Ikebana Flower

Ikebana grew out of the religious sentiments of the earliest Japanese who attributed a spiritual role to all things in nature - rocks, trees, water, flowers, etc. Flowers were 1st placed on altars as offerings to deities. This led to arrangement of flowers in artistic creations meant to evoke pleasurable feelings. By the eighth century, flowers - often in combination with poetry - were a significant part of the aesthetic life of upper class Japanese. By the sixteenth century, ikebana exhibitions and contests had become institutionalized.