The 24 Little Seasons
Japan’s old calendar divides the year into twenty-four small seasons — and this page knows which one it is right now.
In Japan's traditional almanac, the year is divided into 24 sekki — “little seasons” of about 15 days each, from Risshun (the start of spring, early February) to Daikan (the greatest cold, late January). Each names a small, real change in the natural world, teaching attention to the tiny and temporary.
The wheel of the year
Computed from today’s date. The crimson mark is where you are standing in the year.
All twenty-four, in order
Dates are approximate — each sekki begins on a solar term that shifts by a day or so from year to year. The system originated in ancient China (the Yellow River basin) more than 2,000 years ago and reached Japan around the 6th century. Each sekki divides again into three five-day kō, giving the famous 72 micro-seasons — which were rewritten to suit Japan's own climate in 1685 by Shibukawa Shunkai, the shogunate's first official astronomer.
A calendar that teaches attention
The little seasons are the calendar version of komorebi and ichigo ichie: they train you to notice the small and temporary. Nothing dramatic happens between “small heat” and “great heat” — and that is the point. The garden on this site changes with the season and the hour for the same reason.
Good to know
What are the 24 sekki?
The sekki are the 24 divisions of the traditional East Asian solar calendar as used in Japan — “little seasons” of roughly 15 days, each named for a small natural change, from the first stirring of spring to the deepest cold.
What is the current sekki?
It changes about every 15 days; this page calculates it live from today’s date. Each sekki begins on an approximately fixed solar date, such as Risshun around February 4 or Geshi at the June solstice.
Are there really 72 seasons in Japan?
Yes — each of the 24 sekki traditionally divides into three kō of about five days, giving 72 micro-seasons with poetic names like “east wind melts the ice.” The 24 sekki are the framework the 72 hang on.
Why do the little seasons matter for calm?
They train attention on the small and temporary — the same habit behind komorebi and mono no aware. Noticing that the season has quietly changed is a two-minute mindfulness practice built into the calendar.
Every room lives on the channel
The music streams from our channel — hours of it, always growing.
@japanese.zenmusic