[Free Pattern] Tsukimi: Crochet Tsukimi Dango Amigurumi・月見の和菓子: かぎ針編み月見団子

It has been a while since I last posted. Well, there've been a few things going on, including the key collection for our new apartment (at long last!) and a long planned trip to New Zealand (IG story). I also totally missed August for this crochet wagashi project; originally wanted to attempt a crochet ohagiおはぎ amigurumi to mark Obon in August or Ohigan in September, but it didn't happen in the end.

Last Friday (September 29th) was the Mid-Autumn Festival, or Zhong Qiu Jie中秋节 as we call it here. In the past 2 years, I made crochet mooncakes for the festival (2021 and 2022). But as I'm working on crochet wagashi this year, I mark this year's Mid-Autumn Festival with tsukimi dango月見団子, a wagashi that is traditionally eaten on Tsukimi月見, the Japanese version of the Mid-Autumn Festival. As Tsukimi derived from this ancient Chinese festival, it likewise falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month and as such, is also known as Jūgoya十五夜 (literally "fifteenth night") in Japan.

Crochet tsukimi dango (IG).

When it comes to the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, the traditional food that comes to mind are mooncakes. For Tsukimi, the best known traditional food is tsukimi dango月見団子. Tsukimi dango has different regional variations throughout Japan, but the best known is the Kanto style. This traditionally consists of 15 dango団子 (some say 12) stacked in a pyramid on a sanbou三方 stand or decorative plate, with the topmost dango coloured yellow. Apparently, the 15 dango represent the 15 nights, or the 12 dango represent the 12 months of the year, and the yellow dango represents the harvest moon. The dango are traditionally displayed together with susukiススキ or the 7 grasses of autumn, offerings of sake, taro/satoimo里芋 and other autumn season foods such as chestnuts. This originates from the traditional practice of presenting offerings as thanksgiving and as prayers for bountiful harvests.

Honestly, I didn't have the patience to make 15 crochet dango, and I don't have a sanbou stand or any of the 7 grasses of autumn. So I made 5 crochet tsukimi dango and arranged them on a ceramic plate with a pretty motif of white flowering hagi萩 (the humble but much loved bush clover is one of the 7 grasses of autumn). I found this pretty plate at the Kutani pottery village during our trip in May this year (IG story). It is by Kutani pottery artist Shibata Yukika柴田 有希佳. I really like Shibata-san's pottery as her motifs are so elegant with such delicate but lively lines, so I'm hoping to find more of her works.

The crochet tsukimi dango pattern (see below) is a variation of the crochet tangyuan amigurumi pattern that I posted for Chinese New Year last year. They are really just crochet balls, a fundamental basic pattern that all amigurumi beginners go through, and are therefore super-duper easy to make. At this point, I want to highlight a wonderful, free tsukimi dango crochet pattern by Ronique. Though her post is in Japanese, it comes with crochet charts for all the parts. More importantly, her pattern includes a crochet pattern for the sanbou stand. I've yet to attempt her pattern but am tempted to do so...one day maybe.

Crochet tsukimi dango (IG).

While the Mid-Autumn Festival is based on the Chinese legend of the moon goddess Chang'e and the elixir of life, Tsukimi is related to the Moon Rabbit, from the Tsuki no Usagi月の兎 folklore in the Konjaku Monogatari今昔 物語, a Heian period collection of tales. The festival was introduced to Japan during the Nara period (710-794) but it was only celebrated in earnest during the Heian period (794-1185), when Japanese court nobles held moon-viewing parties.

Originally, the festival was observed in ancient China (since the Zhou dynasty) with the worship of the moon. Families gathered for reunions and offerings were presented to give thanks for the harvest as well as to pray for a plentiful bounty the next year. So it's not surprising that we sometimes refer to this festival as Chinese/Asian Thanksgiving when explaining its significance. Moon-viewing parties and eating mooncakes in celebration of the festival actually only became popular during the Tang dynasty (618-907). At the time, it became popular for the nobility and the wealthy to hold moon-viewing banquets on the day to admire the full moon, or shǎng yuè赏月 in Chinese. At these banquets, people would compose poems or play music as they drank tea or wine under the light of the full moon, as well as carry or hang lanterns. They would also compose riddles on lanterns, called as dēng mí灯谜, and participate in various games. The festival became an official festival during the Song dynasty (960-1279).

