Seven Castles

Sakura

                                      

May 27, 2008

 

Sakura (Japanese cherry blossoms) is Japan's unofficial national flower. The blooming of these blossoms has been celebrated for many centuries and has been a very prominent part of the Japanese culture.

 

Sakura is indigenous to the Himalayas, including northern India, and to East Asian states such as China, Japan, and Korea. Japan has a wide variety of Sakura; well over 200 cultivars can be found there. Many were artificially hybridized or grafted by Japanese horticulturalists centuries ago.

 

Most of Sakura bloom for a couple of days in spring. The Japanese celebrate this time of the year with cherry blossom viewing parties right under the blooming trees.

 

Whereas in China the cherry blossom symbolizes feminine beauty, the feminine principle, or love in the language of herbs, in Japan the cherry blossoms are believed to exemplify the transient nature of life, because of their short blooming times. Falling blossoms are considered to be metaphors for fallen warriors who died bravely in a battle.

 

The Japanese nobility during the Heian period (794–1191) wanted to follow many practices from China including the prominent phenomenon of flower viewing where the imperial households, poets, singers, and other aristocrats would gather and celebrate under the blossoms.

 

During the festival, people come out in large numbers at parks, temples and shrines with family and friends to hold flower-viewing parties. The festival is held to celebrate the beauty of Sakura and gives the people a chance to relax and enjoy a beautiful view. From a distance, these trees appear as beautiful clouds while the beauty of single blossoms can be enjoyed from a closer distance. In some places, the blossoms are lit up in the evenings, which add to the beauty of the blossoms.

 

Traditionally, flower viewing involves a picnic party under the blooming trees. These parties have been a part of the Japanese culture for centuries and these days they are held both at public and private gardens across Japan. Some spots have been identified as particularly beautiful for viewing the cherry blossoms and can get crowed. It is a common practice to reserve a picnic spot at these popular places long before the party is to be held. The typical way of reserving a spot is by spreading one's sheet at the spot early in the morning and marking it either by the group's name or the party's time along with the starting time of the picnic. Another common method of reserving a spot is by having someone positioned on the spot till the rest of the group arrives to begin the picnic. 

【作者: zhangliping】【访问统计:】【2008年05月27日 星期二 05:04】【注册】【打印】