What`s the Buzz About (again)?- The Cicadas (semi) of Japanese Summer
Newcomers to Tsukuba are usually taken aback by the intense and inescapable chirping of cicadas (semi) in late summer. Though some find it thrilling and ALIVE, for many, the pulsating whir these insects whip up can be mind-numbing, or at the other extreme nerve-wracking. For many Japanese, however, who can often differentiate the particular sounds created by the most common varieties, the cicada is a cherished symbol of summer, which not only indicates the season, but also, depending on which type is singing or at what volume, the time of day. Also, along with the cherry blossom, these creatures, who spend but a few above-ground days LIVING THEIR LIVES AT FULL THROTTLE before quickly falling away, represent that most quintessential Japanese concept, MUJO (無常), the passing nature of all things.
Japan’s greatest poets have used these fast-living, short (above-ground)-lived summer icons to evoke the season, as well as sadness or loneliness. A poem that most Japanese know by heart is the haiku by Basho which goes： 閑かさや岩にしみ入る蝉の声 (shizukasa ya iwa ni shimi iru semi no koe), which I translate as “In the stillness, the cry of cicadas permeates the stones”. Besides this classic, there are dozens of other well-known poems which use the cicada or the empty shells of molted nymphs (out of which cicadas emerge) as key words. The empty shells are especially powerful symbols of transformation and rebirth.
There is a charming etiological myth explaining the semi’s incessant crying which is related to the great Buddhist priest Kukai (Kobo Daishi 774-835). It is the story of Hime Haru Zemi, a princess who falls in love with the brilliant monk and wants to be by his side. Since it was impossible for them to stay together, he fashioned an image of himself out of a tree trunk. As he departed, she climbed to the top of this wood carving, clinging to it and straining to see him, crying all the while. She has been clinging to the tree trunks and crying every summer since.
Fascination with semi starts early and strikes deep roots. Japanese children love catching insects. A daytime stroll in any of Tsukuba’s parks or along any of its pedestrian paths during summer vacation will give evidence to that fact. Armed with nets and green insect cages they excitedly search for beetles, dragonflies, or cicadas. Today I watched a security guard leave his post to help some kids snare some semi which were just out of reach.
Because cicada symbolism has become so natural for the Japanese, fans of Japanese film and animation should take special note, as often summer is evoked by inserting cicada sound effects into the sound-track. I have heard that when these films are dubbed into other languages, these sounds are cut, as they have no meaning for foreign viewers and can be misconstrued as static or white noise. Off hand I can name the film Ijintachi to no Natsu (a summer ghost story) or the recent Semi Shigure as examples of films which effectively employ the sound effect.
Today I asked some friends if they could tell the difference between the different cicada calls. All of them said that they could and enthusiastically talked of what cicadas meant to them. These are the types which I found out are most familiar:
MIN MIN ZEMI that go MIN MIN in the daytime and like to cling high up in the trees;
HIGURASHI that go KANA KANA KANA, evoking a sad feeling in the early morning or evening;
ABURA ZEMI that go JI JI JI JI in the daytime;
TSUKUTSUKU BOSHI that go TSUKUTSUKUBOSHI;
and
NI NI ZEMI that go chi CHI chi CHI in the daytime.
If like me , these explanation do nothing to help you identify the different types of cicadas ,you can probably make more progress if you check this site.
There is no avoiding the cries of the cicadas, but if you want to have a full SEMI experience, why don’t you start from Doho Park and walk down to Tsukuba University using the pedestrian path.
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Tomorrow is Tsukuba`s MOST DISTINCTIVE (and aromatic!) Gion Matsuri- Ichinoya Shrines Garlic Festival !
Japanese festivals which take place in the spring or autumn are usually agriculture related. The festivals of the summer months, which take place after the rice planting has been completed and the rainy season gives way to intense heat and humidity, in particular those called Gion or Tenno Matsuri, were originally implemented in order to prevent disease and epidemics.
I have pointed out in previous articles that the chinowa kuguri (straw ring) ceremonies usually held in late June were established throughout the realm by the Japanese Court at Nara in order to help steel the populace for the health hazards of summer. In these ceremonies, to this day, anyone who wishes to can pass through a large ring made of straw or reeds which is believed to provide the necessary protection. I have also explained that the origin of this custom can be found in the story of how the mischievous God Susanoo no Mikoto advised the poor, though generous, Somin Shorai to fashion such a ring and wear it round his waist in order to be protected from an imminent epidemic.
