Similarities between Ireland and Japan (and their folklore)

Since the beginning of this year I’ve been delving more and more into the mythologies of Japan and Ireland. Ever since my visit to Ireland last year, I was spellbound and wanted to learn more about their ancient culture and history. As I dove into the books I found, I noticed some interesting similarities between Irish and Japanese myths. The similarities don’t stop at the myths, however, as I’ve found that the cultural backgrounds of the two countries also parallel each other in interesting ways.

If we have to choose a starting point for these parallels, geography might be a good place to begin the comparisons. Japan and Ireland are both island countries that find themselves on opposite ends of the Eurasian continent. Without a doubt, this factor made both countries reliant on fishing and also made water a strong element in both countries’ folklore. The sea is both an object of awe and fear. What lay beyond the horizon when looking out to sea helped give birth to the belief that a magical island called Tír na nÓg was somewhere hidden away, distant from the shores of Ireland. In Japan as well, the ocean was said to be a link to another world. You could say the border between “this” world and the spirit world lay in the water surrounding the islands and the rivers that ran through them.

In one folktale from Japan, a man named Urashima Tarō is carried off to a Dragon palace under the sea where he meets Princess Otohime. He stays for several days and before he heads back to the real world, he is given a jewelry box by the princess and told not to open it. When he gets back to shore, he opens the box and turns into an old man because hundreds of years had passed in the real world. This concept of the passage of time being different in the “other” world can also be seen in the tale of  Tír na nÓg in Ireland, in which our main character Oisín meets a fairy woman riding a horse named Niamh (pronounced Neev). She takes him to the magical land of eternal youth, Tír na nÓg, where he also stays several days. Before he returns to Ireland, Niamh tells him to not get off his horse under any circumstances. Upon his return, he discovers that hundreds of years had passed in Ireland. He then sees some men in trouble with their horse, and Oisín ends up stepping foot on the land in attempt to help them. He instantly grows old and dies on the spot. 

Next, I’ll introduce the Irish folk story first, one which isn’t as well known as the previous one. The Hunchback of Knockgrafton tells the story of Lusmore, who was a kind man who was severely hunchbacked. He was very skilled at using herbs and weaving together baskets and all sorts of other things. One day he finds himself near a fairy mound where he stops to take a rest, and the fairies began to sing a song. “Monday, Tuesday!” they sang in Irish, and Lusmore decided to contribute by adding “Wednesday!” to their song. The fairies loved his contribution so much they removed his hunchback, and he went back to town happily. When word got out about what happened, because Lusmore was so grateful and was fairly open about the story to others, another hunchbacked young man named Jack Madden went out to find the fairies. Upon hearing their song at the mounds, he shouted “Thursday! And Friday!” very impatiently, thinking he would get a bigger reward if he added not just one more day, but two. The fairies sensed his arrogance and gave Jack another hunchback, presumably the one they took from Lusmore. Jack left walking away crookedly, having to carry two hunchbacks for the rest of his life.

This paralell’s the Japanese story Kobu-tori Jiisan which is about an old man with a lump or tumor on his face. In the mountains, he encounters tengu, which are demons from Japanese mythology, who are dancing around and enjoying themselves. The man decides to join them without fear and the tengu are so moved by this that they remove the lump for him. When he gets back and tells others about what happened, one of his neighbors who was a miserable old man who also had a lump on his face, decides to try to find the tengu. He ventures out and finds them and throws himself into their dancing, but with little passion in his heart. The tengu sensing his lack of commitment and disgusted by his bad dancing give him the lump they removed from the first old man.

The last tales I’d like to compare are the tales of the Irish folklore being the Selkie & her skin and the Japanese tale of Hagoromo, or the “robe of feathers”. In the Irish tale, a Selkie is a type of “seal person” that has a separate skin they can shed when they become seals. In a classic tale of the Selkie, she sheds her skin and bathes and a human man steals her skin and tells her she now has to marry him, since she has no other place in the human world. The Selkie marries the man and even has children, all whilst longing to go back to the world where she’s originally from. Her child ends up finding her skin hidden somewhere and when she sees it, she immediately puts it back on and jumps into the water only to never come back to her human life again. Her husband and sadly her child never hear from her even once more. In Hagoromo (which is also a famous Noh-style play) a fisherman finds the Hagoromo, a magical feather robe of a celestial being. This other-worldly woman sees him take it and demands it back and the fisherman argues with her until she agrees to show him her dance. In some versions, he bribes her to marry him, but this could be influence from other tales with this “swan-maiden” motif, but it’s said that in the original Japanese tale, she simply disappears after the dance is over.

Many Japanese tales are influenced by both Shintoism and Buddhism. Most people still practice customs from both religions to this day, and it can be said that many are proud of their culture’s ties to nature and seasons as well. While in modern day Japan very little believe in the polytheism of Shintoism, many are aware of the ancient beliefs of their ancestors. In the ancient religion of Japanese Shinto, there is a god in everything – trees, pebbles, lakes, hedges. Anything found in nature was tied to a god. Water was especially holy and said to be a passage to the other world, especially in sacred springs and wells.

