Fantastic Okinawa

2015 Day of Songs

Day of Songs 2015 Concert celebrates power of music

By David Higgins

On Okinawa June is thebeginning of the hotsummer season. Theaverage temperature is

around 29 degrees C and thenthere is the humidity. June is inthe middle of the often rainy

typhoon season, hence the highhumidity factor. Knowing this,you might be a bit confused tolearn that June is also the busiestwedding ceremony season of theentire year. You would think thatthe hot and humid climate of thismonth would send our brides-to-

be running at the idea of droopyflowers, runny make up, sweatypalms and uncooperative hairstyles. But due to the fact that thetradition of a June bride holdssuch a significant place inJapanese history, it continues tobe considered the best month to

‘tie the knot,’ regardless of thepreviously mentioned factors thatcan be a brides’ worst nightmare.

In typical Japanese style, theJune wedding tradition is a cultur-al hybrid. June bride weddingtradition actually arose from aRoman times tradition, well over

two thousand years ago. Everyyear, on June 1st, the Romanswould celebrate a festival inhonor of ‘June’, the deity whowas recognized as the wife ofJupiter and the revered goddess ofmarriage and childbirth. Thus

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Organizers of the Day of Songs2015 Concert want to make thepower of song and dance the focusof the event, and to express their

appreciation of Okinawan music and it’srole in history, especially in the midst ofhardships of the wartime.

The Day of Songs Concert has beenorganized since 2001, and its spirit has sincespread across the country. The event takesplace at Kaneku Seaside Park next toKadena Marina, this Sunday, June 27, start-ing at 3:30 p.m. The event will go on rain orshine, except in case of truly inclement

weather it will be cancelled.Advance tickets to the event are avail-

able at FamilyMart e-plus terminals costing¥3,000 for adults. Junior high and highschool student tickets are ¥1,000. Admissionto children of elementary school age andyounger is free but they have to be in thecompany of a guardian.

Begin, a nationally very popular bandfrom Ishigaki Island, and one of the power-house organizers behind the Day of SongsConcert, is leading the lineup of entertainers.

Motohiro Hata gained national fameand fans last year after one of his tunes waschosen for a title tune of the animated movie“Stand by Me Doraemon” and became ahuge hit.

Others in this year’s lineup of artistsinclude Okinawan rock icon Katchan,Miyagi Sisters, famous among samba enthu-siasts, Sky’s The Limit, Melissa, comedygroup Garage Sale, and Yukie Sawa.

Dancers from Sandii’s Hula Studio,Ryukyu-koku Matsuri Taiko and KadenaSembaru Eisa preservation group also per-

form.The Day of Songs Concert specifically

celebrates songs of a time when singingaloud and dancing was forbidden during thewartime. People believed that joy of songsgave them power to overcome any hardship.

In Okinawa, June 23rd is rememberedas “Irei-no-Hi,” the day on which the warwas over. The Day of Songs concert is heldon the following weekend in order to informdescendants that people in Okinawa kept onsinging with small voices, and dancing inthe shelters, even at the time when it was notofficially allowed.

Hand in hand towards the bright future, as June is the most popular month for Japanese couples to tie the knot. (Photo Pete Leong)

June brides and Okinawa wedding traditions

The Day of Songs concert attracts large audiences every year.

Jun. 25, 2015 - Jul. 01, 2015

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2Japan Update Classifieds Jun. 25, 2015 - Jul. 01, 2015

Yuino cements engagement of Okinawan couplesIn Japan, when a couple

gets engaged to get mar-ried it’s customary for thecouple to host a special

engagement ceremony called“Yuinou.”

The custom dates back tothe old days when most mar-riages were arranged, and theYuino ceremony marked theoccasion when the two fami-lies would seal the engage-ment. Although arranged mar-riages are not so common anymore, the ceremony stillendures, although it’s usuallymuch less formal than in thepast.

The formal gifts presentedto the family of the bride fromthe family of the groom are asign that the families haveagreed to the marriage. It’s

also a ceremony that both fam-ilies conclude the relationshipwith each other and celebratefor the prosperity of the newfamily.

In Okinawa Yuino usuallytakes place at home in front ofthe family alter, although con-ducting Yuino ceremony at ahotel or restaurant is latelybecoming more popular. It’simportant that the ceremonytakes place at the time of a ris-ing tide in the ocean in hopesthat the ceremony and the newfamily will start on an upwardpath like the rising tide.

The gifts presented to thebride’s family usually includedried bonito, dried cuttlefish,kelp and thin white noodles.Each gift has a special symbol-ic meaning and ensures good

prospects for the wedding.Especially in Okinawa

three kinds of traditionalsweets are added to the gifts inthe Yuinou ceremony. The firstis a giant Sataa Andagi(Okinawan donut) that symbol-izes a female. The second iscalled Kataharanbuu, an about20 cm long circle-shaped tem-pura, which symbolizes amale. The third is calledMachikaji that are pink cookedsweets that mean tying togeth-er the fate of the couple. Thesesame seeds in Machikajisymbolize children and theirthe prosperity and health.Those items are arranged on abig dish during the ceremony,and set of three items areserved to each participant atthe end of the ceremony.

