Mochi always used to be round. Kagami-mochi, the mochi you set before the gods on New Year’s Day, is round, like old style mirrors. In Western Japan, Zoni-mochi was always round. In an old book written in the 8th century, mochi is also described as round.

According to tradition and folklore mochi gives special strength. Thus, chikara-mochi. It is used to celebrate the birth of a baby or birthdays. Mochi is a symbol of happiness. So it is used at festivals and to celebrate the erection of new houses and other felicitous occasions.

Stories of Mochi by Suzi Nitta Petersen Vehicular Kagami mochi "My mother, Miyuki Nitta, makes her own mochi before New Year's for our immediate family and for relatives. She calculates how many pieces she will need for the kagami mochi to display at the hotokisan and for the homes and vehicles of her daughters. (I recently discovered that kagami mochi for cars is not a Japanese tradition -- my mother's idea is that it can't hurt for a good year of safety on the road). After I got married, my husband good-naturedly drove around in our Honda Civic with two mochi and a Mandarin orange rolling around on the dashboard. I knew I had displayed the kagami mochi in the car a little too long when my husband would walk in the house with moldy mochi and a shrivelled orange! Although they were well past the eating stage, I always felt guilty throwing away this 'sacred' food." Safety Tips for Eating Mochi "My eight year old daughter Hayley loves Japanese food and is always excited when my mother (her 'Bachan'[grandmother]) offers her mochi. As with many Japanese families, we do not eat mochi year-round so it is a special treat. On one occasion last year, I toasted some mochi for Hayley. After I mixed up shoyu [soy sauce] and sato [sugar] as she likes it, I left the kitchen. I heard her call me so I went back into the kitchen. When I asked her what she wanted she exclaimed, 'Mommy, I'm not supposed to eat mochi by myself'! I didn't know what she was talking about. 'Mommy, remember what you said at Bachan's house? People in Japan sometimes choke from eating mochi and die.' Even though Hayley was very serious, I burst out laughing. She had overheard my sisters and I talking about the fact that death by choking on mochi is not an uncommon event in Japan during the New Year's festivities. We jokingly had said that people should not eat mochi alone. Hayley had obviously heard everything and wanted to take necessary precautions! Hayley and I now always keep each other company when one of us is eating mochi."

Memories of Mochi by Ray Ota "One thing I miss is the toasted flavour of mochi which was heated over charcoal. These days the microwave really puffs up the mochi nicely but the taste is not the same. "One event I can remember during the evacuation in World War II was a mochi maki in Minto. One summer a small shrine was built on a hillside overlooking Minto. It was traditionally decorated for the Grand Opening and lots of mochi was prepared beforehand. In some of the mochi washed silver coins were placed inside. "When the official Opening Day came nearly everyone in the town gathered below the shrine. There was a short ceremony and then the mochi maki started. A few officials brought out baskets of mochi and started to throw handfuls of them into the crowd. The mochi would roll down the hill and everyone went chasing after them! We kept whatever we could pick up, brushed off the dirt and ate them later. And of course some had money in them for luck. "My favorite ways to eat mochi are with a coating of toasted kinako (soy flour); bota mochi, which is mochi coated with anko [sweet bean paste] on the outside; and anagane, mochi pounded with half mochigome [mochi rice] and half regular rice."