Aokigahara
Aokigahara (青木ヶ原), also known as the Trees of the Sea (樹海, Jukai), is a 35-square-kilometre (14 sq mi) forest that lies at the northwest base of Mount Fuji in Japan. The forest contains a number of rocky, icy caverns, a few of which are popular tourist destinations. Due to the wind-blocking density of the trees and an absence of wildlife, the forest is known for being quiet.[1]
The forest has a historic association with demons in Japanese mythology and is a popular place for suicides; 54 completed the act in 2010,[2] despite numerous signs, in Japanese and English, urging people to reconsider their actions.[3]
Geography
The forest floor consists primarily of volcanic rock and is difficult to penetrate with hand tools such as picks or shovels. There are also a variety of unofficial trails that are used semi-regularly for the annual "body hunt" done by local volunteers. In recent years, hikers and tourists trekking through Aokigahara have begun to use plastic tape to mark their paths so as to avoid getting lost.[4] Though officials try to remove the tape time and time again, tourists and thrill-seekers inevitably leave more and more litter, and a great deal of it lies scattered throughout the first kilometer of the forest, past the designated trails leading to tourist attractions such as the Ice Cave and Wind Cave. After the first kilometer into Aokigahara towards Mount Fuji, the forest is in a more "pristine" condition, with little to no litter and few obvious signs of human presence.[citation needed]
Visitors and suicides
The forest is a popular place for suicides, reportedly the most popular in Japan and second in the world after San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.[5][6] Statistics vary. In the period leading up to 1988, about 100 suicides occurred there every year.[7]
In 2002, 78 bodies were found within the forest, exceeding the previous record of 74 in 1998.[1][8] In 2003, the rate climbed to 100, and in recent years, the local government has stopped publicizing the numbers in an attempt to downplay Aokigahara's association with suicide.[9] In 2004, 108 people killed themselves in the forest. In 2010, 247 people attempted suicide in the forest, 54 of whom completed the act.[2] Suicides are said to increase during March, the end of the fiscal year in Japan.[10] As of 2011, the most popular means of suicide in the forest were hanging and drug overdoses.[11]
The high rate of suicide has led officials to place signs in the forest, in Japanese and English, urging those who have gone there to commit suicide to seek help and not kill themselves. The annual body search, consisting of a small army of police, volunteers, and attendant journalists, began in 1970.[12][13][14]
The site's popularity has been attributed to the 1960 novel Nami no Tō (波の塔, lit., "Tower of Waves") by Seichō Matsumoto,[15] which ends with two lovers committing suicide in the forest. However, the history of suicide in Aokigahara predates the novel's publication, and the place has long been associated with death: ubasute may have been practiced there into the 19th century, and the forest is reputedly haunted by the Yūrei (angry spirits) of those left to die.[9]
In 2008, members of the American television programme Destination Truth visited and investigated Aokigahara.[16]
References
- ^ a b Zack Davisson. "The Suicide Woods of Mt. Fuji". Seek Japan.
- ^ a b Gilhooly, Rob (26 June 2011). "Inside Japan's 'Suicide Forest'". Japan Times. p. 7.
- ^ Brennan date= 10 April 2012, Lyle. "The suicide forest of Japan: Mount Fuji beauty spot where up to 100 bodies are found every year". Daily Mail. Associated Newspapers. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
{{cite web}}: Missing pipe in:|last=(help)CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Intruders tangle 'suicide forest' with tape". Asahi Shimbun. 2008-05-03. Archived from the original on 2008-05-06. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
- ^ Meaney, Thomas (April 15, 2006). "Exiting Early: Is life worth living? The question is perennial. The answers include 'no'". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 14, 2009.
In a roundabout way of coming to terms with his death, Mr. Hunt made several trips to the cliffs of Beachy Head on the southern coast of England, which ranks as the third most popular suicide site in the world, after the Golden Gate Bridge and the Aokigahara Woods in Japan.
- ^ Amazeen, Sandy. "Book Review: Cliffs of Despair A Journey to Suicide's Edge", Monsters & Critics.December 21, 2005.
- ^ Takahashi, Yoshitomo (1988). "EJ383602 - Aokigahara-jukai: Suicide and Amnesia in Mt. Fuji's Black Forest". Education Resources Information Center (ERIC). Retrieved 2008-09-20.
- ^ "'Suicide forest' yields 78 corpses". The Japan Times. 2003-02-07. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
- ^ a b Studio 360:Suicide Forest. Studio 360 in Japan (radio program). January 8, 2010. Accessed: February 11, 2010.
- ^ Lah, Kyung (March 19, 2009). "Desperate Japanese head to 'suicide forest'". CNN.com/Asia. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
'Especially in March, the end of the fiscal year, more suicidal people will come here because of the bad economy,' he said. 'It's my dream to stop suicides in this forest, but to be honest, it would be difficult to prevent all the cases here.'
- ^ ROB GILHOOLY, Special to The Japan Times (Sunday, June 26, 2011). "SUNDAY TIMEOUT: Inside Japan's 'Suicide Forest'". Japan Times. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help); More than one of|website=and|journal=specified (help) - ^ "Japan's harvest of death". The Independent. London. 2000-10-24. Archived from the original on 24 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-03.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Hadfield, Peter. "Japan struggles with soaring death toll in Suicide Forest", The Sunday Telegraph (London). June 16, 2001.
- ^ Kyodo News, "'Suicide forest' helps skew Yamanashi's statistics", Japan Times, 9 May 2012, p. 3.
- ^ 波の塔〈下〉(文春文庫): 松本 清張: 本 (in Japanese). Tōkyō : Bungeishunjū. 2009. ISBN 978-4167697235. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link) - ^ "Epsiode 211: Aswang and Haunted Forest". Syfy.
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