MorganaFang
02-18-2004, 08:52 PM
THE COMFORT OF FISH
In which Mary and Etsuko learn that they have been leading sheltered lives
WE'VE heard some pretty wild stories since first hitting the road in May, last year, but one of the fishiest tales yet is that of a reputed mermaid.
On the outskirts of Hashimoto city in Wakayama-ken, we found Karukayado temple, which is dedicated to Ishidomaru and his parents. It was the boy's mother, Chisato, who once owned the "mermaid" mummy that now takes pride of place in a lacquer chest in the temple's main altar room.
http://www.lookjapan.com/LBsc/japanonfootmermaid.j pg Mary poses with the "mermaid" PHOTO: JAPAN ON FOOT
Chisato, apparently, was also a bit of a wanderer. Travelling all around Japan during the Heian period (794-1185), the high-class tabi geinin (traveling entertainer) had carried the "mermaid" mummy as a talisman to protect her against evil. She died in 1165 and one of her tombs is situated in the grounds of this temple, which once served as the entrance to the sacred mountain of Koyasan. The mummy of the reputed mermaid, meanwhile, rests in its chest at the foot of a statue of Chisato.
Iwahashi Sofu, a Buddhist scholar and chairman of the Karukayado Temple Preservation Society, laid the wooden box that holds the skeletal remains of the "mermaid" on a table for us to view. Horror overwhelmed us as we peered at the mummy that is said to be at least 1,400 years old.
From its head to the tip of its tail, the "mermaid" measures 65 centimeters long, and weighs about 300 grams. Fine strands of hair still remain around the ears. Most of its facial features--ears, nose and eyes--appear human, as does its delicate arms and hands, the latter of which still show traces of tiny nails on the fingers.
The "mermaid's" torso is also very much human, revealing sagging breasts and nipples. Although Iwahashi informed us that not all mermaids in Japan were female, this one most definitely was. However, all human likeness ended just below the "mermaid's" waist, from where a scaly fish tail began.
Feelings of pity and loathing welled up inside of me as I scrutinized the creature. The "mermaid's" petite hands stretched upward, turning in towards the face in a gesture of acute pain and anguish while its fishlike mouth, from which sharp fangs protruded, was set in a traumatic wail.
"She takes away the pain of all who look at her; that's why she looks so anguished," explained Iwahashi, who believes that the spirit of the "mermaid" is very much alive.
The 72-year-old is adamant that mermaids once existed, and maintains that they inhabited the waters of Japan up until around the seventeenth century.
I asked Iwahashi why he didn't think that the "mermaid" mummy was the result of some bizarre experimental operation; perhaps the surgical joining of a monkey and fish. The old chap denied the possibility, telling us that a surgeon in Osaka has conducted tests on the "mermaid" and established that the top half of the mummy is definitely human and the bottom half that of a fish.
"There is nothing to show that two different creatures have been joined together," he told us.
I ventured to ask Iwahashi how he thought mermaids ever came to exist in the first place. "Well, it's quite obvious," the old fellow said matter-of-factly. "Fishermen and sailors used to make love with fish. They were bored, lonely and frustrated and would put fish down their trousers to comfort themselves," he said.
Etsuko and I curled up with laughter but had to agree that it was perhaps the most feasible answer, albeit a rather extraordinary one. Iwahashi disagreed with us: "You mean to say, you've never heard of fishermen putting fish down their trousers to satisfy themselves?"
We had to admit to leading sheltered lives. Iwahashi was flabbergasted by our ignorance. "Well, fishermen all over the world used to do it and many, I dare say, continue to do so to this day. That's why occasionally you still hear reports of sightings of mermaids somewhere out at sea," he concluded. http://www.furinkan.com/mermaid/culture/
---------------------------
All I can say... fish...pants.... Ooooo.....
In which Mary and Etsuko learn that they have been leading sheltered lives
WE'VE heard some pretty wild stories since first hitting the road in May, last year, but one of the fishiest tales yet is that of a reputed mermaid.
On the outskirts of Hashimoto city in Wakayama-ken, we found Karukayado temple, which is dedicated to Ishidomaru and his parents. It was the boy's mother, Chisato, who once owned the "mermaid" mummy that now takes pride of place in a lacquer chest in the temple's main altar room.
http://www.lookjapan.com/LBsc/japanonfootmermaid.j pg Mary poses with the "mermaid" PHOTO: JAPAN ON FOOT
Chisato, apparently, was also a bit of a wanderer. Travelling all around Japan during the Heian period (794-1185), the high-class tabi geinin (traveling entertainer) had carried the "mermaid" mummy as a talisman to protect her against evil. She died in 1165 and one of her tombs is situated in the grounds of this temple, which once served as the entrance to the sacred mountain of Koyasan. The mummy of the reputed mermaid, meanwhile, rests in its chest at the foot of a statue of Chisato.
Iwahashi Sofu, a Buddhist scholar and chairman of the Karukayado Temple Preservation Society, laid the wooden box that holds the skeletal remains of the "mermaid" on a table for us to view. Horror overwhelmed us as we peered at the mummy that is said to be at least 1,400 years old.
From its head to the tip of its tail, the "mermaid" measures 65 centimeters long, and weighs about 300 grams. Fine strands of hair still remain around the ears. Most of its facial features--ears, nose and eyes--appear human, as does its delicate arms and hands, the latter of which still show traces of tiny nails on the fingers.
The "mermaid's" torso is also very much human, revealing sagging breasts and nipples. Although Iwahashi informed us that not all mermaids in Japan were female, this one most definitely was. However, all human likeness ended just below the "mermaid's" waist, from where a scaly fish tail began.
Feelings of pity and loathing welled up inside of me as I scrutinized the creature. The "mermaid's" petite hands stretched upward, turning in towards the face in a gesture of acute pain and anguish while its fishlike mouth, from which sharp fangs protruded, was set in a traumatic wail.
"She takes away the pain of all who look at her; that's why she looks so anguished," explained Iwahashi, who believes that the spirit of the "mermaid" is very much alive.
The 72-year-old is adamant that mermaids once existed, and maintains that they inhabited the waters of Japan up until around the seventeenth century.
I asked Iwahashi why he didn't think that the "mermaid" mummy was the result of some bizarre experimental operation; perhaps the surgical joining of a monkey and fish. The old chap denied the possibility, telling us that a surgeon in Osaka has conducted tests on the "mermaid" and established that the top half of the mummy is definitely human and the bottom half that of a fish.
"There is nothing to show that two different creatures have been joined together," he told us.
I ventured to ask Iwahashi how he thought mermaids ever came to exist in the first place. "Well, it's quite obvious," the old fellow said matter-of-factly. "Fishermen and sailors used to make love with fish. They were bored, lonely and frustrated and would put fish down their trousers to comfort themselves," he said.
Etsuko and I curled up with laughter but had to agree that it was perhaps the most feasible answer, albeit a rather extraordinary one. Iwahashi disagreed with us: "You mean to say, you've never heard of fishermen putting fish down their trousers to satisfy themselves?"
We had to admit to leading sheltered lives. Iwahashi was flabbergasted by our ignorance. "Well, fishermen all over the world used to do it and many, I dare say, continue to do so to this day. That's why occasionally you still hear reports of sightings of mermaids somewhere out at sea," he concluded. http://www.furinkan.com/mermaid/culture/
---------------------------
All I can say... fish...pants.... Ooooo.....