5 Facts from the Footnotes about Sakura 桜, The Japanese Cherry Tree
- natalie sensei
- Apr 14, 2019
- 8 min read
Updated: Jul 26, 2022
Sakura (桜), the Japanese cherry tree, holds a lot of meaning and history. Here are five facts about the importance of Sakura in Japan.
BY NATALIE CHERIE CAMPBELL
It's springtime, and springtime in Japan means sakura (桜), the Japanese cherry tree. It is astonishing how much meaning and history is held in the tiny, transient blossoms of a Japanese cherry tree. That's why you find dozens of articles and blog posts about cherry blossoms titled "16 facts about . . .," "25 things you didn't know about . . .," and so on. I love that type of article, but I always want to know more. Not the type of more that leads to 31 interesting facts rather than 10 amazing ones—no, I want the type of more that has me following a trail of footnotes for the story behind one fascinating fact. So here are five facts about sakura that I learned by following the footnotes.
1. The Biological Reasoning behind the Sakura's Meaning
The symbols associated with sakura are fairly familiar. Sakura are associated with the ephemeral, such as youth, pleasure, fleeting beauty, and the transience of life. On the flip side, sakura are associated with the enduring, such as wisdom, eternal life, and the continual renewal of life and beauty. These associations have been heavily influenced by Buddhism and Shintoism. However, they originate in the ecology of the trees themselves.
Awazuhara Atsushi is a scholar who wrote "Perceptions of Ambiguous Reality–Life, Death and Beauty in Sakura" for the journal Japanese Religions. In the article she explains some cool biological-symbolic connections. "In the spring, the cherry trees have to drop their flowers in a hurry to reduce the strong wind pressure against their branches; this is because, in April, at the peak of the cherry bloom’s beauty, storms often come to Japan. The transience of Japanese cherry blooming is derived from the tree’s self-defensive adaptation to the hard spring weather in Japan" [1].
Another reason the cherry tree is a natural symbol of the transience of life is that its lifecycle resembles that of human beings. The word sakura in poetry and literature generally refers to the Prunus jamasakura species. This species reaches its peak at twenty years, its decline at fifty years, and its death around seventy years.
For a tree that lives a short seventy years, it may be surprising that there is another species of sakura that lives for over fourteen hundred. It is the edo higan (江戸彼岸) or Prunus pendula. (The full name is followed by 'Maxim. f. ascendens (Makino) Ohwi'.) It is a species "so long-lived that it readily provides an image of the cherry tree graced with eternal life" [2].
These different species of sakura have created a rich cache of meaning because they can symbolize contradictory ideas. Together they provide all the insight that only a paradox can bring.
2. The Sakura Blossom as the Essence of Japan
The sakura and its blossoms entered the cultural imagination of Japan in the Heian period (平安時代, 794 to 1185 CE) when Buddhism's influence was at its height. The impermanence of all things and the graceful acceptance of karma are major themes of Buddhism, so it makes sense that the cherry blossom's most prevalent and enduring metaphor is the acceptance of the ephemeral nature of life.
It wasn't until the Edo period (江戸時代, 1603 to 1868 CE) that the cherry blossom was considered fundamentally Japanese. Motoori Norinaga—a scholar-physician famous for his life's work the Kojiki-den—created the connection by combining his love for sakura blossoms, Japan, and mono no aware.
Mono no Aware is a phrase that also came into use during the Heian period. Mono no Aware refers to "the sensitive, exquisite feelings experienced when encountering the subtle workings of human life or the changing seasons" [3]. It can also be translated as an "empathy toward things" and hearkens back to the Buddhist concept of the ephemeral. Over the course of the Heian and Kamakura (鎌倉時代, 1185 to1333 CE) periods, the aristocracy refined and embedded the concept of mono no aware into art, literature, poetry, and their own lifestyles. For example, in the springtime, the court and aristocracy gather for hanami, or blossom viewings, in the spirit of mono no aware.
When Norinaga came onto the scene, his interest in mono no aware was filtered through his dissatisfaction with Japanese education. Japanese education was centered on Chinese classics, Confucianism, and Buddhist literature. It had been for centuries. He championed the philosophy that scholarship should focus on national learning and Japan instead of China—kokugaku. "He deserves credit for illuminating the spiritual world of the Japanese [by] peeling away Confucian and Buddhist influence to reveal the identity of Japanese civilization" [4].