In Ireland you can also find sacred wells throughout the country, still believed to hold powers of purification to this day and protected as important heritage sites. These wells are now mostly associated with Christian saints but they actually trace back farther than the beginning of Christianity. Originally, they were sites devoted to gods in the ancient pagan religion of Ireland. When Christianity was brought to the island, instead of completely erasing the people’s original beliefs, the Christians simply kept the sites and renamed them after Christian saints. (or simply took the names of the old gods and turned them into Christian saints)

Nowadays you can see still many people visiting the sacred wells in Ireland to pray at them or give a small offering, akin to how Japanese people visit Shinto shrines to do the same. It’s not uncommon to see an older Japanese person touching trees at shrines — which are considered holy — and closing their eyes while reciting a prayer. Trees are also heavily intertwined with Ireland; the ancient Ogham alphabet is based on the native trees found in Ireland. Trees, mounds and shrubs are still thought to be sacred places that are even protected by law in modern day Ireland.

This ancient pagan religion of Ireland was also polytheistic and the ancient Irish people believed that gods could be found anywhere. Just like Japan, it was said gods could be found in rivers, forests, rocks, trees and other natural formations. Of course, this kind of belief is not limited to Ireland and Japan — animism can be observed in many countries around the world. However, in various areas, these two countries have more similarities to each other than most people expect.

As I already touched upon, another notable area of similarity is the fact that both island countries had their own long standing “pagan” or “animistic” religions before another religion was brought over to them from the Euroasian continent. But this didn’t lead to the complete erasure of their previous beliefs — they instead adapted and harmonized the two. (Moreso in Japan)

In Japan, this “outside” religion would of course be Buddhism, and in Ireland, Christianity. In modern Japan people visit both Shinto shrines and Buddhist Temples indiscriminately and both religions have found a place in society. In Ireland, the ancient religion is not as prevalent, however as I mentioned before, many sacred spots have still been maintained. Instead of complete erasure, the church had adapted the old spots in order to maintain their importance (according to some). The very famous Celtic cross is also a perfect example of the combination of the two religions — the Christian cross incorporating elements of the faith before it, in result creating a symbol unique to Ireland.

One famous spot to visit in Ireland is the 5,000 megalithic burial tomb Newgrange, which is among the oldest burial tombs in the world and one of the most ancient sites still standing in all of Europe. It is suspected to be used to bury Kings and possibly other members of the royal family. In Japan, you can also find these tombs which are called “Kofun”, but they are not as old as Newgrange — they were created in the form of earthen mounds from the 3rd to the 7th century. These were also used for members of the ruling class in ancient Japan. While burial mounds can be found in various countries across the world, this is worth mentioning as yet another similarity between Ireland and Japan because they are both very well known in their respective countries and well maintained to this day. The oldest burial mounds in the world are found in Ireland and across the British Isles, so it’s no wonder that Newgrange is such a big attraction for many who visit the Emerald Isle.

I think most people would not think to compare the two simply because they’re thought to be very different countries to most. This might come as a surprise to Japanese people more than the Irish, because Irish culture is not as widespread in Asia as Japanese culture is in Europe. I mentioned that many Japanese people are proud of their deep ties to nature but they don’t know as much about the similarities they have with other countries. One factor is that education in Japan doesn’t teach people so much about other countries but instead focuses on how “unique” Japanese culture is because of its roots in these ancient beliefs. Another factor is that Japanese travel television shows love to focus on the differences of other countries. (This might be pretty normal everywhere, but honestly, they love to focus on how different!!! other places are in comparison to Japan)

This is why it’s so important to teach children and encourage them to learn about the rest of the world and even do their own research, because through that it becomes extremely clear that as a human race we have more similarities than differences. I encourage others to read up on the fascinating history and folklore of both countries. In my next blog post I’d like to focus on another link Ireland and Japan (and two more countries) have through a very special individual.

怪しい少年少女博物館 (The Suspicious Museum for Boys and Girls) in Ito, Shizuoka, Japan

I had come across a museum not too long ago while taking a trip in Shizuoka. I’m not sure if museum is the right word, but in Japanese it’s the word that is used for it. Before I even had a clue of what it contained, I heard the name and was quickly intrigued by it. I’m not sure why but I already had a hunch that it would be what it was: a random assortment of very strange paraphernalia, collectibles and antiques. I think it was because I had been to similar places before and could already imagine what it was like. It was also because I knew there was a sex museum not too far away with a similar collection of random things.

When I finally looked it up I couldn’t find too much on it, but I had already decided that 怪しい少年少女博物館 (The Suspicious Museum for Boys and Girls) was a place I wanted to make a stop at.

We had to make quite a walk from the station to the museum, and despite it being December it was actually kind of warm. The walk was mostly uphill and we were pretty tired when we finally came upon it. We knew we were close because this guy greets you who is pretty hard to miss.

Not sure how to explain him or what he’s supposed to be, but I definitely got all giddy when I spotted him.  He is situated outside the museum and the entrance is also decorated with a bunch of other random figures and items. The place is making sure you know what you’re getting into before you enter. Make no mistake, folks! This is no Sanrio Puroland.

 

After you pay the admission fee, you start off your journey with a room of sexual paraphernalia. Yup, the boy’s and girl’s museum places nude mannequins and vintage Japanese books about sex and masturbation right in the front to greet you. If the entrance didn’t give you the message to not bring in your elementary school aged child, this first room will at least.

Following that room you enter the heart of the museum, the “main hall”, if you will. It’s pretty long and it is covered floor to ceiling in strange figures, posters, vintage toys, fashion articles and even arcade machines from Japan, America and elsewhere. There is a small space where you can play NES and Super NES games as well, randomly tucked into the middle of the room.

As you walk through you’ll quickly realize that it would be impossible to really see and take in everything in one walk through, or even two or three. There is quite a number of small things and little details you could easily miss, and yes, there is some order to the madness. There are specific areas with special “themes”, like the Yokai area on the second floor…

 

….and also a Christmas corner?

