Shichi-Go-San is a traditional Japanese rite of passage and festival day for three- and seven-year-old girls, five-year-old and sometimes three-year-old boys, held annually on November 15 to celebrate the growth and well-being of young children. As it is not a national holiday, it is generally observed on the nearest weekend.
Japanese boy at a shrine in Tokyo, dressed up for the Shichi-Go-San festival
Shichi-Go-San ritual at a Shinto shrine
A young girl dressed traditionally for Shichi-Go-San
Kunisada
Hakama are a type of traditional Japanese clothing. Originally stemming from kù, the trousers worn by members of the Chinese imperial court in the Sui and Tang dynasties, this style was adopted by the Japanese in the form of hakama in the 6th century. Hakama are tied at the waist and fall approximately to the ankles. They are worn over a kimono specially adapted for wearing hakama, known as a hakamashita.
Two Miko wearing hakama
A Japanese lady wearing a Hakama at the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu
Two Shinto priests wearing hakama; note lack of koshi-ita (腰板)
International students in formal montsuki-haori-hakama. Sendaihira hakama, some of them ombré