Talk:Tanabata

"meeting"
Can anyone explain what is meant by the annual "meeting" of Vega and Altair? No matter which night during the summer you observe them, they will always be the same distance apart. silsor 01:44, 24 October 2006 (UTC)
 * What happens is that the two stars cross to one side of the Milky Way instead of being seperated by it as they usually are. --Jusenkyoguide 00:39, 11 May 2007 (UTC)
 * Stars crossing the Milky Way is also impossible. I thought it was that on the right day of the lunisolar calendar the half-moon is in the right place that its light washes out the Milky Way so that it seems to disappear. HEL 12:56, 7 July 2007 (UTC)
 * The stars themselves certainly do not move anywhere. It is only the characters in the story who can meet; for the sake of the legend, these are identified with two stars which lie conveniently on either side of the milky way. The phrase "meeting of Vega and Altair" needs to be revised. As to the moon and its phase, the point was actually that the original form of the festival would always be on the seventh night of the moon, i.e. half-phase, which would be near setting by the late evening; this meant that its light would not hinder a clear view of the milky way that night. P. Yonge (talk) 11:24, 18 July 2008 (UTC)

Story Behind Tanabata
The first story given (The goddess losing her robes) does not appear to be the orginal myth in Japan. A Google search (as well as looking at various musems here in Nagano where the two lover's myth is very strong) has not referenced a story like that, at least in Japan. However, a myth about either a kami or an angel (Tenshi) coming down to bathe and leaving her robe on a pine tree with a Japanese man finding it is very well known (with many details/ending changed depending on the region), but not in connection to the two lovers. Anyone know where it came from?--Jusenkyoguide 03:03, 11 May 2007 (UTC)


 * It may come from the Robe hiding story (羽衣伝説) [ ja:羽衣伝説 ] that is one of the stories about marriage of different kinds (異類婚姻譚) [ ja:異類婚姻譚 ] like as Eros and Psyche, Melusine, The Frog Prince (story) etc. --Kazov 11:15, 13 May 2007 (UTC)

In the article, it is written: "The name Tanabata is remotely related to the Japanese reading of the Chinese letters 七夕, which used to be read as "Shichiseki" (しちせき). It is believed that a Shinto purification ceremony existed around the same time, in which a Shinto miko wove a special cloth on a loom called a Tanabata 棚機 (たなばた) near waters and offered it to a god to pray for protection of rice crops from rain or storm and for good harvest later in autumn. Gradually this ceremony merged with 乞巧奠（きっこうでん, (The Festival to Plead for Skills) and became Tanabata 七夕. Oddly the Chinese writing 七夕 and the Japanese reading Tanabata (たなばた) joined to mean the same festival, although originally they were two different things, an example of ateji."

This is a strange telling. We are told that the story of the weaver and the cowherd comes specifically from China. In the Qixi festival article, one can read that "Zhinü must sit forever on one side of the river, sadly weaving on her loom, while Niulang watches her from afar..." Along with the idea of Vega and Altair being separated lovers reunited on the 7th night of the 7th month, the idea of a woman weaving next to the water is obviously Chinese. How is it now they are both "two different things?" Using the hiragana 「たなばた」to read the characters 「七夕」may indeed be an example of ateji. However I contest that 「たなばた」refers to something unrelated to the Chinese story of the weaver and the cowherd. 「七夕」may have come to be read 「たなばた」, but only in reference to the Japanese word for the self-same loom the Chinese weaver used. Where is the source for the above information?KogeJoe (talk) 07:18, 10 May 2010 (UTC)

Orihime or Tanabata?
I have read a few versions of this story, but in each it varies whether the goddess's name is Tanabata or Orihime. I first heard Orihime, but I have more often heard Tanabata. Which is correct? And if it is truly Orihime, then why is the tale called Tanabata? My Mythology grade depends on this. -_---Myo. (talk) 16:12, 23 January 2008 (UTC)KaleidoMagic
 * I'm pretty sure the woman's name is Orihime, since this means "weaving princess". That's certainly the form I've seen or heard most often. Tanabata would seem to be the word for the loom on which she weaves; if it is used as her name, it would then mean "the woman with the loom". P. Yonge (talk) 11:30, 18 July 2008 (UTC)