I wish I took pictures of everything but there was just so much. There was also a pretty out of place section with just Marilyn Monroe merchandise and collectibles. You can also write a curse on a little sheet and hang it up near a mannequin of a woman who I’m guessing is a death god.

Someone actually wished their own fat to die…

If your brain has already not been through enough after looking through all the chaos, the real coup de grâce to your psyche is in the back building of the museum. You have to go outside through the back door which has signs that say “This way to the haunted school.” When I exited through the doors it was pretty quiet and empty (nobody else was around) and I had to follow an outdoor hallway which made me feel just a tiny bit uneasy.

I finally came upon the entrance which was your standard entrance for an お化け屋敷 or Haunted House attraction. Nothing too special or unique about it, but it was the first time I’ve ever been completely alone going through one. There is not a single staff member around either, you just go in.

It was your pretty run of the mill attraction, unnecessarily noisy and loud with some bloody, distressed looking dolls laying around. There was a short video of a school boy warning you to not go inside in the beginning and the floor moves a bit at one point. It wasn’t really that scary but, again, being alone felt a little strange.

Then comes the end after you exit the haunted house. Not so fast, have a look inside this makeshift wall to take a peek at some real horror ya’ll.

That’s right! They thought, “Let’s get ’em good at the end with photos of Hitler and the KKK and the depiction of a Jew being killed/tortured!” (or whatever is supposed to be going on) All I could think of as I stared through the peephole of the wall was “Damn, this would never fly in America.” But in an obscure museum in a small town in Japan, it flies. It flies so high it goes over most people’s heads, I’m sure.

And that was it! Nothing spectacular but definitely a unique place to visit if you want to go out of your way to Ito. The official website is here if you’d like to snoop around a bit. For anyone who thinks this might be up their alley (and I’m sure you know who you are) I definitely recommend it while it’s still around.

Silent Hill Symbolism (And a Happy 20th Anniversary to Silent Hill)

Happy 20th anniversary to Silent Hill –a game series that was revolutionary when it was released in 1999. That time period was really impactful for gaming with the releases of titles like Final Fantasy 7 and Resident Evil. The latter game and Silent Hill cemented that horror gaming was a genre people wanted to see more of. The two were quite different, however, with Silent Hill going on to explore themes that were never before touched upon in gaming. The series is famous for its dark and psychological themes which were quite different from Resident Evil.

Unfortunately, the original team (“Team Silent“) worked on their last game together when they completed Silent Hill 4: The Room which was not very well received among many fans of the series. However, it did fairly well among the Japanese audience as well as critics. What played a role for that was how Silent Hill 4’s themes largely catered to a Japanese audience as opposed to the first three which were heavily inspired by American and other Western film, TV and books. While we have the heavy themes of the occult in the first three games Silent Hill 4 had an inclination towards spirits and purification which are more present in Japanese folklore.

What holds all the games together despite some of these differences is the heavy influence of lore and spiritualism of all kinds. While a lot of the references are done very well and you have to do some research to understand them, some are quite clear, while others are thrown together for no purpose.

A straightforward example are some of the characters and their correspondence to certain tarot cards in the first game. Tarot cards are largely associated with fortune tellers, witches and also what some call “gypsies”, a roaming peoples whose attire, as stereotypically thought, is similar to the garb Dahlie Gillespie dons in the game.

Harry Mason is compared to The Hermit by Dahlia, which traditionally represents soul searching, introspection and loneliness. Harry is searching for his daughter in Silent Hill but it is a bit unfair to place such a heavy card on him. For one, nothing suggests he is doing much deep soul searching because his mission is a simple one — he wants his daughter back. However, since we know Dahlia practices divination because she has mentioned practicing gyromancy and the like, was she predicting the future? Following the conclusion of the first game, Harry likely withdrew from society with his daughter Heather out of fear of what could happen to them and taught her self defense. He died alone in his living room just watching the TV, although the Silent Hill 3 novelization suggests he wasn’t really “watching” but keeping it on while his mind wandered. It’s possible Dahlia knew of Harry’s fate and what would become of him.

A fun fact about Dahlia, her antique store that she runs in Silent Hill is called The Green Lion, which is a symbol in alchemy of destruction from the deepest part of yourself. Specifically, the green lion eating the sun is a depiction of this supposed psychic phenomena.  Symbols from the world of alchemy are in abundance in Silent Hill if you look around.

Alessa could correspond with the maternal aspects of The Empress card because she is to give birth to the god for The Order. She also possesses powerful psychic and magical abilities and from that standpoint she could be the strongest being present in Silent Hill, although sadly she is little in control of herself and her fate with so many others manipulating her.

Valtiel is another magical being who is likely the Red God from the lore of The Order. He likely corresponds with The Magician card, a holder of power and knowledge who often leads the way for Heather in Silent Hill 3, who is the wandering Fool (another major tarot card) in the game and unaware of how The Order is leading her right into their trap. On The Fool tarot card, there is a dog tugging at the man beneath his feet which could also symbolize Valtiel not letting Heather stray from her path. The Fool is a typical card for a hero/main character and is a trope that has been repeated time and time again.

“This first stage of the mythological journey—which we have designated “call to adventure”—signifies that destiny has summoned the hero and transferred her spiritual centre of gravity to a zone unknown.” – Joseph Campbell ‘The Hero with a Thousand Faces’

The above describes a journey for a hero, like Heather, that is likened to destiny. While Heather ventured into parts unknown to her, in the end, Heather comes out triumphant.

