Higan (Spring Equinox Week) Coloring Pages

An Important Time to Visit Graves in the Lovely Spring Season

Higan (Spring Equinox Week) is a total of seven days. It includes Spring Equinox Day in the middle, plus the three days before and three days after. In Japan, it is a very important event where you visit temples or cemeteries to say thank you to your ancestors.

What Kind of Meaning and Symbols Does It Have?

Higan (Spring Equinox Week) has a special meaning that connects the sun, the seasons, and love for your ancestors.

• Buddhist Teachings: In Buddhist thinking, on Spring Equinox Day and Autumn Equinox Day, the sun rises directly in the east and sets directly in the west. People believe these are the days when our world and the world where our ancestors are connect closest together.
• A Thankful Heart: By visiting graves, it is a time to treasure a caring heart and show your thanks for being alive today to your ancestors and family members who have passed away.
• Nice Weather: Spring Higan (Spring Equinox Week) happens right when the cold winter ends and the weather becomes comfortable. It symbolizes a great season that makes it easy to go visit graves.

How to Spend Higan (Spring Equinox Week)

During Higan (Spring Equinox Week), besides visiting graves, there is a custom of eating special foods.

• Visiting Graves: You clean the grave nicely, put out flowers, incense, and offerings, and place your hands together in prayer.
• Offerings: During spring Higan (Spring Equinox Week), people mostly eat a rice cake called botamochi. People say the red color of the sweet red bean paste on botamochi keeps bad evil away.
• Cleaning the Buddhist Altar: You also clean the Buddhist altar at home, place flowers there, and put out offerings.

Sights of Spring Higan (Spring Equinox Week)

As drawn in the coloring page, you visit graves surrounded by beautiful sights during spring Higan (Spring Equinox Week).

• Cherry Blossoms: In many areas, cherry blossoms start to bloom right around spring Higan (Spring Equinox Week). Your ancestors are surely happy to be surrounded by cherry blossoms in full bloom.
• Lots of Flowers: Many beautiful spring flowers bloom around the graves and give us a warm welcome.

How to Pick Colors: Use warm, cheerful, and gentle colors!

For your Higan (Spring Equinox Week) coloring page, choose colors that show the warm spring weather and your kind feelings for your ancestors.

• Basic colors: Let's pick green for grass and trees, cherry blossom pink, gray for graves and stones, and warm yellow for the sun and light!

Colors for each thing:

• Graves and stone monuments: Use dark gray or light black as your base color. If you leave a little white where the sunlight hits, it will look like hard, shiny stone!
• Cherry blossoms: Mix light pink and dark pink together to make them look soft and gentle. Coloring the falling petals with a pale pink looks really pretty, too!
• Offerings: Make the Botamochi (sweet rice balls) look yummy with brown or red bean color! You can color the plate white or another bright color.
• Grass and flowers: Use lots of bright spring flower colors for the grass and flowers in front! Try yellow-green, dark green, yellow, and white to make it look fun and lively.

How to color with depth: Show the warmth of the light!

Let's color the warm sunlight of spring pouring down on the graves and the people! Places in shadow:

• Try adding shadows with dark gray or dark green in places where the light does not reach, like under the steps of the grave, behind the people's backs, and behind the tree trunk, to give it some depth.

Where the light hits:

• In pictures where the sun is rising, color the parts where the light hits with bright yellow or white to show the warm weather.

Show the Textures!

Colored pencils: If you paint the grass and tree leaves by layering short lines, you can make a lively, natural texture. People's clothes: If you paint the kimono patterns carefully for the people wearing kimono, you can show the feeling of a special day.

Tips for enjoying your coloring page!

• Show your thanks to your ancestors!
  • As you color, picture the faces of your ancestors and family members who have passed away, and try coloring with a gentle heart!
• Draw the spring scenery!
  • Try drawing a pale blue sky and clouds, or add lots of little flowers on the ground to make a beautiful spring scene!