Halloween and Obon

It doesn't suit this season, I'll talk about Halloween today. Halloween, you know, is American feast. On the day, children parade and visit houses with make up as some ghost or witch, and they say "trick or treat." Originally, it came from Celt. The day was the last day of year and ancestral ghost visit their descendant on that day. Also witch, spirit or fairy comes out. It is said that "Fairy Ride" run around on the day. If people went out, they were caught by it and will never return. So people don't go out. Instead, to greet their ancestor or to wish fairies don't mischief, they put a cup of milk and a little food beside windows. On the next day, if it disappeared, it means their ancestor has came back safely.
Celt have samhain after Halloween as start of years. And between these days there are no border earth and the other side. So ghost came out to visit home, and others which harm people or domestic animals came out too. It looks like "OBON", the festival in Japan. It is on from 13rd from 15th, July. Japanese greet their ancestral ghost on the day. On the day, we display Japanese lantern to see ancestor there is the house which they should return and see them off with light of Japanese lantern as same as the start. It is said that people who stick to the road could hear the sound that the gate of underworld on the day.

Fairy

Today I'll talk about fairies. People draw them as pretty and cute. They are not only cute but also cruel. Do you know about fairy circles? It is said that they are made after fairies danced in a round. If people set foot in one, they must dance with the fairies until the fairies become weary or the human dies. There are fairies who eat people such as Kelpie and there are those who look like ghosts. There are also those who bring death to people who look at them or hear their voice. Like this, fairies aren't only cute, but rather it should be said that some are innocentlly cruel. And they connote an instinctual terror. (Fairies who eat people don't eat people because of hatred or pleasure.)

Food and World

In the world there are some similar story. I'll talk you about one of them.
In Japan, there are story which don't eat "YOMI"'s foods. It is called "YOMOTSU-HE-GUI", means eat foods which are cooked at underworld. If eat it, the one will die. And we can see similar in Greek myths; Persephone was wanted back to ground, but she ate Hades's pomegranate, she couldn't get back completely. It is seen in Fairy Tail, too. It says if people who strayed into fairy's world want to get back one's home, he or she must not eat there's foods.
Why eating foods of another world cause to belong to that world? Because food is three major desire? I don't know why, but I think it is very interesting.

Death, living and paradise

In this world, there are a lot of life as same as death. What is death? If people died, they would where to go? From long time ago, people think about death. Some wants never-die with afraid death, others yearn for death with regard it as mother.
Do you know the word " memento mori"?It means think about death or don't forget death. The thought came in especially the Middle Ages. Almost all of the picture have symbol of death. People have thought death to think and know what the life is. They think their life with say "memento mori", that is don't forget that we will die some day. In mythology, there are some story about death and life. In Japan, IZANAGI has pursued his wife, IZANAMI, to NENO-KUNI, the hell, but he was scared his died wife and escaped from her. There is a mythology like this story in Greece. Orpheus, is minstrel, had pursued his wife, Eurydike to Hades,that is hell, and looked back and couldn't get her back. In Islam, there are angel who likes the Death. It named Azrael, the angel who tells people the death.
Death is difficult theme as much as life. People have thought about it for long long time and they don't get the answer.




Life is fact of moment, death is fact of everlasting. by Nyozekan Hasegawa.

About Gods

In Japan, there are so many Gods called "Yaoyorozu". Since a long time ago, Japanese believe that there are Gods around them: in earth, woods, things, air and all of existence. As time past, Japanese accept foreign culture. They defeated by Buddhism. Then people started to believe that Gods are spurious appearance: that's substance is Buddas like Amida-Nyorai. But after some age, there was another theory: Buddas are spurious appearance, and Gods are substance. Why Japanese believe these theory? I think it because they are similar in their own nature. And we can look which similar it in Europe. Gods Greek and Roman are often confused, for example , Minerva is confused with Athena. It means people in around the world have same or similar image for supirior existence, I think.

The Dragons(2)

In Japan, we have a lot of words about dragon. "Nobori-Ryu" means dragon who go up to sky, "Haku-Ryu" means dragon who is messenger of God called "Tentei", "Han-Ryu" means dragon who coiled itself up and doesn't ascension yet, "Sen-Ryu" means dragon who lurk in pond or deep, "Mizuchi-Ryu" means who doesn't change into dragon. There are many words another these.

Why Japanese has a lot of words about dragon? Because it make root in Japan or Japanese life, I think. (In deed, in Alaska, there are so many of words about snow. Their life is bound up with snow.) In China, dragons have attribution of water. When people had drought, they prayed to dragon to cause rain. Japanese image of dragon is same as China. They were agricultural people. So their life was bound up with water. It means dragon who symbolize water is important existence. So it is good existence for Chinese and Japanese.

The dragons

Let me tell about dragons first, (because I like them very much!) There is difference with the West and the East especially China. (There is some evil dragons in the East, but I think it is influenced by the Western one.) In the West, it is told as evil. They has treasure, attack people, and sometimes carry off women. They are hunted by hero at last. However in China, they are worshiped. They are posted as God, and their appearance mean good symbol. Though these difference, it commonly used as symbol to show oneself power in both of them. They are different in their own figure. In the West, they similar to lizard. They have large body, four thick legs to walk and wings. But in China, they similar to snake. Their body is thin and long. They have four legs too, but it isn't thick as Westernone. They fly without wings as swim.
Are both is surely dragon? With these difference? I wonder that why person ― I don't know it's Western of Eastern ― defined both are same "dragon." Why he or she thought dragon and "Ryuu" are same thing? If I could know it, it's wonderful I think.

Welcome

There are so many mystery in the world. We can see it through mythology, legends, folk tales, and fairy tales. People yearn for those story and imaginary animals live in the story from ancient age. People search mysterious things which is told by those story 'cos they want to be gave power or long life.
They are false? No, we can't affirm it is false because it's difficult to proving the non-existence.
I'll tell you about those mysterious story on this blog. You'll may be yearn it as people do since ancient age.