Heather’s name alone is symbolic — coming from the name of a plant in Europe that grows in places that is difficult for other plants to grow. Each time it comes back, it comes back even stronger. I think this is the perfect name for Heather as she is also a reincarnation of Alessa/Cheryl — coming back even more powerful and victorious than the last time.

This trinity of Heather/Alessa/Cheryl probably stands for a famous symbol on magical lore — the triple goddess. This is probably one of the most pronounced and important themes in the games. A feminine trinity of magical beings can be traced to many stories from countries all over the world. The symbol for it, a circle with two half circles on the sides of it, can also be found in The Order’s symbol Halo of the Sun. Within this symbol are also many references to alchemy, time and eternity. The three circles individually have been said to represent past, present and future which can also doubly stand for Cheryl, Heather and Alessa.

There are plenty more things referenced in the games but to sum it up — all of it doesn’t really go together as far as coinciding folklore and beliefs go. It does, however, all work well for the game and its atmosphere. It’s unlikely we’ll see another game with such an abundance of symbolism that is intricately woven together as seen in Silent Hill.

 

Nature Witches

Lately, I think we’ve all heard a lot about witches in pop culture and main stream media a little more than usual. This got me to digging up my books and various other materials related to the subject of witches.

The modern “witch” is mostly rooted in ancient European culture (like ancient pagan religions for example) and predominately these beliefs were tied in with nature and “mother earth”. This concept of the binding of religion & nature is not unique to European cultures, however, and here in Japan there is a unique religion called Shinto. In this religion, there are spirits in everything natural; rivers, mountains, forests, etc. From this, it can be said that it is similar to European old religions and even more ancient religions from around the world. Looking at the world around us and trying to find a deep understanding in nature is a very, well, natural thing to do as humans. Because of this, millions of stories have been made and types of spirits/creatures/gods were born from our imaginations. Here are a few notable types.

Alraune
The Alraune is related to the mandrake root because the name in German also translates to “mandrake”. It is also called a kobold which is sometimes translated into “sprite”. These spirits/witches were often kept in the home by families. The Alraune at her best was dressed in elegant silks and velvets, bathed in wine and had regular meals of milk and cookies. It is thought that she might have originally been a household goddess or ancestral spirit because her shrines were oft found in cupboards of homes. Alraunes had the power to tell fortunes and also reveal the location of treasures but if not taken care of, could also bring the downfall of the family. It often appears in pop culture as well. There is the notable Alraune (German novel by  Hanns Heinz Ewers) and the Alraune also appears as enemies in the video games Final Fantasy IV and Shin Megami Tensei IV

Bilwis
While not necessarily a witch, according to some accounts the Bilwis is said to be everything from a witch to an elf. Originally a benevolent spirit, she was probably made frightening to keep children from ruining the grain fields outside. Also referred to as a kind of corn spirit from German lore, of sometimes demonic or human origin.

Chervioburgium
This actually translates to “cauldron carrier” and refers to a man who carried a cauldron for a witch.

Drude
A drude a female spirit or witch that starts trouble for sleeping people and livestock. Particular women are just destined to be Druden, departing their bodies at night to fly around the countryside giving people nightmares.

Elder Mother
A wood-spirit that inhabits elder bushes who vehemently protects them.

Weathermakers
They could raise storms by trapping spiders under pots, shaking wet brooms and other methods. Related to Valkyries.

Wolf Crones
Swedish witches who have the power to control wolves. They are called Vargamor and were old women who lived deep in the forest.

That’s all for now. With more research may come more information about these and other witches in folklore from around the world.

Kegon Falls of Japan- Infamous suicide spot, but why?

The Kegon Falls (華厳の滝 Kegon no taki) located in Tochigi prefecture in Japan are infamous as a suicide spot. When mentioned to many Japanese people it’s usually brought up as a “Did you know?” type of tidbit because the falls are very much associated with tragedy (much like the Aokigahara forest). The truth is that there hasn’t been a suicide at the falls in a very long time despite many thinking that there has been recent ones. If you check for recent accounts you will unlikely find anything at all as far as suicide goes. So what gives?

Well, it started in 1903 a named “Fujimura” killed himself at the falls and left his will on a nearby tree. The content of the will was about how the world was full of evil and misery. That same year about 185 copy cat suicides followed and probably a few more in the years after that but so ends the peak of the suicide occurrences at the falls.

At the very least many people believe the falls are still haunted by the spirits of those that did choose to end their lives there.

It’s also said that it is a good place to catch spirit photos and that faces and figures of people can be seen the waters and currents. See anything I can’t?

Cool Find: Resident Evil/Biohazard 2 Dual Shock Vers. Japanese Guide

In my explorations I found a cool strategy guide published by Famitsu back in the 90s when Resident Evil 2 was released in Japan. For every new area, there is an introduction page each featuring a popular character or celebrity from American horror-pop culture. Thought I’d post them up since I’ve never seen them before. You can quickly recognize Drew Barrymore from Scream, Michael Jackson from the Thriller music video and Leonardo DiCaprio from a movie I’m unfamiliar with. Check ’em out!

And here are some bonus splash pages featuring a few classic American horror movies!

