Omoi no Hoka

"more than you imagined"・29・she・hokkaido, jp・armchair linguist・moderately interesting japanese posts・words of the day・oku no hosomichi readings・塊魂

[researcherposts-deactivated2023]

Hidarugami: "Hitting The Wall"

Illustration of Hidarugami by Shigeru Mizuki [水木 しげる]

Hidarugami [ヒダル神] (sometimes referred to as Daru [ダル] or Dari [ダリ]) is a type of entity called Yukiai/Ikiai-gami [行逢神] that roams around mountain paths and plateau mostly recorded in Western Japan ①. Encountering this entity is said to cause the victim (both human and animal) to suddenly experience extreme hunger and exhaustion which may at times lead to the subject's termination ②.

In Wakayama Prefecture, Hidarugami is said to the wraiths of people who died from starvation that frequently appear on the archaic paths of Kumano-kodō [熊野古道] (below) leading to the Grand Ise Shrine in Mie Prefecture, but the way to repel them is rather easy where possessed travellers may eat a single grain of rice or trace the Kanji character of rice (米) on the palm of their hand with their finger tip then lick it in order to get away from them ③.

While in Uda Dist. [宇陀郡] (Nara Prefecture), there were few check points on a path marked by venerative statues established in 1863 where Hidarugami are said to possess anyone who walks on it without carrying any food or on an empty stomach ④.

Though in most places such as Kōchi, Nagasaki, and Kagoshima Prefecture, there are deities called Shibaori-sama [柴折様] (like this Shibaori-jizō [柴折り地蔵] below within Mt. Yuzuruha [諭鶴羽山] in Hyōgo Prefecture) who guards entrances of mountain paths that protects travellers from Hidarugami if the travellers leave a branch from a thicket or green grass as votive offerings ⑤.

(sources):

1. "Nihon-wo-shiru-shōjiten" [日本を知る小事典] (1980) by Tatehiko Ōshima [大島 建彦] (1932-present)

2. "Yōkai-jiten" [妖怪事典] (2000) by Kenji Murakami [村上 健司] (1968-present)

3. "Minkan-denshō: Kumanoro-no-genjō" [民間伝承: 熊野路の現状 (一)] (1948) by Hiroji Naoe [直江 廣治] (1917-1994)

4. "Minzoku: Hidarugami-no-koto" [民族: ひだる神のこと] (1925) by Kunio Yanagita [柳田 国男] (1875-1962)

5. "Nihon-no-yōkaihyakka 1..." [日本の妖怪百科 1 山の妖怪 絵と写真でもののけの世界をさぐる] (2000) by Hiromi Iwai [岩井 宏實] (1932-2016)

[omoi-no-hoka]

FASCINATING!

[omoi-no-hoka]

Hey! So my friend and i were having a conversation. And i wonder if you could answer a question of give me your thoughts on it? Would wearing a kimono to cosplay an anime character be cultural appropriation? And is it cultural appropriation to wear one just generally?

Thanks for your ask! Great question!

Full disclaimer: I'm just a white girl living in Japan. I'm not Japanese.

But here are my own personal experiences and what Japanese people have told me about their views on this subject.

1. I have worn kimono and yukata for fun. My host mom is one of the rare Japanese people that knows how to put on a kimono still, and she dresses me up in hers sometimes. We'll go for walks around town in them and it's great fun.

2. While out and about in kimono, many Japanese people stop us to talk to me. They are overwhelmingly positive about a foreigner wearing a kimono. The average Japanese person, in my experience, is elated that foreigners are taking interest in Japanese culture. I have never received a disparaging comment.

3. In Kyoto and other big tourist cities, there are a lot of kimono rental services. To the best of my knowledge, Japanese people do not look down on this. Again, they're really happy that strangers are taking interest in Japanese culture.

So what might upset a Japanese person about a foreigner wearing kimono?

Well, if you're cosplaying an anime character and that anime character wears a kimono, I personally don't think that falls under cultural appropriation. Again, I'm just a white girl, though. So if a Japanese person presents a different opinion, I will defer to it.

What I might consider cultural appropriation during cosplay is if, for example, you cosplay a character who wears a traditional kimono like Nezuko here:

But instead, you change up her kimono to look something like, idk, this:

DONT. DONT DO IT. JUST DONT. EVERYTHING possible is wrong about this. (Btw, this is what I got when I googled "kimono costume.") What is up with those sleeves? Why does the top look like a Chinese garment? THOSE SHOES ARENT JAPANESE EITHER. Your hips shouldn't be accentuated; your torso should be as straight as possible--that's why the obi and underlayers are thick.

AND DONT GET ME STARTED ON THE HAIR OR MAKEUP OR THAT SHITTY FAN.

This is a misrepresentation of the kimono, one of the symbols of Japanese culture that Japanese people hold highest. If you're going to wear a kimono, be respectful of the garment. Learn about the proper way to wear them. Do not rely solely on what anime characters wear. Research and wear it as it is intended.

Again, I am not Japanese so I am certainly not the most accredited source, but this is my opinion as someone who has lived in Japan for several years and greatly respects the culture.

