Tanabata 2022: Google Doodle Celebrates Japanese Star Festival

The theme of today’s Doodle is Tanabata (), a Japanese holiday honouring the classic love story of Orihime and Hikoboshi. The couple can only meet up in the Milky Way on this day each year, according to legend.

Orihime, a celestial princess in this tale, creates exquisite clothing for her powerful father, The Sky King. She eventually meets Hikoboshi, a cowherd, and they fall in love. Orihime stops weaving for her father as she spends more time with her sweetheart. The Sky King is displeased by this because he views the relationship as a diversion. Hikoboshi is banished to the opposite side of the galaxy against the wishes of his daughter.

During Tanabata, a flock of magpies travels throughout the universe once a year. Hikoboshi and Orihime can traverse the iridescent birds and locate one another. However, bad weather may keep the magpies from travelling to the galaxy’s edge.

Because of this, everyone in Japan hopes for bright skies on Tanabata so that the unlucky couple won’t have to wait another year to get together. People typically write their wishes on a bright strip of paper (tanzaku).

People celebrate Tanabata by taking advantage of the lovely, cascading garlands that are strung around Japan, as shown in contemporary art.

Happy Tanabata to everyone who observes it! This year, may all of your heart’s desires come true.