July is the season of the Gion and Tenno Festivals (祇園祭) which now take place all over Japan and at MANY locations in Ibaraki, and Susanoo no Mikoto plays a major role. These epidemic-preventing festivals are mostly held at shrines which are now called Yasaka-Jinja, though they were all formerly called Gion-Sha (until 1868, when the Meiji government decided to separate Buddhist elements from what they deemed to be Shinto shrines). The God enshrined at these shrines is — you guessed it — the Sun Goddess Amaterasu’s brother Susanoo no Mikoto, the deity most closely connected with disease and its prevention. In Japan he is a manifestation of the Buddhist figure Gozu-Tenno (牛頭天王) or Gavagriva (in Sanskrit), who was the guardian deity of the Gion-Shoja (祇園精舎）, the Jeta Grove Monastery built for the Buddha himself in India.
These Gion Matsuris first began in Kyoto in the year 869 in order to stop an epidemic. Evidently, the court and the populace believed that the rituals were effective because the festival has been going on, with a few exceptions, for every year since.
The popularity of this festival and the belief in Gion, or Gozu Tenno (the Buddhist related manifestations of Susanoo no Mikoto), as protector from disease, spread first to Hakata (Fukuoka) and eventually throughout the archipelago. It seems as if almost every town in Ibaraki has a Gion or Tenno Festival organized by parishioners of the numerous Yasaka Shrines (八坂神社) found in the prefecture. Many of them are well worth checking out.
On Tuesday July 28th (tomorrow), Ichinoya Shrine, near Tsukuba University, will hold its Tenno Festival, which is nicknamed the Garlic Festival because of its special application of garlic to the task of disease prevention. Until about 30 years ago this was a huge event in the Tsukuba area and all schools were closed. It was not uncommon for Ibarakians to take off from work on the festival day, the 7th day of the 7th month on the lunar calendar. The main attractions were the stalls set up to sell special garlic amulets to be hung outside the entrances of homes. It used to be said that no Tenno (Gion) Festival could be held in Ibaraki, before the Ichinoya Tenno.
Garlic Festival (Niniku Matsuri) at Tsukuba`s Ichinoya Yasaka Jinja 2009
Now the Garlic Festival is a mere shadow of what it used to be, but the garlic stalls are still there, as well as some other types of stalls that one rarely finds anymore in Japan: medicine sellers hawking dried vipers and turtles along with other traditional elixirs.
Preparing and selling galic talismans at the Ichinoya Yasaka Jinja 2009
Of course, there is also the shrine itself, protected by the largest zelkova (keyaki) trees in the prefecture, which is worthy of special note in this area. Said to have been founded in 689, Fujiwara Hidesato, the warrior sent by the court to quell the Masakado Uprising which had turned this part of Japan into a breakaway state, made an offering of his bow and arrows.The shrine was also given generous support by the Oda Clan which ruled this area for centuries.
If you hear fireworks early in the morning, it probably means that a Gion festival will be taking place on that day somewhere near you. Go find the nearest Yasaka Jinja.
If you want to check out or join in on a Gion Matsuri, I would especially recommend the festivals in Ryugasaki (with acrobatics!), Shimodate (taking the portable shrines into the river), Toride, Mitsukaido and Makabe.
It goes without saying that if you can make it you should go to Kyoto for the “Mother-of-All Gion Matsuri”, with its bizarre, tapestry-laden, disease-sucking floats called Hoko （鉾).
For MUCH more information about Gion Festivals in Tsukuba, Ibaraki and beyond, have a look at A. Takahashi’s amazingly comprehensive website.
Also on July 30 this year you can experience the ancient rite of CHINOWA KUGURI at the Hie Shrine in the Tanaka neighborhood of Tsukuba city. I have written about this in detail at
http://www.alientimes.org/Main/ChinowaKuguri
Have a healthy summer!
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Gion Galore !
According to A. Takahashi’s impressively comprehensive TRADITIONAL EVENTS IN AND AROUND TSUKUBA website, there are nine Gion Festivals taking place at Yasaka Shrines within the Tsukuba City limits alone this weekend, and about a dozen more Gion-sai of interest happening in the surrounding area. Since no machine has yet been invented which would allow me to be at all the events at once, and since I didn’t want to rush around getting quick and superficial looks at the different matsuri around town, I decided to stay close to home and stroll down to my own neighborhood’s Yasaka Jinja (八坂神社) for a detailed examination of this weekends festivities.
