初夢：japan's new-year dream superstitions

よいお年を！

(wishing you a good coming year!)

you all know by now that I'm a total dreams enthusiast. I believe that we're shown things in our dreams for a purpose, & I love trying to figure out what that purpose is. I also try to influence my dreams through my headspace & environment before sleep (though have never gone so far as to attempt shifting or lucid dreaming). it turns out that the japanese are much the same!

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& so today I'd like to introduce their beliefs about 初夢（hatsuyume), or 'the first dream of the year'. it's a word often used alongside the famous superstition about dream symbols that are good omens; "one mt. fuji, two hawks, three eggplants". I'll explain that quickly;

• one mt. fuji

> mt. fuji is, per one of my sources, "japan's number one mountain". "fuji" in this context (bites tongue) rhymes with 無事（buji), the word for 'safety, security, & peace'. dreams about mountains in general can represent hardship & accomplishments, but it's said that looking upon mt. fuji in particular signifies 'a climbing luck in all areas'- "you will prosper this year like the opening of a fan".

• two hawks

> the hawk, which dances in the sky & catches prey with its sharp claws, hints that there will come opportunities for you to grasp. the word for hawk, 鷹（taka) 'forms' per se the word 高い (takai), meaning 'tall, high, or great (above average)', symbolising that there's a high possibility within the following year for you to freely take action & realise your dreams.

• three eggplants

> back in the day, eggplants were a pretty high-class vegetable, & so there were a lot of people who hoped to eat them in the new year. because it was a high-value & bountiful crop, it symbolised the amassing of wealth & thriving of one's descendants. 

the saying also seems to continue with "four folding fans, five cigar(ettes?), six troop leaders", but this seems to be less relevant in regards to the hatsuyume (& I can't be bothered...!), so I'll leave those out. to help their odds of receiving such dreams, some people will place images of these things at their bedside tables & think about good things before going to bed, alongside generally taking the day easy. I've also read that some people will use images of 'the seven lucky gods'. 

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speaking of them, here are some other good-omen dreams!

passing under a torii gate

an auspicious dream about all of your wishes about love, work & money coming true. 

dreaming of snakes

if you're not afraid of or anxious about the snake that visits you, it could be a hint that there's 'no holding back' on the rising of your luck! if the snake is golden or white, there's a great possibility you'll be blessed with wealth that year.

on that note, given the symbolism of white animals working for the gods, seeing a white dolphin or owl is also a good omen.

the morning sun

the rising of the sun symbolises the rising of your luck too- it's a hint that you might be blessed in work-related matters, or chance encounters. 

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moving onto bad omens now, just for the fun of it!

teeth falling out

since teeth symbolise one's life force, there's a chance you'll fall ill. endeavour to straighten up your way of life. if all of them fall out, there's a chance your entire life will change all at once.

laughing in a dream

it might seem positive at first glance, but it means that there's possibly tension somewhere within your body that you're trying to relieve by laughing. 

if you have dreams that feel are scary or bad omens, it's important to stay calm & think of them as positive.

that said, if you're still terribly moved by a dream that you feel is a bad omen, try talking to somebody you trust to calm down. in doing so, you can release those negative feelings.

something chasing you

it can be a sign that you feel as though you're under a lot of pressure. however, if you manage to escape it, it can mean that things are about to change for the better.

... yikes ! now that we know what bad dreams might look like, what do people do to try & attract good-omen dreams?

'circulating letters'

a 'circulating letter' is that which can be read the same whether it's up-down or down-up. (so a bit like palindromes in english, then?) because it doesn't end, it's seen as a good-luck charm, symbolising that good things, too, will continue forever.

the letter itself, written entirely in hiragana, reads as follows;

「なかきよの　とおのねふりの　みなめさめ　なみのりふねの　おとのよきかな」

"everyone who's slept since      those long, distant epochs      is awaking, to hear      the wonderful sound of boats      sailing on the waves"

...I think it's so cool that this letter functions as a palindrome !!

anyway, people write this 'circulating letter' on a picture of a ship & place it under their pillow before they go to sleep in order to have good dreams.

[love-related 'good-luck charms']

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...there are three, but for the sake of brevity, I'm only going to write about two of them.

'drinking milk with honey in it'

ponyo, anyone?

while drinking said milk, strongly pray that "I want to meet my crush!"- this is done with the intention of coming across each other in your dreams. 

'writing the name of your loved one on the palm of your hand'

this one appears to be based on another practice, in which you write the word "person" on the palm of your hand three times in order to relieve your anxiety. it's said to be followed by "swallowing" the word, however it's possible that this word is being mis-translated when it should actually be 'suppress (e.g. a yawn), stifle, hold back' as in trying to stifle your anxiety. sidenote, the fact that the word for swallowing as in drinking can also mean swallowing as in fear or resentment is pretty cool to me.

anyway, the romantic version involves writing the name of your loved one or crush on your palm three times in order to make them appear in your dreams. it doesn't seem to specify which hand it's written on, so it's up to you, really- but, being right-handed, I might want to write it on my left (especially since it's the hand that wedding rings go on due to the presence of the vena amoris).

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I'll end it here, seeing as 2025 has just started here in australia- changing my よいお年を！to an 明けましておめでとうございます！！wishing you all a wonderfully happy 2025 from the land down under, I wish for us all to be happy & prosperous (like the opening of a fan...!) in the coming year !

I'll be off to bed shortly (though I did consider staying up an extra two hours to see the turn of the year in the japanese timezone), so I figure it's a good time to ask- what would you wish for in your 初夢, your first dream of the year?