JAPAN IS OFTEN CALLED the land of flowers.

From ancient times the people of Japan have celebrated the Cherry Blossom Festival as O-hanami: Flower Viewing. Although many beautiful flowers are depicted in song, paintings and even kimono patterns, flower viewing has always meant the beautiful flowering cherry tree. In the eighth century and earlier, the Japanese offered prayers while under the flowering cherry trees in a special ritual for the fertility of the earth. The Hitachinokuni Fudoki, an eighth century guide to famous places, describes singing and dancing among the flowers after climbing Mount Tsukuba. During the Heian period the imperial court held a banquet on the day of O-hanami to mark the change of seasons. Later in the Kamakura period (late 12th-14th c.) the warriors always considered the cherry blossoms the symbol of a life lived fully, no matter how short, and the ritual of cherry blossoms continued.


Flower viewing in the Edo period (17th-19th c.) became a popular secular event among the common people, with much dancing, singing and drinking of sake. And today Japanese radio and television announce the Sakura Zensen or Cherry Blossom front, allowing revelers to travel from region to region, following the blooming trees. Usually, the Cherry Blossom front begins in Okinawa in the south in March. Then it sweeps northward in April and finally reaches Hokkaido in May. With more than 50 varieties blooming from March to May, the excitement mounts. Millions of visitors travel to famous temples, gardens and scenic spots. Dance and music concerts feature the cherry blossom and celebrate spring with poetry competitions, calligraphy exhibits, and paintings that depict the viewing season. Picnics are also planned under the flowers by schools, companies and families to celebrate the short fleeting bloom of this popular symbol of Japan. It is obviously a symbolic event that brings countries and people together.