Step Softly: The Cultural and Practical World of Tatami Mats

Did you know that tatami mats are one of the most important features of Japanese tea rooms, temples, and judo matches? Today, these revered mats are meticulously crafted to meet traditional standards set centuries ago. In this post, we’ll explore the history, construction, uses, and cultural significance of tatami in Japan.

What is Tatami? An Introduction to Traditional Japanese Mats

Tatami is a type of rush-covered mat used as a floor covering in Japanese-style rooms and halls. The traditional version of the mat uses a covering made from woven rush grass surrounding a core of sewn rice straw. The edges of the mat are typically covered with plain or brocade fabric. Nowadays, modern tatami may replace the rice straw with contemporary materials, especially extruded polystyrene foam and chipboards made from wood chips.

The construction of traditional tatami mats involves making the mats according to standard sizes, which require the length to be two times the width. Every region has its own standard, but on average, most sizes are 0.9 m by 1.8 m. Typical tatami looks neat, durable, and comfortable. If you find yourself close to a new one, you might catch the earthy scent of grass, which should fade after extended use.

Tatami mats are used in both contemporary and traditional Japanese settings. They adorn the floors of traditional Japanese homes, martial arts dojos, shrines, and temples. These mats are vital components of Japanese-style rooms used for cultural functions like tea ceremonies. In the past, sitting on the floor was pretty common in Japan, and the mats helped to dignify the practice. To fully understand the role of tatami in Japanese culture, let’s take a look at its history.

The History of Tatami

While most sources attribute the origins of tatami to the Heian period (794–1185), evidence in the Kojiki, the oldest Japanese book, suggests that tatami existed before 712 in the Nara period (710–794). The term was derived from the Japanese word for “fold” or “pile up.”

During the Heian period, tatami mats were popular among the nobility. They were considered luxury items compared to the straw mats of the lower class. However, the nobles only used the mats for sitting. In the middle of the Kamakura period (1185-1333) the samurai, who also used tatami, began to adopt a new architectural style known as shoin-zukuri. The more advanced version of the style appeared in the late Muromachi period (1336–1392), which saw multiple tatami used to completely cover the floors of Japanese rooms known as zashiki.

By the end of the 17th century, tatami mats were no longer exclusive to the nobles. They had become so popular that people of all social statuses, including commoners, had access to them. Modern-day use of tatami has been on the decline because of how difficult it can be to clean the natural grass components. However, most Japanese houses have at least one traditional-style room or washitsu with a tatami.

How Tatami Mats Are Made

There is a great deal of craftsmanship involved in the traditional process of making tatami mats. It involves weaving and sewing natural materials into different components that work together to form the full structure of the mat.

The Basic Structure of Tatami

The structure of the iconic mat can be divided into three basic parts:

1. Omote (Cover)

The cover is the part of the mat that is most exposed to the environment. It’s made of a soft rush plant known as igusa. The rush is woven with warp made from cotton yarn or hemp. The strength of this warp determines the sturdiness of the omote. Also, the length, weave, and quality of the igusa determine the grade of the omote. The highest grade uses igusa harvested once a year and can be found in shrines, temples, and the homes of wealthy families. Low-grade omote doesn’t last too long, but it still makes good apartment mats.

2. Toko (Core or Base)

The base or core lies directly underneath the cover and gives the mat most of its thickness. Traditional tatami has a base made from multiple layers of rice straw sewn together. However, modern tatami may have a base made from styrofoam or polystyrene foam compressed between wood chip boards. Like omote, toko comes in different grades. The highest grades are made from 100% natural rice straw (wara-toko) and last for a long time.

3. Heri (Border or Edges)

The border (heri) of the tatami is crafted to make the mat look tidy and appealing. Traditional versions had cotton fabric along the edges of the mat. However, modern manufacturers use synthetic fiber, which is cheaper and more durable. Nevertheless, natural fibers like cotton and hemp have higher quality. Some heri are designed with beautiful patterns.

The Traditional Process of Making Tatami

The tatami-making process begins with the harvesting of the igusa. The soft rushes are then immersed in a mixture containing a special Japanese clay. This helps dye the rushes to the desired color. The dyed rushes are allowed to dry for up to one year. The next step is to sort and select thousands of dried rushes of identical length and width. Selected rushes are woven to create the cover (omote).

