September is the 8th month in the old lunar calendar, called "Nagatsuki" or "month of long nights" because the days have become shorter and the nights longer. September by the lunar calendar is the time to harvest the rice, and offerings of the newly harvested grain are made by the
emperor to the gods.
Modern September is a bit of a half-baked month as the weather is concerned. Temperatures start to fall somewhat, but especially in the first half of September it can still be very hot and muggy. In fact, much of the summer heat lingers until past the middle of the month -
the "switch" comes usually around the autumn equinox on the 23rd, when temperatures
suddenly drop.
Monthly precipitation amounts are large in September due to the active autumnal rain front and typhoons (see "Nihyaku-toka" below). The high-pressure system in the Pacific Ocean begins to weaken and
a cold high moves down from the Asian continent. The two
high-pressure systems collide and create a stationary front over the Japanese archipelago. This stationary front is referred to as
the "autumnal front", and the rain during this period is called "akisame" (autumn rain) or "shurin"; an other name is "aki no
naga-ame" (the long rains of autumn).
[The full autumn moon]
National holidays and events in September are:
September 1: Bosai no Hi, Disaster Prevention Day
September 1 was the day on which the devastating Great Kanto Earthquake struck in 1923. In the 1960s, this day was designated as Disaster Prevention Day. Various types of drills in preparation for (unfortunately inevitable) future disasters are held on this day, not only for earthquakes, but also for tsunami and typhoons.
Around September 1: Nihyaku-toka, the Two-Hundred and Tenth Day
This day, counted 210 days from Risshun, the first day of spring, falls in early September. It is the time that the rice plant flowers bloom, but also a period when typhoons are rather frequent, causing damage to the rice fields. Heavy rainfall and strong winds can wipe out the year's crop if they come before the autumn harvest. Local farming communities often developed ritual festivals in order to prevent storms from damaging the rice plants.
September 9: Choyo, Double Ninth Festival
The repetition of the number nine was considered very auspicious in China, where this custom came from. In Japan, the festival is also known as the Chrysanthemum Festival (Kiku no Sekku). It is one of the five seasonal celebrations know as sekku. In China and Japan it was believed that the chrysanthemum had the power to give long life. In Japan, this flower is also considered to have the power to exorcise evil. The festival is celebrated at both Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples from the wish for longevity. It is observed by drinking chrysanthemum sake and eating dishes such as
chestnut rice (kuri-gohan). The chrysanthemum is the symbol of the emperor as well. The flower was imported from China in the 8th c., and with its elegant simplicity and fine aroma suited Japanese tastes, so the chrysanthemum was eagerly cultivated and displayed. The chrysanthemums grown in Japan today are among the finest in the world. However, although there may be some early blooming flowers in the course of September, the real chrysanthemum season is in October and November.
Third Monday of September: Keiro no Hi, Respect for the Aged Day
A public holiday celebrated annually to honor elderly citizens, a custom which started in 1966. Originally, it was held on September 15, but since 2003 this has been changed to the third Monday of September due to the "Happy Monday System." On this day, senior citizens are honored for their contributions to the nation and
their long life is celebrated. The average life span for Japanese men and
women is among the highest in the world. It is a festival which is
typical for a Confucian society. Japanese media take the opportunity to feature the elderly, reporting on the population and highlighting the oldest people in the country. In the Edo period, rice cakes with the characters "kotobuki" (long life) were given to persons celebrating their longevity. Nowadays, the Japanese government gives a commemorative sake cup to Japanese who reach the age of 100. In the Japanese language, there are specific words for indicating people of advanced age (in the old "kazoedoshi" system of counting the age of persons): 61 years old is called kanreki; 70 years old is koki; 77 years kiju; 88 years beiju; 90 years sotsuju; and 99 years hakuju. [Kazoe-doshi system: a person was considered one year old at birth, and became a year older every time at New Year. So one was considered one or even two years older than the actual age]
Around September 17: Moon-viewing Festival (Tsukimi)
The Japanese variant of the East Asian Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as Chushu no Meigetsu, The Harvest Full Moon, or Jugoya, Fifteenth Night (in the old calendar it was held on the the night of the 15th of the 8th month). Tsukimi traditions include displaying decorations made from Japanese pampas grass (susuki, see below) and
eating rice dumplings called "tsukimi dango" in order to celebrate the
beauty of the moon. Seasonal produce, such as satoimo or yams are also offered to the full moon, and sake formed an important part of the offerings. In October (on the 13th of the 9th month in the old calendar, and therefore called Jusanya, Thirteenth Night), a similar festival is held for the waxing moon, with as main difference that the potatoes are replaced by chestnuts or beans.