EDIT: I made the mistake of looking at Google images for “kimono costume” and im so mad. Let me give you some quick “NEVER DO THIS EVER”s

NEVER EVER EVER EVER HAVE THE RIGHT SIDE FOLDED OVER THE LEFT. NEVER.

The right side is folded over the top in FUNERALS. Only the dead wear kimono with the right side over the top. 

Is this why this woman’s face is glistening and white? Is she trying to imitate a corpse? If so, good job, this is accurate

This is called a “Classic Japan Kimono Costume” which 

ahahahahahahaha

This is so insulting I don’t even know where to begin. We’ve got the right over the left. This woman is dead. 

The shoulders should never be revealed.

THE SKIRT

JESUS CHRIST THE SKIRT

If you wear this, I will show up at your door with a goddamn bamboo sword and beat you

This one is called “Sexy Japan Costume.”

I’m fairly certain this was made by one of those people that think China and Japan are the same place. I... I don’t even know where to begin. 

JUST DONT

good, except for the fact that SHE IS DEAD

NEVER PUT THE RIGHT ON TOP

NO

I mean, damn, that’s a nice leg. But NO. The kimono is not meant to be a revealing outfit. This is insulting. and wtf is that tin foil obi.

Okay, sorry. I’m done triggering myself.

[omoi-no-hoka]

omoi-no-hoka san, at your level, do you still feel frustrated with Japanese? I'm not diligent in my study so even after many years, I'm still lost in the intermediate plateau. I guess I just want to know if it ever gets easier?

NO, OF COURSE I DONT GET FRUSTRATED

Ahaha but in all seriousness, it really does get easier. I spend a good 90% of my day speaking, reading, and writing in Japanese now. Sometimes I find myself a little frustrated because I still don't have as free a range of expression in Japanese as I do in English, but bit by bit my vocabulary is expanding. And it never fails that I come across a completely new word every day. I always mark it down in my dictionary app.

For me, what helped me get over the intermediate plateau was making myself really aware of accomplishments. Throw away your humility. Pat yourself on the back over the smallest of things, like "Oh, I've been listening to this Japanese song for years but today I caught a word in it that I haven't been able to distinguish until now" or "Oh, look at that. I read that kanji without hesitating."

Really, be proud of all the little things, because that's what language acquisition is. Word by word we become fluent.

Don't give up! I know you can do this. 💕

[omoi-no-hoka]

My native language is English and I have a speak problem where I can't correctly pronounce certain letters / sounds / words. I worry that when I speak Japanese this speech problem will carry over. Do you know if people in Japan care if I have a speech problem or if they don't like foreigners who can't speak Japanese correctly. Growing up with a speech problem has led to me being made fun of so I wanted to know if this will apply in Japan too.

Thank you for your ask! I’m sorry that you’ve had a hard time. My little brother has a speech impediment and severe dyslexia that’s given him trouble all of his life. He has certain letters, sounds, and words that he can’t say or will just skip over when speaking without realizing. He was bullied a lot for it, but now he’s an adult and a regional manager! He’s well respected by his peers and does well. I’m sure that you can do the same if you haven’t already! 💗

Anyways, I want you to please take heart in the fact that Japanese people are incredibly kind to foreigners that are attempting to learn the language! There are many Japanese people with speech impediments, stammers, and the like, and I’ve never encountered anyone being discriminated against because of it. 

Japanese people do not expect foreigners to have perfect pronunciation. They have a stereotype that we all speak with a harsh American accent (or whatever our native language may be). So if your pronunciation isn’t flawless, they will probably just think it’s your accent, and not that you have a speech problem. 

So please don’t be discouraged. Japanese people will be kind and accepting!

Also, you’re probably wondering why I chose this gif that seems rather unrelated. This is from the anime Durarara (which I only just discovered a couple months ago haha) and has a really delightful cast. It takes place in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, and most of the characters are Japanese, but there’s a ton of foreigners that are prominent characters too, and I really love how they’re depicted. The girl up above doesn’t have a head, so she texts like this to speak. There are lots of other foreigners in this show that speak with an accent or have perfect Japanese, and all of them are treated well by the Japanese characters. Anyways, it’s a great show and I recommend you watch the first season if you’re okay with some darker topics. 

[omoi-no-hoka]

Help a Great Cause!

Hi, guys. Today is March 11th, the tenth anniversary of the Tohoku Disaster that impacted Jana’s northeastern Tohoku region.

Today only, Yahoo! Japan is donating 10 yen towards six charity organizations involved in Tohoku reconstruction and the wellbeing of its people. 

Only one search counts for person, and it only takes a second!

https://fukko.yahoo.co.jp/?fr=top_evt311_pc&cpt_n=3.11&cpt_m=search&cpt_s=pcweb

☝　Here’s the URL to take you to the search. 

Just type “3.11″ in the search bar and hit the blue search button. 

You’ll be taken to this search results page and at the top it will say “Thanks for searching. Yahoo! Japan has donated 10 yen towards building a new future for Tohoku and its support efforts.

