Member Since: 19/06/2008
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Teru teru bÅzu
( Japanese: ã¦ã‚‹ã¦ã‚‹åŠä¸»; "shiny-shiny Buddhist priest" ) is a little traditional hand-made doll made of white paper or cloth that Japanese farmers began hanging outside of their window by a string. This amulet is supposed to have magical powers to bring good weather and to stop or prevent a rainy day. "Teru" is a Japanese verb which describes sunshine, and a "bÅzu" is a Buddhist monk (compare the word bonze), or in modern slang, "bald-headed."
Teru teru bÅzu became popular during the Edo period among urban dwellers, whose children would make them the day before the good weather was desired and chant "Fine-weather priest, please let the weather be good tomorrow."
Today, children make teru-teru-bÅzu out of tissue paper or cotton and string and hang them from a window to wish for sunny weather, often before a school picnic day. Hanging it upside down - with its head pointing downside - acts like a prayer for rain. They are still a very common sight in Japan.
Like many nursery rhymes, this song is rumored to have a darker history than it first appears. It allegedly originated from a story of a monk who promised farmers to stop rain and bring clear weather during a prolonged period of rain which was ruining crops. When the monk failed to bring sunshine, he was executed. Many Japanese folk historians, however, believe this story and others regarding the origins of teruterubozu may have been fabricated long after the tradition had become widespread, most likely in an attempt to refine the image of the doll. It is more likely that the "bÅzu" in the name refers not to a Buddhist figure, but to the round, bald head of the doll, and "teru teru" is the effect of the bright sunlight reflecting off it. In Japanese culture, this image is a particularly laughable item of low comedy.
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Type of Label: Indie