Tsukimi 月見 at Mukojima-Hyakkaen Gardens (向島百花園)

Tsukimi/月見 (moon viewing) is a Japanese holiday to celebrate the full moon, to express gratitude for good harvests, and to pray for an abundant harvest in the future. On the evening of the full moon, people gather where the moon can be seen to partake in offering ceremonies by decorating with rice dumplings, Japanese pampas grass, sake, and a collection of seasonal fruits and vegetables.

A motif of a rabbit is a popular symbol for Tsukimi which is based on a folklore tale of a rabbit on the moon who pounded mochi (rice cakes) with a mallet.

“The Old Man of the Moon came down to Earth one day to test the kindness of three animal friends (a monkey, a rabbit, and a fox). Transformed as a beggar, the Old Man of the Moon wanted to know who was the kindest out of the three. He approached the friends, who were sitting around a fire, and asked if they had any food to spare. The monkey gathered an abundance of fruit for the beggar. The fox brought the man a fish. But the rabbit did not have anything to give and offered to give himself as a sacrifice to the man by throwing himself into the fire and allowing the beggar to eat him. Before the rabbit could do so, though, the Old Man of the Moon transformed back into his original form. He said that the rabbit was a very kind soul and took the rabbit to live on the moon with him. This story, passed down through generations, contributes to the old-time Japanese belief that rabbits came from the moon.”

Where: 3 Chome-18-3 Higashimukojima, Sumida City, Tokyo 131-0032

When: September 9th ~ 11th 2022 (The dates may vary depending on the year so please check their website.)

How much: 150 JPY fo general admission

Website (Japanese): https://www.tokyo-park.or.jp/park/format/index032.html

Schedule:

• First Day: 5:00PM -5:30PM Offering Ceremony

• Second Day: 3:00PM -8:00PM Tea Ceremony

• All 3 Days: 5:50PM -7:00PM Lantern Lighting

• All 3 Days: 6:00PM-8:00PM Koto Music Performance

First, the offering ceremony started at 5:00PM, and there was a large crowd gathering to watch and take photos.

A close-up of the offerings after the ceremony.

When it started to get dark, the volunteers began to decorate the garden with beautiful hand-crafted paper lanterns.

At 6:00PM the koto performance started, and they played until 8:00PM.

Not long after I arrived, I went to the table near the tea house to reserve a spot in one of the tea ceremonies, and I got the very last time slot. I arrived at the gardens just before 5:00PM, so I suggest going earlier to make sure you can get in.

After paying 1000JPY for the entrance fee, they handed me this card to remind me of my time slot, and to hand to them before entering the tea house.