2020.04.20
Culture of Tying Knots: Mizuhiki
“Mizuhiki” is a type of string made of twisted Japanese washi paper, starched and dyed. 1,400 years ago, hemp strings dyed in red and white were used as part of gifts in the era of Japanese envoys to Sui Dynasty China, which was changed to the present-day mizuhiki.
Since ancient times, the Japanese have viewed “musubu (tying a knot)” as an act of creating a place where spirits live. It is the act of two different objects of meeting and creating something new. The words musuko (son) and musume (daughter) originated from “musubi-hiko” and “musubi-hime” respectively, words used to describe the lives born from the connection of man and woman.
Tying mizuhiki around a gift: the action itself has a significant meaning of sending a wish and love.