Crochet mooncake, made for Mid-Autumn Festival 2022 (on IG).

This way of celebration in Tang dynasty China influenced the Heian era Japanese nobles, who likewise held moon-viewing banquets in which they would also compose poems and perform music under the moonlight on Tsukimi. Such parties were also often held on boats floating on water or on moon-viewing platforms from which the full moon could be seen. This reminds me of the tsukimi yagura月見 櫓 at Matsumoto Castle which I visited on a July 2015 trip, and again recently in May this year (IG story).

Matsumoto Castle, May 2023. On the right-most corner is the tsukimi yagura (moon viewing tower), surrounded by vermillion lacquered rails on whitewashed walls.

The tsukimi yagura was constructed during 1633-1634 (Edo period) by Matsudaira Naomasa松平 直政, the daimyō ruling the domain at the time. It was originally constructed to welcome the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu徳川 家光 who intended to visit Matsumoto on his way back to Edo (Tokyo) from Kyoto. As history goes, the shogun's visit didn't take place due to a landslide in the Kiso Valley along the Nakasendō中山道. But it's said that the moon-viewing banquet still went on. Built for moon-viewing banquets (hence its name), it was famous for presenting 3 views of the moon — the moon in the sky, the moon reflected in the castle moat and finally the moon reflected in the sake cup. It is also known for its architectural contrast with the rest of Matsumoto Castle, as it was built in peace-time.

In the tsukimi yagura at Matsumoto Castle, May 2023. The wide windows along the right side overlook the castle moat.

Originally celebrated by the aristocracy, Tsukimi became popular and widely celebrated by the general public during the Edo period (1603-1868). It's probably no coincidence that this was also a time when Japanese cuisine (including wagashi), arts and culture flourished. Besides tsukimi dango, other dishes traditionally enjoyed on the day are tsukimi soba or tsukimi udon and dishes made with autumn foods such as taro/satoimo, chestnuts, persimmons, kabocha, satsuma-imoサツマイモ (sweet potatoes), edamame枝豆, grapes. Tsukimi is also often celebrated throughout modern-day Japan with various rabbit-themed confections such rabbit-shaped manjū饅頭 or rabbit-themed cakes and pastries. There are even limited-time Tsukimi menus at McDonald's, KFC, Mos Burger and other fast food chains.

Here in Singapore, besides mooncakes, we also enjoy various foods on Mid-Autumn Festival, e.g. pomelo, duck, pumpkin, taro, lotus roots, etc. And the festival is also often celebrated in a biiiiiiig way. My longtime German acquaintance and his wife were visiting Singapore during this time and they commented (complained, actually) about the brightly lit, carnival-like atmosphere at Gardens by the Bay. It was not what they expected of the place, and was definitely not their cup of tea. I guess for some, bigger and brighter (bling!) doesn't mean better.

TSUKIMI DANGO AMIGURUMI CROCHET PATTERN

Materials & Tools:
• Yarn in white and yellow
• 3mm crochet hook
• Stuffing
• Stitch markers
• Scissors
• Yarn needle
• Safety eyes and/or embroidery thread (optional)

For this amigurumi, I used Scheepjes Catona No.105 Bridal White and No.522 Primrose No.208 Yellow Gold.

Abbreviations (US terms):
R : round
MR : magic ring
ch : chain
st(s) : stitch(es)
sl st : slip stitch
sc : single crochet

inc : increase (2 sc in the same st)

dec : decrease / invisible decrease

(...) : a set of pattern instructions

[...] : total number of sts in the round

Finished Size:
Approx. 2.8cm × 2.8cm × 2.8cm
(Finished sizes will vary depending on yarn weight, hook size and tension.)