As I have explained in previous articles, Gion Festivals originated in Kyoto in the 9th century as a way of trying to rid the city of summertime epidemics by appealing to the Gods enshrined at the Yasaka Jinja, Gozu Tenno (actually a Buddhist deity) and his native Shinto counterpart Susanoo no Mikoto. These early events must have done the trick, with their music and strange floats, as they have been celebrated almost annually for more than a thousand years and the Gion-type festivals have spread from the ancient capital to all corners of the archipelago.
From my house in Tsukuba, there are two Yasaka shrines within easy walking distance. One, in the neighborhood called Higashioka is located in a woods on the grounds of the Sakura City Office. The other is down the road in an old village (buraku) called Konda. The characters used to spell this name are 金 and 田, which are usually read kaneda and which literally mean golden rice fields. As I walked towards the shrine I thought these characters perfectly appropriate with the sprawling paddy fields a deep green, rustling in the wind, and the impressive and large (by any country’s standard) homes, surrounded by walls, with imposing gates through which could be spied well groomed Japanese gardens. The forested hills on which lie the ruins of the medieval forts of Hanamuro and Konda framed this picturesque scene.
For this weekend each home had put out a special festival lantern and older residents had set up chairs in front of their gates from which to watch festivities. Those participating were all dressed in their specially made Konda festival wear and everyone was in good cheer, with many obviously having had more than just one beer.
There was a portable stage set up on the back of a pick-up truck upon which the local musicians and dancers performed their Konda Hayashi, with flute gongs and dancers dressed in lion masks or comic masks. These performances are based on the Hayashi of the Ishioka Gion Festival.
I followed this musical pickup truck towards the shrine itself which was full of fresh offerings. Tents were set up on the precincts to dispense beer and I was quickly given a heaping cupful.
The portable Shrine (O-Mikoshi) was all ready to be paraded through the town and the locals insisted that I join them. Konda’s mikoshi is said to be more than 300 years old and it is NOT LIGHT. Shouldering portable shrines can often lead to a feeling of religious euphoria as the great effort required, the dealing with the pain and the heat, the rhythmic chanting and shouting can carry you into a trance-like state. We paused at several places, had some more beers and had plenty of good ole male bonding.
As the sun went down and the air got cooler the excitement built. The people lining the roads cheered, the music from the pick-up picked up, and our mikoshi carrying worked into a frenzy.
I took a pause and looked around at the amazing scene: smiling families dressed in traditional wear; the antique omikoshi; the masked dancers; the grand old houses.
I was really happy to be in Japan.
Check A. Takahashi’s website and try to get to a Gion Festival near you.
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The Possible Connection Between The Myth of The Sun Goddess (Amaterasu), Himiko, Ruler of The Ancient Kingdom of Yamatai and a Solar Eclipse (or two)!
Total Eclipse of the Sun (Feb. 26 1998, as seen from Curacao, Netherland Antilles
Even after having been completely demystified by scientific explanation, solar eclipses remain an awe-inspiring, even mystical spectacle, which can leave an impression that lasts a lifetime. Even those of us who were slightly out of range of this week`s TOTAL ECLIPSE and could observe only the cloud obscured PARTIAL ECLIPSE which was visible in Tsukuba and other parts of Japan this past Wednesday, will likely have its image branded in our memories till the end of our days. And I can tell you from my own experience with TOTALITY back in 1998 on the island of Curacao, that no matter how scientific and LOGICAL you are, standing for a few minutes gazing up into THROBBING, PULSATING, FIERY RING formed by the eclipse can leave you feeling strangely like a DIFFERENT PERSON, when its all over.
Think then, what it must have been like for people of past ages. Those who saw EVERY LITTLE feature, movement and arrangement in the heavens as being significant to their own lives. One day, they would be going about their usual business , when suddenly the sun became partly, or even totally obscured by a black disc, throwing the world into an eerie darkness, and their lives into confusion and possibly even terror.
It should not be strange at all then, considering the strong impressions made by them, to say that the occurence of solar eclipses could become important components of the FOLK MEMORY of certain peoples, who, lacking in any scientific grounding with which to explain what had occured, incorporate their experience of a solar eclipse into a fantastical version of history- in other words- a mythology.