To make the core or base (toko), multiple layers of Japanese rice straws are piled up to heights of about 50 cm and then compressed to 5 cm. To keep the base stable, the compressed straws are sewn. Next comes the cutting of the edges of the core to make them uniform. Makers use natural cotton threads to sew the omote onto the toko. Both parts are then fastened together with the use of the border (heri). Most times, the heri forms decorative patterns on the edges of the woven mats.

Cultural Significance of Tatami

Tatami plays a vital role in Japanese culture, particularly in architecture and traditional interior design. It’s an important component in the flooring of traditional Japanese-style rooms, known as washitsu or tatami rooms. These rooms are used to practice cultural arts, including tea ceremonies and ikebana. The mats are also highly revered, and it’s good etiquette to take off all footwear before stepping on one.

Tatami were so integral to traditional Japanese architecture that the common way to measure the size of a room was to determine how many tatami mats it could hold. For instance, an 8-mat room could accommodate 8 tatami mats. Another measurement standard is the use of the tsubo, in which one tsubo is equal to the area of two tatami mats.

Functional Uses of Tatami Mats

These mats have various practical uses in contemporary and traditional Japanese settings. Let’s explore their most common uses:

1. Flooring: Tatami mats are used as flooring materials in traditional Japanese rooms. Some of these rooms contain only one tatami, while others have their entire floors covered with the mats. Tatami mat flooring provides a soft, cushy platform for walking on with bare feet.

2. Cultural arts and ceremonies: The appearance, texture, and scent of tatami mats add to the experience during tea ceremonies and ikebana, the traditional Japanese art of flower arrangement. 

3. Sleeping: Japanese people often place futon mattresses on top of tatami mats. This style of using tatami as a sleeping surface is called futon zukuri.

4. Martial arts: Tatami mats are used to make the floors in dojos. They’re an integral part of both training and competitive matches in martial arts like karate, judo, and aikido.

5. Household decorations: As decorations, tatami mats are often placed on walls or under furniture to create Japanese-inspired aesthetics.

6. Mindfulness exercise: Tatami mats provide a comfortable surface for performing mindfulness exercises such as yoga or simple meditation.

Tatami in Modern Japanese Homes

Most modern Japanese homes have at least one tatami mat room. This tatami room is usually used for sleeping, praying, or hosting tea ceremonies. The mat is ideal for placing underneath a futon mattress. The spaces between the soft rushes absorb moisture from the atmosphere and improve air quality, which is essential in Japan’s humid and hot climate. Also, the unique, earthy smell of the mat provides the relaxing feeling of sitting in a green space.

Maintaining and Caring for Tatami

Most Japanese tatami mats can last for five to six years. One of the first signs of aging tatami is the change in color to a yellowish brown hue. Wear and tear on the mat is often a sign that the mat has reached an advanced stage of deterioration. At that point, you can either replace it or flip it over.

To ensure their longevity, clean the mat regularly, as it can easily absorb dirt and grow mold in humid conditions. You can clean it with a dry piece of cloth or a tatami-specific vacuum cleaner or a mop. Remember to clean the cover in the direction of the rush grain and not against it. When placing furniture on the mat, ensure that it has a flat bottom, as pointy bases could damage the mat over time. Most importantly, follow Japanese etiquette and avoid wearing footwear on the tatami mats.

Tatami in Interior Design

There are a lot of innovative ways to integrate tatami into modern interior design. One of them is the addition of strips of LED lights along the sides, thereby enhancing the aesthetics of the Japanese-style room at night. Some modern homes have raised tatami mat areas with small shelves embedded underneath the platform for extra storage space. Another common practice is to set things up in such a way that several tatami form a “T” or “+.” No matter the interior design concept, most professionals follow the traditional Japanese rule of simplicity over extravagance.

Health Benefits of Tatami Flooring: More Than Just a Mat

Although Japanese tatami floors are well-known for their beauty, their many health benefits are what set them apart. For one, tatami mats provide ergonomic support and comfort when sitting, sleeping, or meditating. The natural materials in tatami serve as insulation for temperature and sound. They also work like filters by absorbing carbon dioxide from the air and increasing the average Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). During humid weather, the rush-based cover absorbs moisture from the air. Hence, the mat also regulates humidity in a room.

Conclusion:

The tatami mat has immense cultural significance, aesthetic appeal, and health benefits. It serves as a multifunctional element in Japanese culture that continues to evolve with every new generation. We can expect to see an increasing adoption of global architectural and design trends.

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