Abandoned Love Hotel

Across Japan, and I’m sure the same goes for many countries, there are abandoned buildings and infrastructures that remain littered and otherwise untouched. In Japanese they call them 廃墟 (Haikyo) and there are already hundreds of photographers and explorers both Japanese and people foreign to Japan who have discovered and documented many of them. If you do a quick search online there are plenty of websites and even books about these “haikyo” across the nation. I think what separates Japanese abandoned spots from other countries is how eerily quiet and ignored they are even among the people that live nearby. They’re just left there, usually kept intact for many years, for nature to run its course.

The changes that naturally modify the structures are what make them especially interesting sometimes. Animals could find a new home in them, plants will overgrow and even the changing weather will warp and erode certain features. Sometimes even humans, including intruders and the Japanese government, will change or knock down the structures and the remains could reveal other curious aspects of the area.

As much as something has been visited or documented well online there is nothing like visiting a place yourself. That is why I went out to seek a love hotel I had heard about previously from another “haikyo” explorer not very far from where I live. I’m not sure exactly how much has changed since it has previously been visited and there was little I knew about it in general. With caution, I went out to experience it on my own. The following photos are of both the inside and outside of the building including parts of the surrounding area.

 

 

The building had two stories, a long but quite unremarkable balcony with a not so spectacular view and a basement. Above, there is a shot of the basement which didn’t seem to have much in it. There was nothing much in the entire building besides trash and bits and pieces of the walls and ceilings. The most interesting room, however, was the one I found in the back corner of the house with the two tall and red staircase-like objects. Here is a closer look.

Not sure exactly what kind of room this was but I’d guess it was for some kind of altar or place of worship but I could be completely off. There was nothing underneath the fallen piece of ceiling that you can see in the picture.

A love hotel is a hotel people use only for a couple of hours or short stays so I can’t imagine why that would be there. To be clear, I’m not 100% sure this was a love hotel but word on the street is that it indeed was. Around the building there was also a ton of garbage that has been left scattered about, from mattresses, toys and even cars. 

 

That’s all for now. I promise to update more often in 2018 — happy new year everybody!

Graceland Cemetery

Cemeteries can be beautiful and serene. To many that statement might seem strange for an assortment of reasons. For one, they haven’t opened their eyes to the wonderful craftsmanship that goes into the mausoleums and tombs interwoven with the flower and fauna native to the area it was built upon. Another would be a fear of death, subconscious or not, that makes them feel uneasy in or around one. The solid truth is that we all die and these established spaces are part of human culture. Death will pay us all a visit one day and in a cemetery we can learn about all the wonderful lives that have been lived by those who have been put to rest. These are lands filled with stories in which by taking a stroll through any of them could be a number of things: reflective, educational, inspiring and so on…

In Chicago, we can find the handsome Graceland Cemetery which sits just north of the windy city’s center/downtown area in the appropriately named “Uptown”. It is a Victorian era cemetery established in 1860 by Thomas Bryan. This Victorian influence is depicted in a style typical of what Queen Victoria had imagined as a 19th century graveyard. Ornate and decorative headstones are peppered throughout along with wide, open spaces for picnics, which were commonplace in these types of cemeteries. Picnics in cemeteries aren’t as uncommon as one might think; we can look no further than Mexico’s Dia de Los Muertos festival to see this practiced as part of tradition. If you take a stroll around Graceland and other cemeteries such as Greenwood in Brooklyn, New York it is hard to dispute that these lush, well kept burial grounds aren’t a great place for a picnic.

Taking a stroll through Graceland, you might recognize some names here and there carved into the headstones. Some notable burials that can be found include historical African-Americans like Sarah E. Goode, the first African-American woman to receive a United States patent and heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson. Robert Henry Lawrence Jr. also joins them who was the first African American astronaut.

There are a few tombs in Graceland that have gotten a bit famous in the past several years, each one with its own story or supernatural tale.

This first monument above is known as the “Statue of Death” which is an eight foot tall, bronze figure mounted in 1844. The official name is “Eternal Silence” and serves as the memorial for Dexter Graves, a business man who is known as one of the first settlers of Chicago along with his family. His son, Henry Graves, was also one of the richest men in Chicago. Rumor has it that if you look directly through the folds surrounding the figure’s face you can see the image of your own death. Why this statue was selected by his family is unknown, but it was designed by the famous American sculptor Lorado Taft who is perhaps most known for sculpting Fountain of Time, which can also be seen in Chicago.

Another interesting resting place in Graceland is that of George Pullman’s who was the inventor of the railway sleeping/passenger car. His body is said to be the most securely buried body in all of Chicago due to the fact that his relatives had his coffin covered in tar paper and asphalt. This coffin proceeded to be sunk in a block of concrete the size of a small room and the entire thing was lowered into the ground and topped with railroad ties — and even more concrete. This is a tomb to circumvent being tampered by even the most dedicated grave robber. His type of tombstone is called an exedra, which come from ancient Greece and are usually shaped as benches or seating areas. I don’t have a picture of it but it can easily be found here along with a short history of Mr. Pullman’s life.

Evidence of the Victorian era influence, this next monument is sometimes called a “Treestone”. This variety of funerary art is usually made from limestone in the shape of tree stumps and the style is derived from the Victorian rusticity movement. This grave here is of Alfred Peter Vider, who died in 1870 and has no birth date recorded. However, the grave does state that he was a little over just one year old making his birth year around 1868-1869. The top of the tree being broken could refer to a life being cut short which was certainly the case for this little one. The vine growing around the stump could be a symbol of the relationship between God and man/woman (I am the vine, ye are the branches John 15), reflecting the child’s family’s hope that he is in a better place now. Usually, treestone graves are carved with a number of symbolic pieces that reflect hobbies, occupations and other details of the one lost.