Now, with computers which can not only predict future eclipses anywhere in the world, but also determine when and where PAST eclipses could be seen, it has become possible to link the eclipse-like occurences which have been recorded in various historical records and mythologies (including the bible) with eclipses which computers show to to have occured in certain years.
Doing this is, in fact, NOT something completely new, however, as the ancient Babylonians and Chinese began recording the occurences of eclipses, and dating them, as far back as 4,000 years ago.Thus, we can also use THEIR records to determine when ECLIPSE-LIKE mythological events might have actually occurred.
An example of this can be seen in the linking of an eclipse-like event mentioned in the Bible ( Amos 8:9 ), with an actual recorded eclipse. The biblical passage reads: AND ON THAT DAY I WILL MAKE THE SUN GO DOWN, AND DARKEN THE EARTH IN THE CLEAR DAY- which seems to CLEARLY suggest a solar eclipse.
It is possible to link the event in this biblical narrative with an eclipse which was recorded and emphasized (for its supposed significance) in the EPONYM CANON, the historical records of the Assyrian Kings. Since archaelogists and historians have been able to adjust the Assyrian calendar to our own, we know that this eclipse occured in the year 763 BC. Though, of course there is some debate on the matter, scholars believe that the event referred to in the Bible was the eclpse of THAT YEAR.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian_eclipse ).
Though there are many references to possible eclipses to be found in the oral and written literatures of the world , the only national mythology or religion that I know of which has an eclipse-like episode as its MOST CENTRAL and well-known narrative, is that of Japan. Here is how the story of AMA NO IWATO (天岩戸), goes as found in the ancient (7th cenury) text- the KOJIKI.
Amaterasu no Omikami ( the Sun Goddess, still worshiped by the Imperial Family as their direct ancestor), distraught by her brother Susanoo no Mikoto`s (The God of the Storm) outrageous behaviour (damaging rice fields and irrigation canals, throwing excrement about, and finally hurling a flayed horse at her attendants who were weaving at the time, killing some of them) withdrew into a cave , sealed herself up with a boulder and subsequently threw the world into darkness ( a very eclipse-like episode indeed!)
The myriad Gods were thrown into consternation and at a loss as to what to do. They finally decided to lure her out with entertainments (lewd dancing and singing and raucous laughter), and a MIRROR in which the Godess saw herself reflected when she peered out to see what all the fun was about. Seizing the chance, as she started to come forward, they grabbed her and blocked the cave so that she couldnt slip back in. Light was returned to the world and all was well again. For a slightly more detailed account read: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaterasu .
The impact of this short but very influential story can be seen in several unique aspects of Japanese life (two of which I will mention here). First, at festivals and certain other religious events (Cherry Blossom viewing, for example) the Japanese often become , under the influence of liquor, quite animated and excited, often to the point of lewdness ( as if in imitation of the dancing which Amaterasu was so interested in, and appropriately entertaining for the Gods manifest in the blossoms). Then you have the religious importance of mirrors (which can often be be found inside shrines or in the form of mirror rice cakes, kagami-mochi, at New Years, which are also intended to ATTRACT the Gods) related to the mirror in the story which attracted the Goddess.
For me, and many other readers of the text, this episode from the Kojiki suggests that sometime in Japan`s prehistory, there had been a total eclipse which left a deep impression on the people . Now compared with other great civilizations, Japanese HISTORY (written records), does not go very far back at all( though Japanese archaeological finds are among the most ancient in the world). In fact, the oldest extant text is the 7th century Kojiki itself. Thus, the eclipse which is referred to in the Ama no Iwato story, must surely have taken place sometime in the centuries preceding the writing down of the myth, back when the original Japanese state (ruled by the ancestors of today`s Imperial Family was starting to take shape.
Since there are no records written by the Japanese themselves from that time (though the oral histories were passed down and later written down as the founding myths of the Kojiki), it is to Chinese texts that we must turn to for any documentation regarding the embryonic Japanese State.
In the 3rd century, a Chinese scholar Chen Shou (233-297) wrote about what he referred to as the Wa people in the Land of Yamatai, who were ruled by a shamaness named Himiko. This account (called the GISHI in Japanese) gives an intriguing account of the 3rd century way of life in that country, which is now known as Japan. (read more at):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himiko_(queen) and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamataikoku
Japanese scholars have long debated just where this Land of Yamatai was located, but the discussion has mostly focused on either Kyushu Island, or the Kinki Region (the area in which Nara and Osaka are located). There is agreement among historians, however, that the state ruled by Himiko, described by Chinese scholars as it had existed a few centuries before the Japanese themselves could write their own history, probably represents what was eventually to evolve into the Yamato State (which was based in the Kinki Area and then went on to eventually dominate and completely JAPANIZE the rest of the archipelago.
