I will bend....but not break!

Well now, I thought I would do some research as to why my needles are bending, while I am quilting. At first I thought I was being to rough, perhaps the loft was higher, maybe my hands were even cold, who knows, but I had to find the answer. Please note that I have not had any problems prior with my needles bending ( I bent 4 today, in less than an hour). I found this...

Harikuyo, the Festival of Broken Needles
On February 8th, all across Japan, Harikuyo will take place in Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Hari means needle, and Kuyou is a Buddhist memorial service; Memorial services are usually held for spirits of the dead but it is also common to hold them for inanimate objects that have served well in life, or indeed that life depends on.

Known as the Festival of Broken Needles, it is a ritual of thanks and respect for tools of the sewing, tailoring and embroidery trades. It dates back 1500 years; women (and men) dress in fine kimono and gather together all of the needles they've used, broken and/or and worn out during the previous year. They proceed to the local temple or shrine, where a three-tiered altar is prepared. In the center section is a large slab of tofu, into which everyone plunges the pieces of their broken needles.

Later they will be taken to a sacred final resting place. The tofu keeps them safe and not forgotten, yet because of being protected in the tofu they can do no harm with their points. In a second sense they are still present in life. The priest will incant a sutra, that reflects the passage of the needles from use, and invokes a Buddhist blessing that is passed on to the users of the needles. By showing respect to the needles they have used through the past year, they are offering thanks and requesting that the power and energy of the needles be present in the stitchers for the coming year, so that their skills may be improved. Priests will also sing sutras to comfort the needles, heal their broken spirits and thank them for work well done. No sewing takes place on this day.

"...women have many secret sorrows in life. These sorrows are often passed to the needles during the long hours of stitching and the needles are thought to take on the burden of some of these sorrows thus taking them away with the stitching that they do."

Resources: Pulse of the Planet, presented by the American Museum of Natural History; Rufus, Anneli: The World Holiday Book, Harper San Francisco 1994; About.com/Japan


Early last week my family was hit with a crisis. We are trying to pull through it but will not know the outcome until early March. It has been a very stressful week, full of fear of the unknown, fear of loss, and trying to find trust in someone that holds our well being in their hands. I feel that the above paragraph about women's sorrows being passed to the needles is particularly ironic. And I kinda think it holds some truth...