In 2011, northeastern Japan was devastated by an earthquake, a tsunami and a radiation leak from a nuclear reactor. Beyond the physical damage, which included almost 112,000 destroyed buildings and more than 600,000 partially destroyed or partially damaged buildings, nearly 20,000 people lost their lives. Japan cried, and the world wept as one for the victims. It was a reminder of the fragility and unpredictability of life..
Then, six weeks later, a breathtaking sign of hope appeared. Japan's oldest cherry blossom tree, Miharu-Takizakura, bloomed once again despite being only thirty miles from the nuclear disaster site.
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It had already bloomed more than one-thousand times before.
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If Miharu-Takizakura could talk, what would it say to the Japanese people and the world? Prior to attempting to answer that question, it is necessary to understand the importance of cherry blossoms in Japanese culture.
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Hanami
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Hanami is the Japanese word for the springtime tradition of 'flower viewing' - particularly tree-flowers. Although the custom began in the Nara Period (710-794AD), blossom viewing was limited to court officials and their allies. At some point in the Edo Period (1603-1868), people from all walks of life were able to spend time appreciating the beauty of sakura (cherry blossoms) with food and drink. Every spring, most Japanese celebrate by continuing the hanami tradition, and there are cherry blossom festivals, parties and activities all over the country. A daily reminder of sakura can be found on Japan's 100 yen coin - the base denomination of its currency.
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Saigyo Hoshi, who was born a century after Miharu-Takizakura in 1118AD, is one of Japan's most beloved haiku poets. His well-known poems revere nature, and some of them are devoted to cherry blossoms including the following one:
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Gazing at them
I've grown so very close
to these blossoms,
to part with them when they fall
seems bitter indeed!
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Indeed, Saigyo expressed a universal sentiment about our relationship to the cycle of nature and life itself. It is transient. A moment is here - and then it is gone. As with nature, the seasons of life bring change. There are seasons of sorrow and seasons of joy - seasons of disappointment and seasons of hope.
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If your season is barren, be patient and remain steady. A better season shall come.
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One Thought, Two Things
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Now to return to the question: What would Japan's 1,000 year-old cherry blossom tree (Miharu-Takizakura) say if it could talk? Here is one thought.
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I have stood
upon this ground
for a thousand years
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I have seen
tears of joy
and tears of sorrow
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and I have lived
long enough
to know two things
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life is evanescence
as fleeting as my flowers,
days quickly drift
past the shoreline
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to honor
my season
you must honor
your season
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so, tell the blossoms of your kind
you love them more than yearly
tell them
you hold them always dearly
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(Photo: Miharu-Takizakura - located in Miharu (city), Fukushima, Japan. Click on to enlarge)
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Key Sources/Further Reading
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1. Danielle Demetriou, "1,000 Year-Old Cherry Tree Gives Hope To Japan Nuclear Victims" The Telegraph (UK) See link: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/8468629/1000-year-old-cherry-tree-gives-hope-to-Japan-nuclear-victims.html
2. Earthquake Report (15 August 2011) See link: http://earthquake-report.com/2011/08/04/japan-tsunami-following-up-the-aftermath-part-16-june/
3. Saigyo, Poems of a Mountain Home trans. Burton Watson (New York: Columbia University Press, 1991)
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J Roquen