hina ningyou custom

Hi,I'll been informed about hina ningyou custom via japanese lady (friend)and my idea is to replace the face of one of this dolls (hina ningyou)by my friend's face. I know tat behind this custom there is superstition and by doing this maybe i can offense anyone. I don't want to hurt anyone or to make anyone(particulary her) uncomfortable. So if someone can give me an advis? I will appreciat your help. This festival is coming soon so...Thanks in advance. Francis

It really depends on that type of person she is, and how she's been brought up with the ceremony.

Originally it was a Chinese thing where simple dolls were made to absorb bad things in the daughter's place then the doll was thrown in a river so it could all be washed away. So in that case it would be quite bad to put her face on the doll.

However, most Japanese celebrate it differently. They will display a set (a full set is usually about 12 dolls with small furniture) of the Dairi-sama, which represents the Emperor and Empress attended by two ministers, three kanjo, and 5 court musicians. In this case, yes making a doll of your friend could be a very good thing since it would be used to show your friend prospering and having a happy future.

Thanks for the informtion. But following her,mother's place those doll's wihh decor on march 3th(?) and some of those dolls represent theyr daughter(s)and the customs is that the mother sould clean the place the same day and it will help the daughter(s)to find a love one's and get married? Honestly,i do not know a lot about her but she is very sensitive. I met her because she use to work abroad for 3 years and that's how i know her. Last december she went back to Japan. We are still in contact by e-mail. Sorry but my english is not pretty good but you understand no doubt. Thanks again. Francis

I would not recommend changing anything about the doll. A lot of families have hina dolls that has been pass on through the family - my set (I'm half Japanese) belonged to my mother, and my great aunt before that. Even if the doll is not antique and valuable, defacing it is just... weird. I never heard or saw anyone do that while I lived in Japan, and if anyone I knew did it it would seriously creep me out!

Hi Fiona,Probably i didn't explain correctly my intention. My intention is not replace the head of a real doll but replace the head from a hina ningyou picture. I suppose that this can be done without to hurt anyone? Thanks Fiona for your reply. Francis

Well, there is indeed one famous Japanese TV commercial of a large traditional doll maker saying, "ningyo wa kao ga inochi (the face is the most important part of the doll)".

So this is my opinion: Do not change the face of a doll that is already made. But you can make a brand new doll and make the face as you wish.

For example, if you erase the face of Da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" and paint another face over it, people will be angry. But if you take a brand new canvas and paint a brand new picture of a friend, people will be happy. Same thing.

By the way, Hina Dolls should already be in display by now, and should be cleared away as soon as March 3rd is over, so that all the daughters of the house will not have to wait too long to get married.

Francis wrote:
"My intention is not replace the head of a real doll but replace the head from a hina ningyou picture."

Suppose there is a picture of the "Statue of David" by Michelangelo, and you paste a photograph of your friend on top of the face part. People will probably think it's a joke. But I don't understand what's so funny about it.

Why do you want to replace the face of a hina doll picture, anyway?

For us Japanese women, Hina dools are very important. If someone would do that,
I will get really angry even though I guess he is making a joke - which I don't think it is funny.

Quote: I know tat behind this custom there is superstition and by doing this maybe i can offense anyone.

Where did you get this idea from??
HIna dools are traditional dools, and there is no power to protect her from other guys
by putting her picture on Hina dool.