 

 

 

 

The most famous of all is the statue of Inez Clarke who was a six year old girl that died in 1880. Her story is kind of muddled because the truth of Ms. Clarke’s origin is still unclear, but it is said she died due to a lightning strike while she was enjoying a picnic with her family. There is a possibility that this Inez Clarke might actually be the grave for Inez Briggs who died of different circumstances, but as mentioned before the truth is unclear. According to legend, whoever this little girl was haunts Graceland. If you check out the grave here, there are many theories and possible conclusions that have been researched and documented. The most interesting bit for me was the following…

Based on research by cemetery historians Helen Sclair and Al Walavich in an article in the Chicago Sun-Times in 2007, these stories are completely untrue. According to the cemetery’s records there is no one by the name of Inez Clarke buried in the cemetery…..Sclair and Walavich theorized that the statue was carved by the sculptor, Andrew Gagel, as a sample of his work in order to elicit business.

True or not, the grave itself has sparked many stories. There has been many accounts over the past decade by people who have seen a young girl who looked like Inez that would run away and disappear. The memorial alone is haunting enough as it stands out clearly among the surrounding graves; you don’t see a statue of a little girl encased in a glass container very often. Further, some say the statue itself moves on its own and during violent thunderstorms that it even vanishes from inside the box.

I’d like to finish this off with one of my favorites from Graceland, the beautiful headstone pictured above. It honors Christopher D. Manuel, an anesthesiologist who had a very positive reputation as a friendly and highly competent physician. The tomb is engraved with the following lyrics by Donny Hathaway, the famous African-American jazz, blues and gospel singer who tragically took his own life at age 33.

“For all we know this may only be a dream

We come and go

like ripples on a stream

For all we know

tomorrow may never come

For all we know”

Hitodama (人魂）

In Japanese folklore, spirits take on the form of Hitodama (人魂) which are floating orbs of a fire-like material. I think the concept of spirit orbs are somewhat universal such as ghost lights like will’o the wisp and spheres of lights showing up in photographs here and there. For Japanese people, the hitodama have a longer history with details that make them pretty unique.

After talking to a few Japanese folk, I was told that hitodama are usually spotted at night but can be seen in the daytime as well. You also have a higher chance of seeing one in a (surprise) cemetery. Recently, a middle-aged Japanese man told me about his experience spotting one while driving not too long ago. He was passing by a nearby cemetery when he spotted it. Following this story, he told me they are shaped like orbs because it is formed in the image of a person’s brain and essentially it is like the consciousness that gets set free after death. It is also believed that the more “good” a person does in her or his lifetime their orb/sphere will be much smoother. A perfectly round, marble like hitodama is the most desired — and when a person does something “bad” or “evil” cracks begin to form on the surface. As he explained he drew pictures at the same time to help me imagine what he was talking about.

 

Drawings of a paranormal enthusiast

In Japan, the Obon holiday is approaching (In Tokyo, the date is a bit different and has just passed) which is usually in the middle of August. During these few days spirits come back to the world of the living and enjoy the offerings their descendants have left for them. Ghost stories are commonplace in the summer thanks to Obon and also because of the belief that getting “the chills” from a ghost story keeps you cool in the summer. Even in book stores they have special sections set up stacked with horror books and manga for the summer holiday.

I’m finishing this rather short entry off with another first hand account told to me this past month by a Japanese man who turned 90 years old this year. He was eager to share the story, while still somewhat speculative of the topic of the paranormal, he said he remembers this very clearly. The time frame of this story is pre-World War II Japan.

Let me tell you about a story that I heard when I was still 10 years old. I was enjoying a cool evening with my younger brother, two years younger than me, sitting outside our house. It happened around 1935 when we were living in Omori, Tokyo. If I remember it correctly, it was around the time of the Obon festival When I happened to look up at the roof of an old two-storied house located about 50 meters from my house, to my disbelief, I saw two spirit orbs, hitodama, that emitted pale blue and purple lights as they moved. They seemed to intertwine around each other and had tails of fire-like lights behind them. They measured about 50 centimeters in length. My brother must have seen them as well. The two of us jumped into our house. Our mother was surprised at seeing us. When I shared with her what we had just seen, she told us the following story: a mother and her two young daughers used to live in that house. The mother had already died three years before I saw the spirits and one of the daughters had been suffering from tuberculosis and was in critical condition. I heard that five days after I saw the spirits, that daughter had died. Even now, eighty years since then, I still recall vividly those intertwined spirits around the time of the Obon festival.

Interview with the: Chucky Collector

They say in New York City you can find just about everything. This includes all different types of people, ranging from your average Joe to eccentric types — all with their own hobbies. Accompanying these folks are their treasures and knickknacks which are littered across their households. Many are oblivious to the gems they might have tucked away in their attics or basements but then there are collectors who really value what they own (as unusual the objects may be) and proudly showcase what they have.

For this blog post, I decided to interview Charlie, who is a native New Yorker and has been a huge fan of Chucky and the Child’s Play movies as long as he can remember. He recently has started up an Instagram where you can find pictures of his pride and joy — his Child’s Play and Chucky merchandise collection. Please go check it out if you are a fan of horror memorabilia — there’s tons to see!

J: So, let’s get to it — where do you keep most of your collection?

C: For the time being everything is in storage. I do have some stuff with me in my apartment though.

J: Is it like, stuff you can’t part with?

C: Yeah, well right now I took out my pins…everything in my storage is really accessible to me. Literally when you open the door everything is right there. There is a Chucky doll in the front guarding the storage. He’s at face level.

