Twenty-Four Seasons No. 15 [White Dew] (Hakuro)
A cool breeze blows in the morning and evening, and you can hear the pleasant sounds of insects.
The heat eases and grain begins to ripen.
[Hakuro] means the time when dew falls and it appears to shine white.
As the temperature at night drops significantly, the water vapor in the air cools down and forms water droplets that form on leaves and flowers. That is dew (morning dew). The lingering heat continues during the day, but the mornings and evenings are getting colder, indicating the time when morning dew begins to fall.
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During the White Dew period, there is the 15th night of the Harvest Moon .
In ancient times, farming was done by knowing the approximate month and day based on the waxing and waning of the moon.
Therefore, the full moon night of the 15th night was an important turning point for the festival.
The custom of viewing the Mid-Autumn Moon has been known in China since the Tang Dynasty, but it was introduced to Japan by the aristocrats during the Heian period, and gradually spread to samurai and townspeople.
During this time, the moon was said to be the most beautiful throughout the year, so the aristocrats of the Heian period held ``Moon Viewing Banquets,'' where they looked at the moon and composed waka poems during the harvest moon.
Among farmers, it was associated with agricultural events and had the meaning of a festival of thanksgiving for the harvest.
The Mid-Autumn Harvest Moon is also called the ``Imo Meigetsu'', and this comes from the fact that it was a ritual for harvesting potatoes such as taro. It has long been passed down as an annual event among the common people.
The 15th night is called moon viewing, harvest moon, or mid-autumn harvest moon, and has been considered a good time for moon viewing since ancient times, with drinking parties held under the moon, poetry recited, pampas grass decorations, and moon-viewing dumplings.・It is said that people enjoyed gazing at the moon with a plate of taro, edamame, chestnuts, and other sacred sake.
This is the time when many foodstuffs are harvested, as it is said to be ``Autumn of Harvest''.
May you enjoy the seasons while appreciating the blessings of the earth and the richness of nature.
Around the time of [Hakuro], it was expressed as follows in the Seventy-Nine Couples.
●First season <Kusanotsuyushiroshi>
The morning dew that falls on the flowers looks white and cool. The transition from summer to autumn.
●Next candidate <Sekirinaku>
When the voice of the wagtail echoes.
●Last Descendant <Tsubamesaru>
This is the time when the swallows that came to Japan in early spring return to warmer southern regions. I'll be back next year, so I'll say goodbye for a while.
These days, I feel the change of seasons little by little.
It's the time of year when many typhoons come,
I'm gradually putting away my summer clothes while watching the weather change to autumn with every rain.
