Kadomatsu

What it is

Kadomatsu means gate pine in Japanese. The object belongs to a class of things called yorishiro, understood in Japanese practice as items that draw a spirit near and give it somewhere to settle. Two of them stand at an entrance, one on each side, and the pair is read as male and female. Decorations of this kind are not ornaments in the ordinary sense. They are treated as a short-term dwelling, called a shintai, for a deity. Each one serves a single season and is not kept from year to year.

How it is made

Pine wood was the usual material in the past, while bamboo is more common now. Three thick bamboo stalks form the middle of the piece, and plastic versions are also made. Once the parts are gathered, the whole is tied with a straw mat and with rope woven fresh for the purpose. The look of a kadomatsu differs from one region to another. Pine, bamboo and sometimes sprigs of the ume, or plum tree, are the common elements, and a household follows the style used where it lives rather than one national pattern.

When it goes up

Households set the decoration out after Christmas. It stays until January 7. Under the older arrangement of the Edo period it remained until January 15. Once that day has passed, or in many places the 19th, the piece is burned. The burning is understood to send the deity away again and to settle it. Because the decoration belongs to a short window, people do not leave it standing past the set date. Both the date in use and the details of the design vary by region.

What it means

The deity in question is the toshigami, the god of the year. One account of Japanese New Year ceremonies, quoted in the sources, says their central purpose is to honour and receive this figure, who is believed to give farmers a good harvest and to grant the blessing of the ancestors. The kadomatsu gives that arrival somewhere to rest. For the household, putting one out opens the year and asks for good fortune within it. When the decoration is burned, the visit is over.

How Kadomatsu is kept

A household or a shop sets one kadomatsu on each side of its entrance, doing so after Christmas. The decoration stays through the first week of January. On the date chosen locally it is taken down and carried off to be burned, and the burning closes the visit of the year god. Neighbours do the same, so a street shows the season all at once. Designs differ from place to place, and each household follows the style of its own region.

When and where

It goes up after Christmas and comes down on January 7. In the Edo period the display lasted until January 15, and in many places today it is burned on that date or on the 19th. The decoration therefore belongs to the opening days of the New Year rather than to the whole winter.

The custom belongs to Japan and is kept there. Its forms vary from region to region, so the exact materials and shape follow local practice. It is a domestic and street-level sight rather than a temple event, seen at the entrances of homes and businesses during the New Year period.

What Kadomatsu means

Kadomatsu is treated as a temporary dwelling, or shintai, for the year god, the toshigami. The plant materials carry meanings of their own: pine stands for long life, bamboo for prosperity, and plum sprigs for steadfastness. The pair at the gate is understood as male and female. Once the visit is over, the burning releases the deity and returns the street to its usual state. The practice turns a doorway into a meeting place between a household and the spirit of the new year.

Questions people ask about Kadomatsu

See also

Double Ninth FestivalAn autumn festival of mountain walks, chrysanthemum wine and ancestor remembranceJapanese New YearAn annual celebration of renewal, seasonal foods, and bell ringing across JapanDongzhiA midwinter festival celebrating the return of light with family feasts and dumplingsHalloweenAn annual observance on 31 October marking the eve of All Saints' Day, rooted in Christian tradition and Celtic heritage

Good reading and sources

• Kadomatsu on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.