Story about Mikeran
The story about Mikeran was added long ago on 3 October 2006 by "one edit" User. I extensively searched this story, however couldn't find the source except for the adaptation of this article. So I deleted the description. If this story is legitimate, please restore with a reliable source. ―― Phoenix7777 (talk) 10:24, 1 May 2010 (UTC)


 * An editor with whom I have a discussion on other article reverted my edit. I will keep the description long time existed with adding  and wait for a month. However newly added edit  by  was reverted. ―― Phoenix7777 (talk) 10:24, 2 May 2010 (UTC)

Request for third party comment
Phoenix has tried to blank Zookitty's edits twice now. The lack of references does not justify deletion of the good faith edits by Zookitty especially when the entire article lacks references and shares this issue. I have added the "Multiple Issues" banner to address lack of references and alert editors to help in finding references.

My suggestion is that we refrain from blanking text and work on repairing and adding citations to the article.Melonbarmonster2 (talk) 22:12, 3 May 2010 (UTC)
 * Please do not blank texts you don't like. The same standard should be applied to the entire article.  If we start blanking text that you don't like because it's not referenced, the MOST OF THE ARTICLE will have to be deleted.  There is a banner on top of the article which I inserted to address the need for citations.  If the lack of citations is a concern to you, then please FIND and INSERT citations in the text instead of blanking other people's good faith edits.Melonbarmonster2 (talk) 02:41, 4 May 2010 (UTC)

Attempt at compromise
I have tracked down a referenced for the challenged text. I hope this resolved the issue.Melonbarmonster2 (talk) 05:03, 4 May 2010 (UTC)

The G8 Photo
Does anyone have this photo in a better angle? between the real trees and the false backdrop and the slightly off angle, the image just feels...surreal? I found it ultimately distracting. 74.128.56.194 (talk) 08:49, 7 July 2011 (UTC)

request for advice for content in the 'In fiction' section
In the 2011 novel 'Tanabata' the Chinese story is adapted and used to express themes of love / separation and dualism - is it appropriate to mention it here? The current section actually has no 'fiction' or 'literature' references - it concerns folklore. I should declare a COI (I am the author!) so would like advice from previous editors. Alternatively, an 'In popular culture' section could be added... i think there are other references too... — Preceding unsigned comment added by Kyotohit (talk • contribs) 06:25, 17 December 2011 (UTC)

External links modified
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Unicode U+1F38B "TANABATA TREE" 🎋
On 2010-10-11, the Unicode Consortium added the "TANABATA TREE" symbol (🎋) at unicode point U+1F38B in its "Miscellaneous Symbols And Pictographs" block. See release notes and this delta code chart. I feel like this unicode symbol should be added to the article but I am not sure where to put it. My first thought is to add it to the lead but I wanted others' thoughts before I just add it. Thoughts? Balta katei  02:33, 24 July 2019 (UTC)

adding the missing language pages to the sidebar
The Japanese language link on the English language page is missing from the sidebar, and the reverse is also the case for the Japanese language page. When I attempt to add them through the Wikidata, the pages are apparently already "owned" by other Wikidata pages? The site recommends the data be merged; how would one go about fixing this? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Maesenko (talk • contribs) 01:21, 7 July 2020 (UTC)

Yep, apparently someone has to merge the two. I looked into how to do it, but it seems to be a hassle. The Japanese language version seems to have a slightly broader scope and refers to how the festival is separated in different countries, but considering that this article is almost specifically about the Japanese festival, it should be linked to the Japanese version of the article. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 126.36.54.244 (talk) 14:51, 7 July 2020 (UTC)

Tanabata
Could anyone add more to it? Roblox no no (talk) 02:06, 22 July 2020 (UTC)