Hina Matsuri

March 3rd is a festival in Japan called Hina Matsuri, the Doll Festival, also known as Girl’s Day. On this day people pray for the happiness and health of girls. Families with daughters bring out a tiered display of dolls for the occasion. There are 15 dolls in the set, not to mention furniture and few trees. The dolls wear costumes of the Imperial Court from the Heian period (794-1192).

There are normally seven steps covered in red felt to a full display and the order is important. The top step is reserved for the Emperor and Empress sitting in front of a gold folding screen. Next there are three court ladies, each holding a tool for serving sake. The middle one is seated. The next step is the home of five male musicians. Three hold types of drums, one has a flute, and the singer holds a fan. Two of the drum players stand while the rest sit. The fourth step holds the Minister of the Left and the Minister of the Right. The Minister of the Right is often a young man, while the Minister of the Left is a much older man as his position was superior and the one chosen was known for his wisdom. They often have bows and arrows. The next step has a mandarin orange tree and a sakura (cherry) tree with three servants or samurai in between. The next two platforms have a whole bunch of furniture. The sixth is stuff they used at the palace and the seventh is stuff they used while away.

That was probably more than you ever wanted to know about dolls. But I have more! These dolls are SUPER expensive. In a lot of cases they are treasured heirlooms that are passed down from mother to daughter for generations. When a girl is born she usually receives a set of these dolls from her parents or grandparents before her first Hina Matsuri. But since they are so expensive, and because families who live in apartments don’t always have room for a towering doll display, sets of just the emperor and empress are also common. If the issue is money the parents will try to buy an additional doll or two every year until they have a full set.

The dolls must be put away very soon after the festival. An old superstition states that if you are slow to put the dolls away the girl will be doomed to marry late. Dolls are used in this festival because it was once believed that dolls possessed the power to contain bad spirits.

This festival is not to be confused with Children’s Day on May 5th. While it’s called Children’s Day it is traditionally the celebration of male children. Children’s Day is a national holiday in Japan while Hina Matsuri is not.

Many of you (assuming you are my age or younger) may have actually seen this festival on TV as a child in the form of Pokémon. Or at least an approximation of it. In the episode “Princess vs. Princess” we see the Princess Festival and a battle between Misty and Jesse in a tournament for a set of one of a kind Pokémon Princess Dolls.

Misty wants the dolls because she is the youngest of four sisters. They all had their own sets of dolls and Misty was sad because she wanted one of her very own. And you can see the actual traditional Hina dolls in these flashbacks.

Jesse also wants the dolls because she never had any Princess Dolls as a child. But Misty kicks her butt and wins the day. With Psyduck no less.  As a consolation prize James and Meowth dress up like Princess Dolls to make Jesse feel better.

Bet you never thought you were learning about Japanese culture while watching Pokémon. Also, if those Pokémon Hina Dolls really existed I would buy them in a heartbeat.