Part of his process was composing waka, which preceded the haiku by a thousand years. He wrote waka to grasp the ancient world. He wrote about ten thousand waka. About three hundred feature sakura. It was in a waka that Norinaga claims the cherry blossom as the essence of Japan. [5] It goes like this:
Shikishima no Asked about the soul of Japan, Yamato gokoro wo I would say Hito towaba That it is Asahi ni niou Like wild cherry blossoms Yama-zakura-bana Glowing in the morning sun.
Sakura are everywhere in the symbolic identity of Japan. Norinaga might be happy to know that sakura blossoms are featured in thousands of haikus. Sakura blossoms are in Japanese art, manga, anime, and film. They're in histories, drama, musical performances, and ritual. Norinaga might be especially happy to know that sakura are in front of nearly every Japanese school. Whether it was Shinto, Buddhism, Motoori Norinaga, or centuries of tradition, cherry blossoms really do symbolize the essence of Japan
3. Shinto and the Sacred Sakura
Another essential aspect of Japanese culture is Shinto (神道), or 'way of the kami'. Shinto is a belief system indigenous to Japan with no founder, no official scriptures, and no dogma. Shinto is a collection of beliefs, rituals, and attitudes toward life. I'll eventually write a post dedicated to Shinto, but a simplified description is that Shinto is a belief in kami, or spirits, which are everywhere and most frequently found in nature. This is where sakura come in.
Ancient Japanese shrines were originally forests, grove, and mountains. These sacred forests were called Chinju-no mori [or] Yashiro. These are ancient words for shrine, which was just "a sacred place where a kami must be worshipped” [6]. "In particular, it is believed that kami stay in huge trees called shinboku (神木), or 'divine trees'" [7]. There are lots of different trees that are considered shinboku, such as the Ogatama-noki tree, Sakki tree, pine tree, bamboo, Japanese cedar, camphor tree, peach tree, camellia, oak, hackberry, ginkgo, chinquapin, Japanese plum (ume 梅), wisteria, Japanese Judas (katsura 桂), and, of course, the Japanese cherry tree (sakura 桜) [8]. One way to set apart these divine trees was by placing a sacred "straw rope, with short paper streamers called a shimenawa around the tree" [9]. So if you ever see a tree with a shimenawa around it, know that its sacred and that a kami may be nearby.
The eighth-century chronicle Nihon-shoki (日本書紀, Chronicles of Japan) explains that since ancient times, people were prohibited from cutting sacred trees for fear of angering the kami. Sakura trees, in particular, were mentioned in the Nihon-shoki and have been regarded as sacred for centuries. Archeological evidence shows us this, such as the remains of Torihama (鳥浜) shell mound. Torihama is a Jomon period (縄文,13000 to 300 BCE) site that has hundreds of bows wrapped in cherry bark. Cherry bark was believed to have sacred power and was used in hunting ceremonies where ancient Japanese prayed to earth spirits, for safety and fertility. [10]
Trees have spiritual significance for many reasons. Some trees are believed to invite a god’s soul. Some are used to purify and distinguish holy places. Some are offerings. Some have ritualistic purposes. Others drive away devils. [11] Sakura holds an important place among the sacred trees of Shinto: just another reason why sakura have a place in the heart of Japan.
4. Hanami, Sitting Beneath Sakura Blossoms for 2,000 Years
A hanami (花見, flower viewing) is a tradition of picnicking under blooming sakura trees. It is an ancient and enduring ritual in Japanese culture. The Nihon-shoki records hanami festivals as far back as the third century CE. During the Nara period (奈良時代, 710 to 794 CE), people sought out plum blossoms. But, plum blossoms eventually gave way to cherry blossoms. Sakura became important enough to have dedicated shrines such as Hirano Jinja in Kyoto. It was founded in 782 CE and received regular offerings from the emperor, one of 16 shrines to have that honor.
