Fortune Day (Fuku no Hi)

What Is Fortune Day?

December 29th is "Fuku no Hi," or Fortune Day. It was established by Kibun Foods Inc., a maker of the fish-paste products that fill osechi, Japan's New Year cuisine, and it is certified and registered by the Japan Anniversary Association. The date comes from December's position just before the New Year and from a reading of the numbers: 2 can be read "fu" and 9 "ku," together making fuku, good fortune. The aim is to invite that fortune by learning what New Year customs originally meant, and the company suggests spending the day shopping and cleaning in preparation.

A Day of "Ku," or a Day of "Fuku"?

December 29th has in fact long been a day some households avoided. Nine can also be read "ku," meaning hardship, and 29 can be heard as nijū-ku, "double hardship," so in some regions people hold off on pounding mochi or putting up New Year decorations. Elsewhere the same number is read as fuku, and the rice cakes made that day are called fuku-mochi, lucky mochi. The same date carries opposite readings, and Fortune Day plants itself firmly in the second camp.

• December 28: The character for eight suggests widening fortune, making it the most favored day for decorating and mochi-making
• December 29: Avoided in some regions as "double hardship," welcomed in others as fuku
• December 30: No particular taboo, so it is a common fallback for putting up decorations
• December 31: Avoided as ichiya-kazari, "one-night decorating," considered discourteous to the incoming New Year deity

The Wishes Folded into Osechi

Each osechi dish carries a hope for the coming year. Red and white kamaboko fish cake is said to stand for celebration and protection in the red, purity in the white. Datemaki, a rolled sweet omelet, echoes the shape of a scroll and so stands for learning and culture. Kuromame, black beans, play on mame, meaning both diligent and healthy. Kobumaki, kelp rolls, sound like yorokobu, to rejoice. Herring roe stands for many descendants, and candied sardines for a good harvest.

Year-End Cleaning Began on December 13th

The cleaning that Fortune Day encourages has its own history. The day for starting New Year preparations is called shogatsu-kotohajime, and in most regions it falls on December 13th. The practice is said to have spread because Edo Castle carried out its susuharai -- the sweeping away of a year's soot -- on that date every year, and townspeople followed suit. Clearing out the grime purified the house so the New Year deity could be received. Today's osoji, the year-end deep clean, is that religious observance in secular form. Start on the 13th and finish around the 29th, and the placement of this date makes immediate sense.

Tips for Marking This Day

• Buy the ingredients for osechi and ozoni, and anything else needed for the first three days of January
• Finish the year-end cleaning so the house is ready for the New Year deity
• Look up what one osechi dish means and share it with family or coworkers
• If the decorations are not up yet, plan to put them out by the 30th

Knowing Why Makes the Preparation Better

Year-end preparation easily becomes a chore, but every step in it has a reason behind it. Why decorate on this day, why this particular dish? Knowing the answers makes a hectic December 29th look a little different.