[Otani cemetery in Kyoto on Shubun no Hi]
Shubun no Hi, the Autumnal Equinox
Falls on the 22nd or 23rd of September - on this day, day and night are of exactly the same length. From now on, nights will be getting longer (another reason for the name of the month, "Nagatsuki"). It is a day to revere one's ancestors and remember the dead. During the Ohigan week (the equinox day falls in the middle of this week) people visit cemeteries of deceased family members and clean the graves. As with Shunbun no Hi in March, the weather changes around this time: after the autumnal equinox, one can truly sense the fall. From the old ritual of offering food to the ancestors developed the custom of eating botamochi, a ball of soft rice covered with sweetened bean paste.
Popular flowers and plants of September are:
The "seven flowers of autumn":
- Bush clover (hagi, Lespedeza bicolor). Deciduous sub-shrub. Arching branches grow in clusters from a single root stock. Pink pea flowers come in panicles at the ends of the branches in late summer. The intricate beauty of the flowers and rustic charm of the plant appeal to the Japanese, and in the heat of late summer promise cooler, more serene autumn days. A good place to enjoy hagi in Tokyo is Mukojima-Hyakkaen Garden, which I have discussed in my "Haiku Travels" series because of its many haiku monuments. In Kamakura, Hokaiji Temple, close to Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, is a good place. In Kyoto I advise to visit the Nashinoki Shrine (close to Gosho, the Imperial Palace) and Jorinji temple (close to Demachiyanagi Station).
[Hagi]
- Japanese pampas grass (susuki, Miscanthus sinensis). A stout clump-forming perennial, to 2 m high when in flower, with smooth stems. The leaves are slightly toothed, rough and linear. Flowers grow in yellowish-brown tassels that are 20-40 cm long in late summer. This flower is an essential part of the Japanese autumn landscape, when the seeds ripen, giving a silkily sheen to whole mountain sides. The reeds were in the past used for thatching roofs.
[Susuki]
- Kudzu vine (kuzu, Pueraria Thunbergiana). A fast growing vine. The flowers grow in 10–25 cm long panicles, which consist of 30 to 80 individual flowers. Each flower is 1–1.5 cm long, purple and fragrant. The flowers produce a lot of nectar and are visited by many insects such as bees, butterflies and moths. The plant flowers in late summer, which is followed by the production of hairy, flat legumes, containing three to ten hard seeds. Also called "arrowroot," a high-quality thickening starch is made from the roots of this vine (kuzuko). The most famous kuzu comes from Yoshino in Nara Prefecture. It has many uses such as kuzumochi (a snack), goma dofu (a vegetarian dish) and kuzuyu (a herbal tea used as folk medicine). Kuzu fiber is used traditionally to make clothing and paper.
- Fringed pink (nadeshiko, Dianthus superbus). A widespread hardy perennial growing to 50 cm. The flowers are mainly solitary, with long calyces, in shades of pink, from mid-summer onward. The intense fringing of the petals camouflages that there are only five of them. The delicate beauty of the flowers belies the hardness and strength of the plant. This has made it the symbol of the ideal woman in traditional literature - a combination of strength and grace.
[Nadeshiko]
- Valerian (ominaeshi, Patrinia scabiosaefolia). 60-120 cm
high plants with 4-8 mm tiny yellow flowers, arranged in flat dense
clusters. The stems are slightly hairy. Grows in fields and other sunny
habitats throughout Japan.
- Japanese Bonset / Japanese Throughwort (fujibakama, Eupatorium stoechadosmum). 100-150 cm high. Flowers sit in massive heads on top of the stem and contain several small white or pink florets. The leaves are large. Grows in fields and at roadsides.
- Bellflower or balloon flower (kikyo, Platycodon grandiflorum). Blue, 4-5 cm saucer shaped flowers, which resemble traditional paper balloons, hence the name. Beautiful kikyo flowers can be found in the garden of Rozanji temple in Kyoto.
[Kikyo]
These seven autumn flowers which are already named in the Manyoshu poetry anthology of 759, provide much visual enjoyment, but unlike their spring counterparts, they are not intended for picking or eating.
[Higanbana]
The spider lily or equinox flower (higanbana, Lycoris radiata) has scarlet trumpets, spidery because of the long stamens and pistils and narrow curved perianth segments, in a cluster at the top of fleshy stems that are up to 30 cm tall. At this time there are no leaves, they come later, coming straight from the bulb which is poisonous. Found on the edges of fields and in graveyards due to the ancient belief that it is one of the flowers in paradise.
Mexican aster or cosmos (kosumosu, akizakura, Cosmos bipinnata). This medium-sized flowering herbaceous plant in the daisy family Asteraceae stems from Mexico, was brought to Europe, and at the end of the 19th c. came to Japan. It is now widely planted and also occurs in the wild in autumn. The flowers may be pink, violet or white. A beautiful spot to see cosmos flowers is Hannyaji Temple in Nara, where the flowers stand next to old stone Buddhas.
[Japanese pears]
The fruit of the season is the Japanese pear (nashi), a popular autumn dessert fruit. In contrast to Western pears, the Japanese variety is round so that it has the appearance of an apple, and its crispness, but it then surprises with the juiciness and flavor of a pear. There are brown and green varieties; among the green ones, the nijisseiki is very well-known.
Japanese grapes (budo) are eaten fresh in late summer and autumn. The small and seedless Japanese grapes are sweet and have a thin skin. Mountain grapes have been growing naturally in Japan for a long time. Today's Koshu grapes are said to have been cultivated since the Kamakura period, especially in Yamanashi. About 90% of Japanese grapes are grown as table grapes.
September is also the season of the Pacific saury (sanma,
Cololabis saira), a long and slender fish of the northern waters which grows to a
length of 35 cm. On sea currents from North America it arrives at the end of August at the
north coast of Hokkaido, and it reaches northern Honshu
in September and October. The oily and relatively inexpensive fish is
popular in home cooking.
[Sanma]
The insect of autumn is the bell cricket (suzumushi, Meloimorpha japonica), known for its chiming song and therefore often kept in a small cage as a pet (for example by Chieko, the protagonist of Kawabata's novel The Old Capital).
The best festivals in September are:
- Karasu Sumo Wrestling on Sept. 9 at the Kamigamo Shrine in Kyoto - shrine priests imitate the voice of crows and their manner of jumping,
after which local children compete in the shrine's annual Karasu Sumo
wrestling event (from 10:00).
- Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Matsuri on Sept 14-16 at the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine in Kamakura - yabusame (archery on horseback) on Sept. 16.
- Danjiri Matsuri on Sept. 15-16 in Kishiwada (Osaka) - a fight between large floats crashing into each other, while young men waving fans balance themselves on the roofs of the floats.
- Menkake Gyoretsu on Sept. 18 at the Goryo Shrine in Kamakura - procession of people wearing grotesque masks from the Goryo Shrine to Gokurakuji Temple (from 13:30). Based on a legend that Yoritomo had an affair with an outcast girl whom he visited accompanied by masked men to hide his identity. The masks are antique pieces from the mid 18th c.
- Comb Festival on Sept. 24 at Yasui Konpiragu Shrine in Kyoto - offering of thanks to women's combs and hair ornaments (from 13:00). Procession of women with various historical hairstyles.
- Kangetsu no Yube on Sept 28-30 at Daikakuji in Kyoto - moon viewing party (from 17:00-). Dragon boats sail on Osawa Pond as in Heian times for this festival of the harvest moon.
- Uneme Festival on Sept 30 at Sarusawa Pond in Nara - procession of Hanaguruma from JR Nara St to Sarusawa Pond from 17:00. Boats and gagaku on Sarusawa Pond from 19:00-19:30. During the Nara period, "uneme" was a term indicating a female courtier who attended to the emperor in the inner palace. One such palace lady, lamenting that she had fallen out of favor with the emperor, threw herself into Sarusawa Pond. It is said that the Uneme Shrine was constructed to console her spirit.
[Danjiri Matsuri]