By the Heian period, hana (flowers) was synonymous with cherry blossom in Japanese poetry. Only the elite of the Imperial Court held hanami feasts and drank sake though. But, hanami soon spread to the samurai and, by the Edo period, the general populace. Tokugawa Yoshimune (徳川 吉宗, 1684 to 1751), the eighth shogun, even planted cherry blossom trees along both banks of the Sumidagawa River to specifically encourage the tradition. [12]
Now each spring, blankets cover the ground underneath the cherry blossoms for picnics and sake. Lanterns dangle from the branches so that people can enjoy yozakura (夜桜)—a hanami at night. If one is at a shrine, one may hear the song 'Sakura' being played in the sanctuary. The feeling of renewal, transience, and beauty coming from the cherry blossoms fills the air. Go out, find a sakura tree, spread a blanket, and sit awhile. You won’t regret it.
5. From the "Age of Dieties," Japan's 2,000-year-old Sakura
Yamataki Jindai Zakura (山高神代桜) is Japan's, and perhaps the world's, oldest sakura. It is somewhere between 1,800 and 2,000 years old and still blossoms each year at Jissou Temple (実相寺) in Yamanashi Prefecture. The word jindai (神代) in the tree’s name means the “age of deities.”
According to traditional belief, the cherry tree has been there since ancient times, watching over the villagers. They have passed down a story that the tree was planted by Yamato Takeru (日本武尊) at the end of the first century CE. He is a mythic hero who conquered the tribes resisting the Yamato (大和) clan, which formed the first government of central Japan as chronicled in the Kojiki (712 CE) and Nihon-shoki (720 CE), the two oldest books of Japanese history. According to this story, Yamato Takeru planted theYamatakajindai-zakura when he went to the village after subjugating Eastern Japan two thousand years ago.
A later legend says that Nichiren (日蓮, 1222 to 1282 CE) came to the temple fourteen hundred years after the planting of the tree and found it dying. According to the legend, he prayed for it, and the tree recovered its life force. Coming full circle, Nichiren developed the teachings that became Nichiren Buddhism, the branch of Mahayana Buddhism to which the Jissou temple is devoted.
More recently, on October 12, 1922, the Japanese government declared five specific cherry trees as National Natural Monuments with Yamatakijindai-zakura being the first. Collectively, these trees are known as “Nihon Godai Zakura,” the Five Great Sakura Trees of Japan. The other four trees are Miharu Takizakura in Miharu, Fukushima; Ishitokaba Zakura in Kitamoto, Saitama; Kariyado no Gebazakura in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka; and Usuzumi-Zakura in Motosu, Gifu. [13] They are all trees that have endured hundreds or thousands of years. They are sakura from the age of deities.
Sakura (桜), The Japanese Cherry Tree
With beautiful, fleeting blossoms, sakura have inspired a thousand years of poetry. For as long, admirers have contemplated and celebrated under their falling petals. A sakura’s blossoms are poignant symbols that beckon renewal and bespeak death.
Sakura are my favorite tree. They're beautiful, moving, and thought-provoking. They have a history, symbolism, and spirituality to them that seems to emanate from their blossoms. It is so easy to go on and on about them, yet there are so many other cool facts that I didn't get to tell you about like sakura in diplomacy and World War II, and sakura foods and festivals. So look forward to more insights on sakura that you can't find on Wikipedia because I have a lot more where this came from.
[1] Awazuhara Atsushi, "Perceptions of Ambiguous Reality–Life, Death and Beauty in Sakura," in
Japanese Religions 32.1,2: 39–51, NCC Center for the Study of Japanese Religions, 2007,
[2] Ibid.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Shinto in History: Ways of the Kami, edited by John Breen and Mark Teeuwen, Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2000, 43.
[7] Awazuhara, Atsushi.
[8] Ibid. and Hiroshi Omura, “Trees, Forests and Religion in Japan,” in Mountain Research and Development 24.2: 179–182, International Mountain Society, 2004,
[9] Sokyo Ono, Shinto: The Kami Way, North Clarendon, Vermont: Charles E. Tuttle Publishing,
[10] Awazuhara, Atsushi.
[11] Hiroshi Omura.
[13] thetreeographer.com/2018/03/28/the-oldest-cherry-blossom-tree-in-japan-jindai-zakura, and Awazuhara, Atsushi.
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