The Winter Solstice (Toji) 冬至

And one more recipe

Each prayer

offered during a solstice

is worth 100,000 prayers

~~Often told to me by my dear tashi lama, Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche

My friend Richard posted this on Facebook. Across Asia, the equinoxes and solstices were believed to be times when the fabric separating this world and the other shore were thinnest. It is a time of flux and temporary imbalance as yin overrides yang or vice versa.

The Winter Solstice is the day when darkness and Yin reach their pinnacle. From this point out, in the Northern Hemisphere, the light returns. We hope. It is a day of celebration—but also, because energies are in flux as yin and yang shift, a day to take care of one’s health. This is why in Japan, people take baths with yuzu citrus (yuzuyu) and eat fortifying vegetables like kabocha to ward off colds. It is also a time to eat auspicious veggies: see below from JustOne Cooking. Her Nabeyaki-udon recipe is copied below as well.

Auspicious Vegetables (Unmori) 運盛り

Winter solstice is also a time to eat seasonal vegetables that have the auspicious, nasal sound of ’n’ in their name. In Japanese, the ’n’ sound is a rhyme for ‘u-n’ (運), which means fortune. This custom, aptly called Unmori, reflects the wisdom of eating healthy foods to keep one nourished over the winter.

Vegetables and foods such as daikon radish, nin-jin (carrots), ren-kon (lotus roots), ginnan (gingko nut) and udon noodles are just some of the auspicious foods with the ’n’ sound that Japanese enjoy on this winter solstice day to bring good health and good wealth in the upcoming year.

How to make Nabeyaki-udon (Video)

Nabeyaki-Udon: Just One Cookbook

For what its worth, I buy pre-made shrimp tempura from a Japanese shop and use this dashi