Today is a holiday for the Spring Equinox. It is designated as a national holiday under the Holiday Law, and the moment when the sun passes the vernal equinox point is defined as the “spring equinox”. The day that includes the spring equinox is called “Shunbun”, which is designated as a day to “praise nature and cherish living things”. By the way, “Shubun” is designated as a day to “honor ancestors and remember those who have passed away”. In the 24 solar terms, the seven days from March 18th to 24th are designated as “Shunbun”, also known as the “spring equinox week”. Today is the middle day of that “spring equinox week”. In the old calendar, it was designated as the day of the “Spring Imperial Ancestral Festival”, which is still one of the ceremonies held in the Imperial Palace every year, as part of the major festival held twice a year on the Spring Equinox and Autumn Equinox (Autumnal Imperial Ancestral Festival). In ancient agricultural societies, where agriculture was the center of life, this day was also very important for determining the timing of planting crops. On this day, people eat “Botamochi” (sticky rice cake filled with sweet bean paste), and together with “Ohagi” (sweet bean paste mixed with glutinous rice) eaten on Autumnal Equinox Day, the red beans are believed to have a purifying effect and are offered as an offering to ancestors.

今日は春分の日で祝日です。祝日法でも定められていて、太陽が春分点を通過する瞬間が「春分」と定義され、春分を含む日のことを「春分日」とし、「自然をたたえ、生物をいつくしむ日」とされています。ちなみに、「秋分日」は「祖先をうやまい、なくなった人々をしのぶ日」とされています。二十四節気では、３月18日から24日までの７日間が「春分」で、「春彼岸」とも呼ばれています。今日はその「春彼岸」の中日にあたります。旧法では「春季皇霊祭（しゅんきこうれいさい）」の日とされ、現在でも行われている宮中祭祀の一つで、毎年2回、春分の日と秋分の日（秋季皇霊祭）に斎行される大祭の日でもあります。農業が中心の古代の生活において、農作物の作付けの時期を見極めるのにとても重要な日でもあったわけです。この日はこし餡の牡丹餅を食べますが、秋分の日に食べる粒餡のお萩とともに、 小豆は邪気を払い、魔除けの効果があることから食され、ご先祖様への供物として普及したようです。