The practice of hanami is many centuries old. It started during the Nara Period (710–784) when the Chinese Tang Dynasty influenced Japan in many ways; one of which was the custom of enjoying flowers. Though it was ume blossoms that people admired in the beginning, by the Heian Period (794–1185), sakura began to attract more attention. The sakura were considered sacred by the Japanese, and they were so important that they still are a cultural symbol of Japan. People believed in gods' existence inside the trees, and the hanami party was used in the beginning to divine that year's harvest and to announce the season of planting rice. Those who went to the hanami made offerings at the root of sakura trees, and after the ceremony, they took part in the offering drinking sake.