Teru teru bōzu – Amulet against the rains in Japan

Japan has a rainy season which we call ” tsuyu ” in Japanese. During this time it rains and a lot! ” Tsuyu ” means ” plum rain ” because the plums are ripe and ready for picking at this time of year.

In most of Japan, the rainy season is from early June to mid-July. It doesn’t necessarily rain every day , but when it rains, it really rains! As it is already a hot season, the days feel humid and can be a bit uncomfortable.

But for the continuous rainy days in Japan we have what we call the ” Teru teru bōzu “, a good luck charm to bring sunny days.

It is handmade from white paper or cloth that Japanese farmers traditionally began to hang outside their window with a rope, wishing the rain would stop and the sun would come out. ” Teru ” means “to shine ” and ” bōzu ” can be translated as ” monk ” or ” skinhead “. So teru teru bōzu can be literally translated as ‘shine, shine monk’.

Nowadays, children make teru teru bōzu with disposable tissues, cotton, and a rope or rubber band and hang them from the window when they want sunny days to come, especially before a day of a school trip. They are a very common superstition in Japan!

If you are looking forward to going on a picnic or playing outside, you can make a teru teru bōzu to clear the day so you can enjoy without rain! In the next video you can learn how to do it!

Tell us in the comments how did it turn out for you?