Japanese Martial Arts - Kagami Biraki 2019 鏡開き

Kagami Biraki is a rice cake breaking ceremony dating from the 15th Century when samurai would dedicate rice cakes (mochi) on New Year’s Day to the gods to purify their weapons and armor. After the New Years holidays they would break and share the mochi with their family and allies to strengthen bonds between them. In modern times, kagami biraki is the first martial arts practice for many dojos. At Nippon Budokan on Coming of Age Day (Seijin no Hi on the second Monday of January) they do a rice-breaking ce