New Year's Day - Good luck

January 1st. The first day of the first three days of the New Year is called Gansan-nichi. The morning of New Year's Day is called Gantan, Saicho, Oashita, etc. It is called by a special name to bring good luck at the beginning of the year. Since the second year of the Reiki era (716) under Emperor Gensho, the Imperial Court has held a New Year's Day ceremony to which civil and military officials are invited, but from 1872 (Meiji 5), only the formal meal ceremony was retained, and the invitational banquet was moved to January 5th under the name of the "New Year's Banquet." For ordinary people, New Year's Day is also the time when the God of the Year appears, so there is a custom of various rituals and performances on New Year's Day in each household. Even today, people celebrate by making their first visit to a shrine, wearing their best clothes and drinking toso and zoni, but in the past, lighting a fire in the hearth on New Year's Day was an important event. However, those in mourning do not celebrate New Year's Day.

[Mitsusada Fukasaku]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

1月1日のこと。正月三が日を元三日(がんさんにち)とよぶが、その初日をさす。元日の朝のことを、とくに元旦(がんたん)、歳朝(さいちょう)、大旦(おおあした)などとよぶ。年の始まりの縁起を担いで特別なよび方をする。元正(げんしょう)天皇の霊亀(れいき)2年（716）以来、宮中では文武百官を招き元日節会(がんにちのせちえ)が行われたが、1872年（明治5）より晴御膳(はれごぜん)の儀だけを残し、招待宴を「新年宴会」の名のもとに1月5日に変えた。一般人にとっても歳神(としがみ)が来臨するのが正月だから、家々には元日をいろいろ儀礼化して演出する習俗がある。現在でも初詣(はつもう)でをしたり、晴れ着で屠蘇(とそ)や雑煮で祝うが、昔は元日のかまどの火のたきつけが、だいじな行事であった。ただし忌中の者は元日を祝わない。

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