A traditional style, Shinto wedding, or “Shinzen Kekkonshiki” (神前結婚式) in Japanese – which means “a wedding before the gods (kami)”. Captured at Sumiyoshi Taisha (住吉大社 — Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine ). What was he showing her?
I got up at 5 a.m. on my last day in Japan, trying to make it count. Thankfully, that day was just great, despite a little shower in the morning.
Brides’ costume is the traditional white kimono shiromuku (白無垢, shiro (白) = “white”, muku (無垢) = purity), and grooms wear monstuki haori hakama (紋付羽織袴 or 紋付き羽織袴, literally “(kimono) with mon, haori, and hakama”): montsuki (black formal kimono), haori (kimono jacket), and hakama (kimono pants). Seems that the hand fans (うちわ — uchiwa) are also an indispensable item.
From Wiki: “Shinto weddings are in decline. Fewer Japanese people get married, and those who do often choose Western-style chapel ceremonies.” I know, all the ad posters I saw in the subway or on the street were showing a bride happily get married in a western wedding dress, and in a church (!) – although it has nothing to do with the religion or belief of the couple. Why churches? I find the traditional style much more beautiful.
Many parts are pretty much the same as in VN: “When you receive an invitation card to a wedding, you need to return the enclosed response card and let them know if you can attend or not.
If you are attending a Japanese wedding reception, you are expected to bring goshuugi (ご祝儀), which mean a gift of cash to celebrate the newly wedded couple, and/or a gift (引き出物 — hikidemono). The amount depends on your relationship with the couple and the region, unless fixed amount is indicated in the invitation card. It is recommended to ask someone who is attending the same wedding. It’s said that the average is ¥30,000 for a friend’s wedding, but it can vary from ¥30,000 ~ ¥100,000 depending on your relationship with the couple. It is common to give amounts in which the leading digit(s) form an odd number, such as ¥30,000 or ¥50,000, in order to symbolize the fact that the newly married couple cannot be divided, number 4, such as in ¥40,000 is especially to be avoided.
It’s important that the cash is enclosed in a special envelope called shugibukuro (祝儀袋), and your name is written on the front. It’s polite to use new bills with no creasing. When you go to the party, hand the envelope to the person at the reception desk and sign your name in the guestbook. Goshuugi envelopes have a fancy exterior that contains a smaller envelope inside. On the exterior envelope, you write your name, and on the interior envelope, you write your name, address, and how much you have enclosed (in super old-style kanji characters that are only used in this type of situation: ¥10,000: 壱萬圓, ¥30,000 yen: 参萬圓, ¥50,000: 伍萬圓). The recipients are careful to note how much each person gives so that they can return a similar amount at the giver’s wedding.
A full course meal is often served. It’s common for the bride and groom to change costumes a couple of times. Colorful wedding kimonos worn by brides are called irouchikake (打掛け), with complicated embroidery. The more sophisticated, the more expensive they are.
A wedding may be Shinto, Christian, Buddhist, or non-religious styles. Couples choose the style of their ceremonies, and it doesn’t necessarily match with one’s religion. Non-Christian couples often have their weddings at chapels.”
A strange country anyway. It’s simply just that. With things like KFC for Christmas, no wonder Western style is the winner.
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