal occasions. Regardless of personal intentions, if a young female wears a furisode they must take into account the ways in which their fashion will be interpreted by their community. In this scenario the long, draping, dangling sleeves are a symbolic flirt, and advertise the females desire for a mate, like a bird showing off their feathers. As well as being determined by individual status, traditional Japanese clothing is also determined by the formality of the event which is being attended. To an untrained eye, a formal Kimono may look no different from an informal one, which might be because often, notably amongst male Kimonos, the only difference is the quality of material.

Due to the signing of various commerce treaties, since the 1850’s Japan has become increasingly more western. Therefore traditional Japanese costume is becoming less prominent, especially in the modern Japanese workplace where the western business suit has established its presence. Whilst the meaning of fashion in Japanese tradition is noticeably objective and prescribed, it would seem false to deny the existence of similar concepts in western fashion. Despite the fact that no-one talks about the structure, because in the west we are ‘free to wear what we feel comfortable in’, certain clothing items have definite connotations, whether it be the choice of brand, or the length of a skirt. However, the west has one major advantage which is the existence of unisex clothes, for example the jean and hoodie combination, this provides a space in fashion for those who would rather refrain from expressing a fixed identity through their clothing. In contrast Japanese traditional costume asserts clear dichotomies between males and females, and between the married and the single, which present clear obstacles for certain members of society. Would a single woman in her 40’s want to adopt a furisode, kimono for single women, even though all of the other females wearing them will likely be in their 20’s?