J: Oh, so you take pictures from the storage facility?

C: Yeah, actually, moving and putting things in storage was what inspired me to start documenting everything. I always wanted to document it for myself and it sucks that I couldn’t do it while I had everything out and decorated in my old apartment.  Now if I’m at a store and I see something, I can check my Instagram and be like, do I have this?

J: You don’t think of it when everything is out and set up.

C: No, you really don’t. But now that I started it’s like my collection is with me everywhere I go.  (He pulls out a Chucky doll to show me) This Chucky doll is actually a doll from Spencer’s (a variety store in the US) He cost me like $80 and this one has a hard body, there is also a soft body version which is $30. (shows off a Glenn doll) This Glenn here cost $34.99, but he goes for about $600 on Ebay now.

J: I can’t believe it’s worth that much.

C: They had a whole bunch of them in Spencer’s because no one was buying them. They pull things from the shelves and put them away only to be uncovered years from now. I’ve been noticing a lot of collectors on Instagram acquiring things from warehouses and they also sell them at comic cons for 90-130 bucks a piece. These were in like normal variety goods stores and toy stores for like ten bucks.

J: Yeah! I’ve noticed at cons you see things in the package that are really old collectibles and I often wonder, where did they get this?

C: It’s in pristine condition. I imagine there’s some warehouse, hopefully they didn’t destroy them all, but I’m sure there’s thousands of Glenn dolls out there cuz those stores were littered with them when Seed of Chucky came out.

J: You only have one of those right?

C: Of that one, yeah, and I only have two pieces of Glenn in general. One is a family set of toys and then I have the doll. They don’t really make too many Glenns. There are maybe one or two out there that I don’t have. That movie also didn’t do as well.

J: How big would you say your collection is now?

C: Um, it’s pretty big (laughs)

J: An estimated amount?

C: I don’t know, how many pictures are there on my Instagram…

J: And that’s not everything.

C: No it’s not, and I took a lot of pictures — I’m trying not to post everything at once. I feel bad I’m not putting a crazy amount of effort into the Instagram but I want to take nicer pictures down the line.

J: I think you might eventually if this keeps getting more popular and you enjoy it.

C: My Instagram I think will evolve but for the time being it’ll just be all these photos documenting my collection. Some of the photos are from my old apartment when I had everything out.

J: Wouldn’t people be afraid with all the Chucky dolls everywhere when they came over?

C: Yeah, I don’t know why. (laughs and pulls out another doll) I think Dreamrush makes this one, I paid $60 for it. Dreamrush is one of the Japanese companies.

J: Oh, so that’s a Japanese brand doll.

C: Actually I prefer the Japanese brand dolls, Mezco I believe is a Japanese brand and they bought designs of Chucky and Tiffany and manufacture it.

J: I think Japanese products tend to be more detailed. You have quite a few Japanese products, right?

C: I like the Kanji! (Japanese characters) I like how Japanese looks so I love the movie posters too. I have a bunch of movie posters from around the world that I printed and compiled myself just to have in a binder. I put up a video of that before. Eventually, I wanna do individual pictures, comics…

J: When would you say the collection started?

C: My first one ever was when Bride of Chucky just came out in theaters. That was in 1998, I remember I saw that movie with my mom. It was a toy store right across the street called toys and variety or something. My mom and I — our ritual was to go to a diner and then the movie theater together. I saw this Chucky doll in the toy store which I posted and I bought it. (searches for picture and shows me)

J: So that’s from Child’s Play 2.

C: I’m not sure why they had it but I remember it as the day I saw Bride of Chucky and I had seen the Chucky movies since I was 4 or 5 years old. My mother also called me Chucky.

J: Did the movies leave an impression on you?

C: Definitely, I was scared at first and I’d have to have my mom with me. I’d be looking behind me and behind the couch…but it was more like “fun-scared”.  I never had nightmares or anything like that. Actually, in my life I’ve only ever had one Chucky dream.

J: What was that dream?

C: It was actually recent. He was just a doll, he didn’t move or nothing…but I knew what he was capable of in the dream. He’d kind of suddenly disappear after that, kind of like in the movies he’d just be gone from where he was. I felt like I was trying to keep him from killing…it was kind of weird, I actually had a little bit of fear, but again it was kind of fun.

J: Yeah that’s just it too, some people love fear. We love watching horror movies and getting scared, we shelve it into a fun area of our brain we don’t actually get scared. It’s like an escape – that’s one of the reasons why I watch them.

C: Yeah, same. Definitely.

J: So love for Chucky started when you were young but when did it become a passion?

C: Like I said I’ve always loved him but I had never really thought about a collection and it just kind of happened. Growing up, I felt like there wasn’t a lot of Chucky stuff but I also wasn’t really looking being a child and all. I don’t really have a time stamp.

J: Why did your mom call you Chucky?

C: It was cause I loved the movies and I’d do crazy shit as a kid. I’d go into the kitchen and take out the knives and run around the house. I’d have like four knives in my hands.

J: Did that ever scare your mom or was she always cool with it?

C: I don’t know, I think she was afraid that I would hurt myself.

J: I’d be afraid of being hurt by you.

C: (laughs) Yeah I guess I was just imitating Chucky but I never had those intentions. Even my older brother tells me that story.  Speaking of that time, you know what? To this day nothing beats the experience of watching Chucky on the USA channel around Halloween-time. For some reason they had deleted scenes that the VHS never had and I’d record them each time and I felt like I would get different scenes. They would also have interviews — these are hard to find — and they’d have Chucky commentary with Brad Dourif doing the voice.

