Crafts and games help ring in traditional Japanese new year

In Japanese culture, no holiday rivals that of New Year’s celebrations. The revelry during “shogatsu” or “oshogatsu” typically spans three days — Jan. 1 to 3 — with businesses closing, families coming together and delicious food being served.

“In the West, we think about Christmas as the most important holiday,” said Benjamin Pachter, executive director of the Japan-america Society of Central Ohio. “In Japan, the New Year is the major traditional festival and traditional day of celebration.”

Pachter’s organization will host one day of festivities featuring many of the country’s cultural traditions surrounding the holiday. During the event — scheduled for Thursday afternoon at the Dublin Community Recreation Center — guests can try their hand at calligraphy (“kakizome”), play Japanese games and sample food such as red bean soup with a rice cake, or matcha tea.

Taking place in the venue’s

event hall, the celebration stems from the society’s mission of promoting Japan’s culture and fostering friendly relations between Americans of different heritages — including those of Japanese descent — living in central Ohio. The programming the nonprofit organizes is meant to appeal to both Japanese transplants and also Americans interested in learning about another culture.

A total of 2,300 Japanese nationals live in Dublin, according to statistics Pachter cited from a 2017 survey conducted by the Consulate-general of Japan in Detroit, the regional office of the Japanese government that coordinates efforts in Ohio and Michigan.

“We thought we could create a space for Japanese people and Americans interested in Japan,” said Pachter, whose interest in the country stems from his academic days studying Japan’s music and culture. “This seemed like a great opportunity to start the new year with something that celebrates a major facet of Japanese culture.”

For a $5 admission fee, visitors of all ages are welcome to stop in between 1 and 4 p.m. and stay as long as they wish.

Those who have played “pin the tail on the donkey” will recognize a game called “fukuwarai,” which challenges blindfolded participants to place various parts of a face on the correct position.

A more sacred tradition, “omikuji,” will allow visitors to learn their fortune for the year.

In Japan, omikuji practitioners making a small offering at a shrine or temple may reach into a box and pull out a slip of paper that carries a fortune. If it’s a prediction of bad luck, it’s custom for the recipient to attach the paper to pine tree or a wall of metal wires.

Locally, the tradition will be carried out in a similar fashion. Marysville High School, which has one of the largest Japanese-language programs in Ohio, will provide the necessary materials.

To learn their fortune, participants will select a random wooden dowel rod affixed with a number from a box, said Iya Nemastil, who teaches Japanese language classes at both the high school and the Marysville Early College High School. That number will correspond to a written fortune kept in a paper organizer.

Danielle Krug, a Japanese language teacher in the Marysville school district, wrote the paper fortunes and designed the box and rods.

Each fortune will contain either a blessing or a curse in a variety of categories (academics, family, money) and will inform the recipient of his or her lucky color and lucky date. Additionally, a star rating will indicate just how lucky the person is.

“I think it’s fun, the luck of it,” Nemastil said. “It’s very important to throw away your bad experiences and your bad luck and start over fresh.”