We are all familiar with the four seasons of the year—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—based on the changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours. However, these four seasons are too broad in scope to accurately depict the nuances of our weather and of our natural surrounding. To mark the passing of time and understand the variations throughout the year, many ancient East Asian cultures created calendars based on the sun and the phases of the moon. The Hindu calendar has 6 seasons, the Chinese calendar consist of 24 seasons, and the Japanese calendar is divided even more finely into 72 seasons.
Photo credit: tawatchai07/Freepik
The Japanese calendar has the same four seasons we are familiar with in the West. However, each season is divided into six parts creating 24 sekki, each about fifteen days long. These periods are originally derived from the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar, a method of time keeping where a year is divided according to the phases of the moon as well as the earth’s orbit around the sun.
The 24 sekki are again split into three ko for a total of 72 ko, or micro-seasons, each lasting for around 5 days. These seasons reflect the delicate rhythms of Japan’s ecosystems, each one correlating with an actual happening in the natural world at that moment, such as bamboo shoots sprouting, and wheat ripening.
“Every few days is a new season, a new opportunity. Small enough to take with lightness. Big enough to matter,” writes Quartz.
“Dealing with such micro-seasons, and paying attention to them, can keep us alert to the world around us, and our passing through it. Empty time feels less of waste when seen from the perspective of nature’s motions,” it continues.
Mark Hovane explains the Japanese calendar in some detail:
At the core of each of the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter are the equinoxes and solstices starting from shunbun (vernal equinox), geshi (summer solstice), shubun (autumnal equinox) and toji (winter solstice). The beginnings of each season are also observed in risshun (beginning of spring), rikka (beginning of summer), risshu (beginning of autumn) and ritto (beginning of winter). These markers account for 8 of the 24 seasonal points. The other remaining 16 points are highly influenced by the weather and agricultural elements, such as rain, snow and the progress of the agrarian crop cycle, and feature names including usui (rainwater), keichitsu (insects awaken), shosho (manageable heat) or hakuro (white dew).
Japanese micro-seasons were originally introduced to Japan from Korea during the mid-6th century. The names assigned to each micro-season were originally derived from climatic and natural changes in Northern China. As a result, there were slight variations when applied to the Japanese context. In 1685, Shibukawa Shunkai, a court astronomer, took it upon himself to revise the names, aligning them more accurately with the local climate and nature of his native Japan. This modified calendar remained in use until 1873 when the Meiji government, in its pursuit of modernization, abolished the traditional calendrical system and adopted the Western solar-based Gregorian calendar. Notably, specific groups in Japan, including farmers, fishermen, and aesthetes, continued to uphold the traditional calendar alongside the mandated Gregorian calendar.
The 72 Japanese seasons
| Risshun (Beginning of spring) | ||
|---|---|---|
| February 4–8 | East wind melts the ice | |
| February 9–13 | Bush warblers start singing in the mountains | |
| February 14–18 | Fish emerge from the ice | |
| Usui (Rainwater) | ||
| February 19–23 | Rain moistens the soil | |
| February 24–28 | Mist starts to linger | |
| March 1–5 | Grass sprouts, trees bud | |
| Keichitsu (Insects awaken) | ||
| March 6–10 | Hibernating insects surface | |
| March 11–15 | First peach blossoms | |
| March 16–20 | Caterpillars become butterflies | |
| Shunbun (Spring equinox) | ||
| March 21–25 | Sparrows start to nest | |
| March 26–30 | First cherry blossoms | |
| March 31–April 4 | Distant thunder | |
| Seimei (Pure and clear) | ||
| April 5–9 | Swallows return | |
| April 10–14 | Wild geese fly north | |
| April 15–19 | First rainbows | |
| Kokuu (Grain rains) | ||
| April 20–24 | First reeds sprout | |
| April 25–29 | Last frost, rice seedlings grow | |
| April 30–May 4 | Peonies bloom | |
| Rikka (Beginning of summer) | ||
| May 5–9 | Frogs start singing | |
| May 10–14 | Worms surface | |
| May 15–20 | Bamboo shoots sprout | |
| Shoman (Lesser ripening) | ||
| May 21–25 | Silkworms start feasting on mulberry leaves | |
| May 26–30 | Safflowers bloom | |
| May 31–June 5 | Wheat ripens and is harvested | |
| Boshu (Grain beards and seeds) | ||
| June 6–10 | Praying mantises hatch | |
| June 11–15 | Rotten grass becomes fireflies | |
| June 16–20 | Plums turn yellow | |
| Geshi (Summer solstice) | ||
| June 21–26 | Self-heal withers | |
| June 27–July 1 | Irises bloom | |
| July 2–6 | Crow-dipper sprouts | |
| Shosho (Lesser heat) | ||
| July 7–11 | Warm winds blow | |
| July 12–16 | First lotus blossoms | |
| July 17–22 | Hawks learn to fly | |
| Taisho (Greater heat) | ||
| July 23–28 | Paulownia trees produce seeds | |
| July 29–August 2 | Earth is damp, air is humid | |
| August 3–7 | Great rains sometimes fall | |
| Risshu (Beginning of autumn) | ||
| August 8–12 | Cool winds blow | |
| August 13–17 | Evening cicadas sing | |
| August 18–22 | Thick fog descends | |
| Shosho (Manageable heat) | ||
| August 23–27 | Cotton flowers bloom | |
| August 28–September 1 | Heat starts to die down | |
| September 2–7 | Rice ripens | |
| Hakuro (White dew) | ||
| September 8–12 | Dew glistens white on grass | |
| September 13–17 | Wagtails sing | |
| September 18–22 | Swallows leave | |
| Shubun (Autumn equinox) | ||
| September 23–27 | Thunder ceases | |
| September 28–October 2 | Insects hole up underground | |
| October 3–7 | Farmers drain fields | |
| Kanro (Cold dew) | ||
| October 8–12 | Wild geese return | |
| October 13–17 | Chrysanthemums bloom | |
| October 18–22 | Crickets chirp around the door | |
| Soko (Frost falls) | ||
| October 23–27 | First frost | |
| October 28–November 1 | Light rains sometimes fall | |
| November 2–6 | Maple leaves and ivy turn yellow | |
| Ritto (Beginning of winter) | ||
| November 7–11 | Camellias bloom | |
| November 12–16 | Land starts to freeze | |
| November 17–21 | Daffodils bloom | |
| Shosetsu (Lesser snow) | ||
| November 22–26 | Rainbows hide | |
| November 27–December 1 | North wind blows the leaves from the trees | |
| December 2–6 | Tachibana citrus tree leaves start to turn yellow | |
| Taisetsu (Greater snow) | ||
| December 7–11 | Cold sets in, winter begins | |
| December 12–16 | Bears start hibernating in their dens | |
| December 17–21 | Salmon gather and swim upstream | |
| Toji (Winter solstice) | ||
| December 22–26 | Self-heal sprouts | |
| December 27–31 | Deer shed antlers | |
| January 1–4 | Wheat sprouts under snow | |
| Shokan (Lesser cold) | ||
| January 5–9 | Parsley flourishes | |
| January 10–14 | Springs thaw | |
| January 15–19 | Pheasants start to call | |
| Daikan (Greater cold) | ||
| January 20–24 | Butterburs bud | |
| January 25–29 | Ice thickens on streams | |
| January 30–February 3 | Hens start laying eggs | |
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