Pattern Notes:
• This pattern is a variation of my tangyuan amigurumi pattern posted during Chinese New Year 2022. It is a smaller version of the large tangyuan in that pattern and can also be used to make tangyuan amigurumi.

• As it is basically a crochet ball, it is perfect for beginners in amigurumi and is very easy to make.
• It can be made in continuous rounds or closed rounds, whichever is preferred. There is no colour change in each amigurumi, so either method makes no practical difference.
• Feel free to include safety eyes or embroider cute expressions on the dango amigurumi!
• Finally, as said above, there is a wonderful and free tsukimi dango crochet pattern by Ronique. Her post and instructions are in Japanese but comes with crochet charts for all the parts. Her amigurumi pattern makes larger dango amigurumi and includes a pattern for the sanbou stand which is traditionally used to display tsukimi dango as well as other Japanese foods that are presented as offerings.

DANGO

Work in closed or continuous rounds,
R1. 5 sc in MR. [5]
R2. 5 inc. [10]
R3. (sc, inc) 5 times. [15]
R4. (2 sc, inc) 5times. [20]
R5-8 (4 rounds). 20 sc. [20]

R9. (2 sc, dec) 5 times. [15]

Start stuffing,

R10. (sc, dec) 5 times. [10]

If using safety eyes, insert at the desired position before continuing.

R11. 5 dec. [5]

Finish stuffing. Fasten off. Weave the yarn end through the front loops of the last 5 sts and pull to close the work. Insert the yarn end through the centre and pull through to hide the end inside the work.

TO COMPLETE

Make 15 or 14 dango in total, 1 in yellow and all the rest in white.

To arrange them into a pyramid, first arrange the bottom layer by lining up 9 dango in 3 rows (i.e. 3 rows × 3 dango). The middle layer is made up of 4 dango in 2 rows (2 rows × 2 dango). The top layer is made up of the last 2 dango, one of which is the yellow one. It's also normal to make 14 dango and only have 1 dango (the yellow one) on top.

Alternatively, for a smaller display (or for those who don't have the patience or resources to make all 15, like me...), make 4 in white and 1 in yellow. The bottom layer is made up of the 4 white dango and the top is the 1 yellow dango.

Crochet tsukimi dango. I digitally added on the kaomoji faces (IG).

Since it is traditional to compose poems on Tsukimi, I shall end this post with a poem. Not with my own, but with 2 famous tanka by Nara period poet Yamanoue no Okura from the Man'yōshū:

秋の野に　咲きたる花を　指折り　かき数ふれば　七種の花
萩の花　尾花葛花　なでしこの花　をみなへし　また藤袴　朝顔の花
(山上憶良『万葉集』第8巻1537、1538番歌)

These tanka are about the 7 grasses of autumn and translate as:

Flowers blossoming in autumn fields / when I count them on my fingers / then they number seven
The flowers of the bush clover, / pampas grass, arrowroot, / dianthus, / patrinia, / also mistflower / morning glory flower*
(Yamanoue Okura, Man'yōshū Book 8 Poems 1537, 1538)

(Translation source 1 and source 2. *The morning glory flower is generally taken to mean the balloon flower / Chinese bellflower, kikyou桔梗, rather than the morning glory. The pampas grass is also referred to as susuki or silver grass or eulalia, arrowroot as kudzu, dianthus as fringed pinks, patrinia as golden lace or valerian, and mistflower as thoroughwort or boneset.)

* * *

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you have fun making this crochet wagashi. As with all my other patterns, I would love to see how your finished items turned out, so please tag me with my Instagram handle @yotsuba_blythes.

While I'm happy to share this pattern for free, and love to see it being used to make more cuties, please respect my legal and moral rights as the author with respect to this pattern and all the images therein. This pattern and images are not for commercial use, sale or distribution. The sale of this pattern or any of the images is not permitted without my prior written consent. If you wish to share this pattern, please link to this post and my Instagram profile @yotsuba_blythes. You are welcome to sell limited quantities of the finished items you have made from this pattern. Thank you.