June bridesContinued from page 1June has been considered an auspiciousmonth to wed. Aptly, the month of Junehappens to follow May, the month of‘unhappy dead’ for the Romans. Not avery favorable month to get married in myeyes but in my case, it was whatever mywife wanted so we were married in May.No June bride for this expat.

During the 1400-1500s, June was con-sidered the month of celebrations; a con-temporary translation would be backyardBBQ’s and tailgate party time. Peoplewould gather together in communal bathsto socialize and cleanse themselves after along, dirty winter. June was a time whenflowers were in bloom throughout the gar-dens, meadows and along streams. Theywere readily abundant to be picked andarranged for wedding bouquets andarrangements. Interesting enough, thisalignment of baths, flowers and celebra-tions was more than coincidental and thepurpose of the flowers became two-fold.Not only were the floral arrangementsbeautiful to behold and a symbol of fruit-fulness to celebrate, but they also broughtquick reprieve to those standing downwindfrom others who had not yet immersedthemselves in their spring bath. Thehygiene level of this day was much differ-ent than the one-or-two-showers-per-dayroutine that most of us have adapted, espe-cially during the hot and humid months...such as June.

During these celebrations, flowerswere tossed in the air, dispersing their mag-nificent fragrance through the gatheredcrowds. During this day and age, romanceand love were not the impetus for maritalunion. Even in our not so distant history,women were considered a father’s proper-ty, and as such, they would be ‘givenaway’ by their fathers. Often, financialtransactions were a part of this process,

depending on the social status of the fami-lies involved.

In Japan, this practice is referred to as‘Omi-Ai’ in which either the parents or athird party, a.k.a. matchmaker, organizesan interview between a couple, based onbirth year sign and social background, withthe intention of beginning a process thatwill lead to marital union. This practicestill occurs but under less structured pre-tenses. The interview will still be organ-ized for the young couple but it is theirfinal choice as to whether they wish to con-tinue to pursue a relationship based on theirown personal impression of each other, forthe purpose of marriage.

Much has changed since the ‘Romantimes’ or has it? In Okinawa, bouquets andvast arrangements of flowers are still avital part of the wedding ceremony but for-tunately, this is due to their symbolism andbeauty, not to mask the foul scent of ourguests. Often flowers are presented to theparents by the wedding couple in gratitudeof the care and support that they have beengiven. Envelopes packed full of moneyare exchanged between families, althoughnot so much as a payment for the partner-ship but rather as an encouraging gift forthe longevity of the couples’ marriage.

After a ‘Yui-No’ commitment toengagement, the final and most excitingstep is the wedding, usually planned to takeplace in June. A typical ‘Ryu Kyu’ wed-ding is quite spectacular for a foreigner toexperience. If you have not yet had thefortunate experience of being a weddingguest here, imagine a formal western-stylewedding ceremony but add to this a dinnertheater with floor shows, dancers, livebands and movie clips to keep the partylively. The performers on stage are usuallypart of the bride or groom’s wedding party.Generally, they have spent months rehears-ing for their big spectacle in honor of theirfriend(s) and/or family member. Theremay be an Okinawan traditional Eisa

dance, or a slow motion Okinawan dance,in which the participants wear the tradition-al Okinawan kimonos and present a fullkarate series or most likely the cousins ofthe bride will perform a dance for happi-ness called ‘Kagiyadefu.’ These are allperformed with the pizazz and flare of aLas Vegas production. Throughout thewedding, the bride and groom go throughvarious changes of dress, as the weddingceremony proceeds, from traditionalkimonos to classic American-style attire.

In my opinion, Okinawa Weddings areexceptional as they are the perfect combi-nation of entertainment, camaraderie andalcohol that flows wildly through the entirecelebration. For the wedding guests, it isactually quite fun but for the bride andgroom, it seems to be a marathon of grati-tude, acknowledgement and ‘kanpai.’ Onedamning task for the couple is that of visit-ing each table and ‘kanpai’ing with eachgroup separately. Recall fuzzy memories ofcollege drinking games you may have been

a part of, and consider an evening full ofgame after game, up to as many as 50games in the matter of that evening. Thisis the burden that the bride and groom mustperform in order to honor their guests andcelebrate a prosperous future ahead. Thatis, if they can make it through the eveningof ‘kanpai.’

Hopefully, while in Okinawa, youwill have the honor of being invited to anOkinawan wedding. It is an event not to bemissed, and may well end up being one ofthe main highlights of your year. At thispoint, you might find yourself consideringyour list of friends and acquaintances hereon the island. Is there a couple engaged tobe married included? If not, you have untilnext June to play the role of matchmaker inassurance that you do not leave Okinawawithout experiencing the perfect culturalhybrid of time-honored Japanese andOkinawan traditions, Western customs,love, family, friends, food, alcohol andViva Las Vegas!

Okinawan Yuino sweets are usually sold as sets containing all three items.

Japanese like to have a wedding ceremony in Christian-style surroundings as it's con-sidered the most romantic, and that's why every hotel has a chapel. (Photo Pete Leong)

Everything related to the wedding should be special and memorable including weddingphotos. (Photo by Pete Leon)

A wedding is an affair that is as much about friends and relatives as it is about the happycouple, and the resulting ceremony is nothing short of lavish. (Photo Pete Leong)