J: You have knowledge of all these like, little Easter eggs that any big fan would love.

C: I posted a Chucky book and one fan asked me, they said, “I know it’s a tall task but could you take a picture of every single page?” (laughs) “Oh you could just do a couple at a time.” Do you know what a pain in the ass that would be? But you know what, I did one better and tried looking for the e-book which was insanely hard to find.

J: There’s one out there?

C: There actually is and I tracked it down. I don’t even know how, but I challenge you try to find those files. I sent it to her after but I don’t know if she actually got to look at it yet.

J: And you got the e-book out of this experience now! So, if you really had to think about it — cause we are all attracted to the things we like for certain reasons – to what could you trace back your love for Chucky ?

C: I don’t know, that’s tough cause it’s been with me for so long. My middle name is Jason and you think I’d be more attracted to Friday the 13th – I missed being born on it by a few hours so I was born on Saturday the 14^th. (pauses) I guess the concept of Chucky. He has everything, the movie is a slasher, it has voodoo — I believed in the chants as a child.

J: So the magic aspect; isn’t Chucky immortal?

C: He is immortal. Maybe that has something to do with it.

J: I know I love The Exorcist — the religious angle made it taboo to watch in my family. I gravitated towards it because it had to do with the devil.

C: The Exorcist scared the shit out of me. Chucky did but in a different way and I got over it quick. I used to prefer Chucky movies to cartoons when I was a kid.

J: If you had to look at the fan base and identify what the fans love about Chucky, what do you think that is?

C: I feel like a lot of them are really young, believe it or not. Like 20 and below which is surprising because they didn’t grow up with Chucky…

J: I feel like you have to grow up with Chucky because the recent movies were not really big.

C: I guess it could be the parents.

J: You know, there are girls who especially like the character Charles Lee Ray, the serial killer from Child’s Play who is basically Chucky. I think there is something about serial killers that attracts many, many people. There are people who are really obsessed with serial killers and romanticize them. Charles Manson still gets love letters in jail.

C: Yeah, that’s crazy. Charles Lee Ray was only in the movie himself for just a few minutes. (pauses) You know what I just remembered? Ah man, I might regret talking about it!

J: What is it?

C: When I was a kid, right? I only thought of this more recently but it’s the craziest thing. I had anger issues as a kid, at least I think I did. I remember having this like — feeling in my nails, and I got nervous or anxious…I remember I would just pull my nail to the right and…I thought I’d snap and black out. I’d pick at my nails and if I didn’t do it I thought I’d snap.

J: So you just felt that way but it didn’t actually happen.

C: Thinking back, it sounds pretty psychotic, what if  I could have grown up to be a serial killer? (laughs)

J: Well I wouldn’t think of it that way. That’s not true because we all cross symptoms with serial killers. At the end of the day, they aren’t these inhuman beasts from hell people like to make them out to be. They’re actually just people and many of us have things in common with them.

C: I did kill a lot of worms when I was young.

J: Do you think when you were younger you felt strange about what you did?

C: No…I’m just glad I didn’t act out when I look back on it.

J: Like I said, serial killers and criminals have had a different experience than us on this earth that has made them a certain way. Many people relate to them because they have that outcast of society/rebel thing going on for them.

C: You know, I’m a certified mental health aid. When I was taking the course I felt like there was a lot wrong with me. While you’re taking the course you start thinking about people you interact with everyday. If you read about all the symptoms you start diagnosing yourself. Everyone is crazy it seemed to me, because we all overlap with these things. For my job at that time I was supposed to be able to diagnose people who need special treatment. Everyone has things that set them apart from others and as you’re learning you realize stuff about yourself too.

J: Many people who major in psychology diagnose themselves in the beginning. It’s really typical. Anyway, moving on from that…could you tell me about your favorite Chucky memory?

C: God, there’s so many. What captivates me is how he’s always able to come back. I think it was in Bride of Chucky where he says “Fine, kill me – I’ll be back, I’ll always be back! But dying is such a bitch.”

J: That goes back to the immortality thing.

C: Yeah, and just recently one of my followers posted a video recently [“of another quote I love”] where Chucky says, “I’m Chucky the killer doll – the most notorious slasher in history, and I dig it!”

J: He’s not human; he’s transcended that and maybe that’s part of his appeal.

C: The Chucky movies actually have a lot of inspirational, everyday things you can live by. Even Tiffany when she came along, she had said “I clean, I cook the dinner and the least you could do is wash the dishes.” That’s some real shit. (laughs)

J: They still have their humanity!

C: I think from Bride of Chucky on is when you see the more human side of Chucky. Where he could be more relatable and stuff, but the first three movies are on a pedestal to me. Who knows what could happen with the new movie coming out? I heard the trailer drops soon.

J: Yeah I heard a little bit about it, Jennifer Tilly was talking about it…Curse of Chucky was really good. I loved that one.

C: Me too. I do miss the old animatronics though which I believe they still had but covered it with a lot of CGI. I remember an aerial shot in Child’s Play 2 where you can see Chucky climbing up a long staircase and he really does look like a live/moving puppet or toy.

J: Well, hopefully with the new trailer gives us promise for this new Chucky movie that it’ll be another great one.

C: Let’s hope.

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Thanks for reading guys. Again, remember to check out Charlie’s Instagram which I linked above. (Username is TheChuckyGuy) Definitely give him a follow if you’re interested in seeing what else he digs up!