The sun is beginning to shine brightly, the mornings are tinged with red in a mist that rises after the cool night... May is here, and the tea bushes are ready for the great harvest. Baskets and scarves move slowly through the green rows, selecting the new shoots and leaves. And everywhere, from the foot of Mount Fuji to the hills of Kagoshima, passing through the valleys of Uji in Kyoto, rises a melody: the Tea Pickers' Song, or the Rhyme of the 88th Night. Listen:
Here are the lyrics:
Remove yourself from the kitchen
Natsu mo chikazuku hachijūhachi ya
Summer approaches, it's the 88th night.
Young leaves grow abundantly in the fields and mountains.
No ni mo yama ni mo wakaba ga shigeru
Les jeunes feuilles verdissent champs et montagnes
Isn't that tea picking over there?
Are ni mieru wa chatsumi ja nai ka
Ce que l'on voit là-bas, n'est-ce pas une cueilleuse de thé?
A crimson sash and a sedge hat
Akane-dasuki ni suge no kasa
Avec une écharpe rouge et un chapeau de jonc.
Second verse:
These days have been lovely and sunny.
Hiyori tsudzuki no kyō kono goro o
En ces jours de beau temps qui se succèdent,
Singing while peacefully picking them
Kokoro nodoka ni tsumi tsutsu utau
On cueille paisiblement en chantant, l'esprit tranquille
Pick, pick, pick, you must pick
Tsume yo tsume tsume tsumane ba naranu
Cueillez, cueillez, il faut cueillir sans relâche!
If you pick them, it won't become Japanese tea.
Tsumaniya Nihon no cha ni naranu
Car sans cueillette, il n'y aura pas de thé japonais.
This song, along with its melody, appeared in the 1910s, towards the end of Emperor Meiji's reign. This was a period of rapid industrialization in Japan, as well as the development of agricultural distribution networks. Children and workers were taught all sorts of songs to punctuate and brighten their workdays. This actually stems from a much older tradition of agricultural singing, which accompanied all stages of the year, particularly physically demanding activities. In France, one might think of similar songs sung in the fields or at the washhouse...
Also noteworthy is the patriotic dimension of this text, which seeks to instill a sense of pride in tea workers. This industry has evolved considerably since then, but the principle remains the same: to work diligently so that everyone can enjoy a good cup of green tea.
But why the 88th night? This is to designate the starting date of the tea harvest, traditionally set at the 88th day after the beginning of spring. This choice results from a triple confluence: from this date, it almost never freezes at night; the number 88, auspicious throughout Asia and in Buddhist tradition; the fact that the Chinese characters for writing 88, 八十八, when superimposed, resemble the character for rice, a central element of the Japanese agricultural world.
Nowadays, in the vast majority of cases, we no longer harvest the shinchaNew tea was harvested exactly 88 days after the start of spring. Advances in understanding the tea plant's life cycle, as well as the vagaries of climate change, have eliminated this punctuality. It's also about better respecting living things and producing a better quality teaBut the song itself remains.
In Paris, one sometimes gets the impression of being very far from the green valleys of Japan and its tea plantations. With the new decoration of our shop window, created by the talented Aya MuaramatsuYou can travel a bit and come discover, in this setting of young shoots, our shincha 2024 as well as our shincha 2025Arrival expected mid-June.
Warning: the shincha 2025 will sell out fast! Book it now by email or by phone:
chumon@maruyamanori.com
01 46 33 94 90
Happy end of spring and happy start of summer from Jugetsudo!
- Matti from the Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday team