The annual Boy’s Day celebration will be held from 9:45 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday at the Hawaii Japanese Center, 751 Kanoelehua Ave. The event is free to the public.
The annual Boy’s Day celebration will be held from 9:45 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday at the Hawaii Japanese Center, 751 Kanoelehua Ave. The event is free to the public.
The festivities will begin at 9:45 a.m. with a taiko performance by Puna Taiko under the direction of Paul Sakamoto. It will be followed at 10:15 a.m. with a presentation on the “Cultural History and Mythology of Hanafuda” by Helen Nakano. Martial arts performances at 11 a.m. by Shin Shin Toitsu Aikido and at 11:30 a.m. by Robby Wade and his Jujitsu group are also scheduled.
A special demonstration of traditional Japanese archery by 4 dan (degree) Kyudo, “The way of the sword” Master Jesus Sanchez begins at noon. Sanchez represented Hawaii at the 1992 Kyudo Taikai competition held at Misaki, Japan and the 1994 international Taikai in San Jose, Calif., where he obtained the 4 dan black belt. He has given Kyudo demonstrations in many countries throughout the world.
This year’s Boy’s Day hanafuda logo was designed by Kadi Igawa, a student at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. Hanafuda lessons with Helen Nakano and a hanafuda competition is scheduled from 12:30-2 p.m. Registration will take place from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and will be limited to the first 25 participants.
Boy’s Day kimono dressing and picture taking will take place throughout the day. Noriko Roth and the ladies of Subaru telescope will demonstrate a variety of traditional Japanese games in the HJC new gallery. These will include Kedama, Otedama, Shiriken, Karuta, Ayatori and much more, so bring your keiki and come and join the fun. Other activities include a Ben Franklin’s Make It and Take It event and Boy’s Day books with the Book Gallery. The festival will also feature special one-of-a-kind craft and food vendors, including andagi, and an array of vintage and contemporary items in the center’s new HJC Gift Shop.
As part of the Boy’s Day festivities, the Hawaii Japanese Center will be holding its first annual Haiku (Japanese poetry) and Manga (Japanese comic book) contests. The Haiku and Manga contests have been included to share with the community the Japanese culture and language through two different literary forms.
Participants are invited to create Haiku or Manga based on the themes of Boy’s Day, Children’s Day or perpetuating the Japanese culture. The Haiku contest will be live from 2-3 p.m. and the Manga contest will be a gallery walk, with Manga to be displayed all around in the center and viewed by judges and the public for the whole day. The winners of both contests will be announced at the closing of the festival.
The Boy’s Day Festival, Tango no Sekku, is typically celebrated on May 5, the fifth day of the fifth month, and families pray for the good health and future success of their sons by hanging up colorful carp streamers and displaying samurai dolls, both symbolizing strength, power and success in life.
The Boy’s Day celebration is an example of the intergenerational events that the Hawaii Japanese Center shares with the community to promote and perpetuate the rich culture that was brought to the islands by the issei, or first generation of Japanese immigrants. Their mission is to serve as a bridge for diverse generations of the future to understand their triumphs and struggles as they became an integral part of the Island of Hawaii through its educational and cultural activities and access to its collections.
The Center is a nonprofit organization. Please contact hjchawaii@gmail.com for more information.