Anyway, it seems reasonable to hypothesize that the Yamatai State was, in fact, the young Yamato Empire and that Himiko was a founder of, or early part of the Imperial line (the Imperial ancestor of the Kojiki was the female deity Amaterasu).
So now lets check and see if there were any major eclipses which could be seen from either Kyushu or The Kinki Area in the 3rd century. Lets see... Looks like there were! On March 24, 247 AD, there was a total eclipse visible from the Island of Kyushu in which the sun was totally blocked out for TEN MINUTES (from 6:25-6:35 PM). Amazingly, the next year, it seems that from the same place- a partial solar eclipse could be observed! What repercussions did these stunning celestial events have on the young Yamato state. well, no one can be sure. But to me it seems that one thing is for sure-the story of the eclipse, the panic it caused, speculation as to why it happened ( defilement of rice fields etc.), and the ways the people imagined they could bring the sun back (attraction with a mirror and entertaniment as oppossed to the Chinese who make loud noises to scare off the beast which is swallowing the sun), became an important part of the collective unconscious of the Japanese people who tranforme it into the myth found in the Kojiki.
I think it also shows that the early Yamatai State was based in Kyushu (where the eclipse could be seen from). Japanese tradition certainly asserts that the Ama no Iwato story took place in Kyushu. There is a shrine on the supposed location- http://www.pmiyazaki.com/takachiho/amenoiwato.htm
Coincidentally, after last Wednesdays eclipse I went into Tokyo. Checking what was on at the National Museum I found that there was a special exhibition on The Treasures Of Ise Grand Shrine! Thats right, the shrine at which the Sun Goddess Amaterasu Omikami is worshipped! This will be on until September 6th, so you have plenty of time to see it.
http://www.tnm.go.jp/en/servlet/Con?pageId=A01&processId=02&event_id=6503
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In Japan, Those Who Did Not Give Up Despite Overcast Skies, Were Rewarded With Unforgetable Naked-Eye Views Of Partial Solar Eclipse
- Through the clouds- a partial solar eclipse on July 22, 2009. Photographed in Tsukuba, using a cell-phone camera
Like most other peoples, and probably even more so, the Japanese get very excited about SPECIAL EVENTS and occurences, especially after lots of hype created by the enthusiastic MEDIA. And though on a world-wide scale, eclipses of the sun are not THAT rare, it is NOT often that these celestial events can be observed more than once or twice during ones lifetime from right outside ones own home. So as you can imagine, excitement had been building over the past few weeks over the the partial solar eclipse which was scheduled to occur on the morning of Wednesday July 22nd. This was to be the first solar eclipse to be observable from Japan in many decades, as well as the last one to be seen from these parts for a long while. Since it would be the school summer holiday, many special events were planned for kids to gather and share the excitement of the event at nearby viewing points. It was encouraging that at the end of July the interminably overcast rainy season would most probably already be over, with the high , clear blue skies of summer providing unobscured views of the the rare phenomenon. And though the Meteorological Agency HAD in fact declared the TSUYU (rainy season ) over, when the long-anticipated day of the eclipse finally arrived, it was rainy and the skies were overcast. Many who had been looking forward to the event for weeks (or even years), simply GAVE UP on catching a glimpse of the sun being partially blocked out by the moon WITH THEIR OWN EYES, and instead opted to watch the TV broadcast of the TOTAL ECLIPSE ( which could not be seen from mainland Japan) as observed from camera crews based on ships around Japan`s outermost islands.
Those who gave up on seeing the eclipse did so TOO SOON, as the moon slowly moving across the sun was clearly visible (in Tsukuba and Tokyo ) through the clouds. In fact the heavy cloud cover made it possible to observe the event with the NAKED EYE. For all of those who were patient and persevered, it was a truly unforgetable, thrilling, and for some- a near-mystical experience.
Tomorrow, I will continue with this topic in a discussion of the possible impact of solar eclipses on Japanese mythology and religion, and I will also share with you my own four minute encounter with TOTALTY during the eclipse of February 26, 1998 on the Island of Curacao in the Netherland Antilles. Stay tuned!
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