What is Osechi?
{{Orphan|date=February 2022}} [[File:Oseti.jpg|thumb|220px|right|''Osechi'' foods packed into ''jubako'']] '''''Osechi''''' is [[Japanese cuisine|Japanese food]] made to celebrate the coming of the [[New Year]], called ''Shogatsu''.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2064.html|title=Japanese New Year |accessdate=2009-09-04 |format= |work= Japan-guide.com}}</ref> It is one of the most important annual events in Japan. ''Osechi'' food is packed in colorful [[lacquer]] boxes called ''jubako''. Each dish and [[ingredient]] in ''osechi'' has a meaning, such as good health, [[fertility]], good [[harvest]], happiness, long life, and so on. The kind of ''osechi'' foods eaten in Japanese homes varies from area to area. It is a Japanese tradition to eat ''osechi'' dishes during the New Year's holidays which go from January 1 to January 3. == Stories == One year there was not much food. People did not have enough rice to cook in their rice cooker. [[Emperor Nintoku]] knew about this and it worried him a lot. He said that he would lower the taxes in years when people did not have enough rice for New Years Day. After that the taxes were lowered but the House of Emperor Nintoku became poor. Japanese people celebrated this custom on New Years Day. ''Osechi-ryori'' is a dish that is cooked before [[New Year's Eve]] to eat on New Years Day. On New Years Day, the God of the Year, named ''Toshigami'' comes to the world and the world starts a new year. The god came through a special gate, a ''Kadomatsu'', into our world. He is god of agriculture. In Japan when agriculture was the main activity of life, people welcomed ''Toshigami'' and hoped for a rich harvest. A special decoration, a ''shimekazari'' was put up to welcome the god.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://artofjpn2.blogspot.com/2008/01/shimekazari.html|title=Kyoto Daily Photo: Shimekazari |accessdate=4 September 2009 |format= }}</ref> Another decoration, a ''wakazari'', was put up to make sure that nothing would go wrong during the next year.<ref>{{cite web |