Japan’s annual laughing ritual

There’s a saying that goes, “if you didn’t laugh, you’d cry”.   But in Japan, they take it a little more literally.   #Japan #Festival #Laughing

Transcript

00:00Now, there's a saying that goes, if you didn't laugh, you'd cry.

00:04It means using humor to get through bad times.

00:07But in Japan, they take it all a bit more literally.

00:18Laughing away the year's bad memories,

00:21over a thousand people took part in the annual end-of-year ritual

00:25at a shrine in Osaka, where they laughed for 20 minutes straight.

00:31The ceremony also provides a chance for participants to wish for good luck in the coming year.

00:36The tradition is rooted in the Japanese myth

00:40that the gods danced and laughed to entice the sun goddess out of her cave.