It seems that the pandemic hasn't really changed marriage traditions across the world.
Sure, actual wedding dates have had to be postponed; some have been canceled outright. But the traditions that come with marriage are here to stay, pandemic or no pandemic.
Such is the case in the town of Tokamachi in Japan's Niigata Prefecture, where women have their new husbands tossed into snow.
It's one of the very few events in Japan that have a fixed date every year, occurring on January 15.
Matsunoyama Mukonage, or Bridegroom Throwing, is a small local festival that takes place every year in Tokamachi, and the quirky tradition dates back 300 years. It's held to ring in the Lunar New Year, and is said to 'deepen' new marriages in the town.
Newly-wed grooms are paraded through town, held up on the shoulders of their male companions and carried up a hill to the Matsunoyama Onsen. But before proceeding to the top of the hill, the husbands have to down a few rounds of sake. It's said that this will help cushion their fall as they hit the snow. The men who toss the groom also have to drink, believing that the sake will give them enough strength to toss the newly-wed husband.
Once they reach the hilltop, the grooms are tossed down the snowy hill, and have to roll all the way down to their wives, who wait to 'receive' them at the bottom.
When everyone has reached the bottom of the hill, the new couple receives a blessing from the priest, and the groom lights a bonfire. And when the bonfire heat subsides, everybody mixes the ashes with some snow and rubs it all over each other's faces for good luck.
But how did this weirdly-charming tradition even come about?
It's said to have started out of a tale of vengeance or jealousy.
When a man 'takes away' (marries) one of the daughters of the village (Tokamachi), the newlywed brides were often too busy during the Lunar New Year period, as they would normally have to spend it with the husband's family somewhere else.
The women would normally return to the village on January 15. Going up to the Matsunoyama Onsen for the first time with their new husbands presented a 'great opportunity' for the townsfolk to teach the men a lesson and toss them into the snow. And once they've been tossed, they'll be accepted by the town.
It's basically centuries-old hazing. I'm not one for hazing of any kind usually, but if it involves being tossed in snow to be accepted by my (non-existent) wife's townsfolk, I'm game.
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