Updated November 4, 2024

If you visit Japanese shrines in November, you would come across to see children in beautiful kimonos. This is the Japanese traditional event called Shichi-go-san.

Shichi-go-san literally means seven, five, three. Boys and girls aged three, boys aged five, and girls aged seven visit a Shinto shrine with their parents to show thanks to the gods for their growth and to pray for their bright future.

How did it start?

Since the Heian period (794-1185), aristocratic and samurai families celebrated the growth of infants into healthy boys and girls. 

In the old days, when medical care was less developed and hygiene was not as good as today, children had a very high mortality rate and were treated as "kami no uchi (children of God)" until the age of seven.

It is said that the shrine became a place of worship on November 15 after Tsunayoshi Tokugawa prayed for the health of his own child during the Edo period (1603-1867).

Why are they 3, 5 and 7 years old?

The meaning of celebrating at the age of 3 is that during the Heian period, it was customary for both boys and girls to shave their heads on the seventh day after birth, and were kept shaved as they were raised until around the age of three.

Boys aged five put on hakama for the first time in public. 

Girls aged seven began using obi sash to tie their kimono, instead of cords.

Place to celebrate

Shichi-Go-San (Seven-Five-Three) visitation or Shichi-Go-San pilgrimage may be generally associated with shrines, but in fact, it can also be held at temples as well.You can choose to visit a shrine or temple that is close to where you live or that has a special place in your family's heart.

Watch our video about Shrine 

Chitoseame

Chitoseame is an indispensable candy for Shichi-Go-San celebrations. During the Shichigosan Festival, when people express gratitude for the growth of their children and wish for their longevity, people visit shrines and temples and celebrate by eating Chitoseame.

The name "Chitoseame" has a good meaning of "thousand years," or "long" and "long life," as well as being long and thin (within about 15 mm in diameter and 1 m in length) and colored red and white, each color considered good luck. Chitoseame is packaged in a Chitoseame bag with auspicious designs such as cranes and turtles (tsurukame), pine, bamboo, and plum.

Sekihan (red rice)

In Japan, the color red has long been thought to have the power to ward off evil spirits, and since rice was a luxury food, it is believed that there was a custom to cook and offer red rice to the gods. From there, it came to be served at celebrations to ward off misfortune and evil spirits.