Japanese

wedding
traditions.
 Joining two people and two
families.
 In ancient times, Japanese weddings
were celebrated around a low dining
table with neighbors and relatives. Over
the centuries, they started to hold
weddings at shrines, hotels, and
ceremony halls.

 A Japanese wedding ceremony may

be Shinto, Christian, Buddhist, or non-
religious. Couples choose the style of
their wedding ceremony, which might
be different from the style that’s typical
of their own religion.

 Today, the traditional Japanese

ceremony is Shinto-style, performed by
a Shinto priest and held at a shrine. The
ceremony itself is very formal and
usually very private, with only close
family and a few guests present.
 Brideswho choose
a Shinto-style
wedding wear a
white kimono,
called shiro-muku.
It symbolizes purity
and that the bride
will become the
color of her
husband's family.
The bride and groom drink
sake, three times each, from
three different-sized cups,
call sakazuki.
 Symbolic national cups.
 The most popular tradition during a Shinto-style
wedding is the exchange of nuptial cups, which is
called san san ku do. San means three and ku means
nine. So san san ku do means three, three, and nine.
The groom and bride drink sake three times each,
from three different-sized sake cups called sakazuki.
In their exchanging cups, they are symbolically
exchanging their marriage vows.
Next, their parents also take sips, sealing the bond
between the two families. Each person takes three
sips of sake from each of three cups. The first three
sips represent the three couples; the second three
sips represent the flaws of hatred, passion, and
ignorance; and the last three sips represent freedom
from the three flaws.
 Many ceremony locations have a
room with a miniature Shinto shrine
where couples can perform their
marriage vows. First comes the ritual
of purification, then the vows, then
the bride and groom exchange sake
in the san san ku do ceremony that
unites them and their two families.
The ceremony closes with symbolic
offerings of small tree twigs, called
sakaki, which are given to God.
 The traditional wedding is becoming
less popular. Now most weddings
instead have a more Western style,
with a procession down the aisle.
When the bride and groom enter into the shrine, they sometimes use
this umbrella, made of a coarse oil-paper.
 Japanese wedding rituals
include…
 参殿 Palace Visit ... Admission to the private ceremony of
the bride and groom.
修祓 Purification ... The exorcism of a person or place of evil
spirits.
献饌 Food Offerings to God.
祝詞奏上 The recital of Shinto prayers, for happiness in the
future and to thank God.
三献の儀 Three-Times-Three ... San San Ku Do, the exchange
of nuptial cups, following the wedding vows.
玉串奉奠 The offering of a branch of the sacred tree, the
Sakaki, symbolized by a zigzag-shaped paper streamer used
to adorn Shinto-related objects.
Reverentially offering a branch of the sacred tree, the Sukaki.
 Rituals of marriage.
 Japanese wedding rituals often incorporate items
that have strong symbolic meaning. Because of its
strength and simple elegance, for example, bamboo
represents both prosperity and purity, while the
mizuhiki knot given at Japanese weddings is often
shaped like a crane, symbolizing prosperity and a
long life.
 Japanese wedding rituals start with the engagement,
where the couple may exchange lucky objects.
These can include Kinpo-zutsumi, a ceremonial
amount of money; preserved foods such as
Katsuobushi, or dried bonito,which symbolizes lasting
quality; Suehiro, a fan which is a symbol of happiness;
and Tomoshiraga, linen thread that signifies strong
ties in the marriage.
 Adopting some Western traditions, Japanese
brides often have something “old, new,
borrowed, and blue.” They toss the bouquet,
have their friends throw rose petals, and they
feed each other their first bite of cake.
 Japanese wedding couples also acknowledge
their parents during the reception, with a gift of
flowers, a toast, or a personal letter of love and
thanks.
 Wedding favors given to guests might include
chopsticks, folding fans, and sake cups.
Wedding guests are expected to give money
wrapped in small, beautifully decorated paper
packets. This decoration is called mizuhiki.
The bride typically wears a white kimono for the ceremony. For the
reception, she often wears the uchikake, an elaborate silk robe
covered with embroidered flowers and cranes, worn over a kimono.
Sake being poured into one of the three different-sized cups that the
bride and groom will each drink from.
 Sushi and the reception feast.
 The reception starts with friends and colleagues making
speeches honoring the bride and groom. A banquet of
French, Chinese, or Japanese cuisine might be served.
Many Japanese wedding menus, or Japanese-inspired
weddings, or, today in America, almost every wedding,
includes a colorful sushi presentation.
Japanese weddings also often serve foods like sea bream,
shrimp, and red rice for good luck. In some cases, they also
use gold dust for decoration. During the reception there is a
kagami-biraki or “opening the lid” ceremony, where the lid
of a sake barrel is broken open with a wooden mallet and
the sake is served to everyone. Because of its round shape,
the lid is a symbol of harmony.
 During the reception the married couple sits on a stage and
enjoys speeches and performances from the guests. The
bride and groom typically give speeches thanking their
parents while also giving them small gifts.
 The reception includes oironaoshi, the bride’s frequent
change of outfits, from kimonos to dresses. Some brides
change three or four times!
 This tradition of changing clothes several times dates from the
14th century and symbolizes the bride’s readiness to return to
everyday life. At a Shinto reception, the bride will get married
in a long white kimono. Then she may come to the reception
in a colorful, embroidered kimono, then change into a
Western-style white wedding dress, and then into an evening
gown or a party dress.
 If she has a Western-style wedding, she might arrive in a
wedding dress, then change into a kimono and then into one
or more party dresses.
 At the end of the reception, the wedding couple also toasts
all the guests just before cutting the cake, which is
traditionally tall and quite large.
The end.