This search is only good for another 13 hours from the time of me making this post, so please reblog and share with as many people as possible!

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted

Omg I just noticed that the example sentence has こんこん in hiragana beside the kanji. When you copy and paste a sentence that has furigana above the kanji, it will put it as hiragana beside the kanji, and I forgot to go and delete that. /sigh. The correct example sentence is:

ゆき子が昏々と眠った。

Okedoke. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get on to this word and its kanji.

昏

On-yomi: kon

Kun-yomi: kura.i, kure

Meaning: dark, evening, dusk

This kanji is made of two different parts: 氏 and 日. 氏 represents a person and 日 is the sun. The person is standing above the sun, and therefore this kanji is a pictograph of “the sun falling to a person’s footsteps,” which is a rather pretty way to describe the sun setting. And of course, after the sun sets, it becomes dark, which explains why this kanji means “dark.”

Now, why does the word “konkon” mean fast asleep? Well, most people tend to sleep at night haha. Of note, this kanji appears in the word for “coma,” which is 昏睡 konsui. So this kanji has nuances of a very deep sleep. 

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted, but the kanji are N1 and N3 respectively.

Alright, this is a pretty interesting word that’s seen some changes in meaning and usage over the centuries. 

滅

On-yomi: metsu

Kun-yomi: horo.biru, horo.bu, horo,bosu

Meaning: destroy, ruin, overthrow, perish

法

On-yomi: hou, ha, ho, furan

Kun-yomi: nori

Meaning: method, law, rule, principle, model, system

If we put the two together, we get “The Law of Destruction,” which could be a pretty rad metal song. 

Originally, this was a Buddhist term used to refer to...something too hard for me to wrap my pea brain around haha. Really trying to remember everything I learned in that one Buddhist Philosophy course I took in uni back in the day. 

Okay okay. Basically, all things in existence are divided into two categories: 

Conditioned existence (a.k.a. things created by fate). This is known as saṃskṛta in Sanskrit.

Those that have transcended conditioned existence. This is known as asaṃskṛta in Sanskrit.

Meppou is the old Japanese Buddhist term for “things that have transcended conditioned existence.” This can mean that a thing has reached Nirvana, something that is “absolute.” 

From that meaning, meppou came to mean something “extraordinary” or “terrible and intense” like a historic typhoon. 

Most of the time, meppou is used in the phrase 滅法強い meppou tsuyoi, “terribly powerful.” 

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: N1, and the kanji are N1 and unlisted respectively.

Most of the time, this word is written in hiragana. But the kanji are funny, so I’m gonna talk about those too. 

矢

On-yomi: ya

Kun-yomi: shi

Meaning: dart, arrow

鱈

On-yomi: setsu

Kun-yomi: tara

Meaning: codfish

So...put these two together and you get... “shooting codfish with arrows” and somehow that is supposed to mean “indiscriminately; blindly; at random; recklessly; thoughtlessly; excessively; profusely.” 

I bet you’re ready for me to blow your mind with some anecdote from like 700 years ago about some old Japanese hermit who only had an arrow and spent everyday in the same stream trying to catch cod unsuccessfully, because he was an idiot and didn’t know that cod were an ocean fish and not a freshwater fish.

...But actually, these are just ateji. Ateji are kanji whose meaning have nothing to do with the word they are used in. Their pronunciation just conveniently matches the word. So “arrow” and “codfish” have absolutely nothing to do with yatara and its meaning. 

Kanji, man. Can’t trust ‘em. :P

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted

This is one of the coolest words I have found to date. Look at those meanings!! To boast, to roar, to recite a poem to oneself. It’s so rich and nuanced! And then look at how dang cool the kanji looks!! Also, let’s not forget that the pronunciation, “usobuku” sounds like 嘘吹く (uso fuku, to tell lies like the wind blows), which is not a real expression but is immediately what my mind goes to. 

Okay, let’s take a look at this kanji!

嘯

On-yomi: shou, shitsu

Kun-yomi: usobu.ku

Meaning: roar, howl, recite emotionally, feign indifference

It appears that long ago, this kanji used to be used for whistling. But not just any whistling--this is for the whistling people did to imitate bird calls. 

Nowadays, this word is very seldom used, and it is never used in reference to bird calls. But it’s really cool!

[writing-prompts-for-friends]

Hi, guys! I’m back from my hiatus, if you haven’t noticed haha. Got prompts queued all the way through October, so look forward to those. 💗

Recently I’ve gotten more serious about my own writing, and I found a Discord that is full of writers. We’re getting close 1000 members, all of us working on all kinds of genres and topics. We have contests, accountability groups, writing prompts, sprints, crawls, NaNoWriMo groups, a Milwordy group, critique corners, book clubs, and really just about anything you can imagine going on.

If you’d like to join in on the fun and hang out with other writers in a welcoming, conducive space, invites are open to everyone!

Discord Invite Link: https://discord.gg/4nVf5Nd

Hope to see you there~ 💕

[omoi-no-hoka]

Hey, everyone! Some of you may remember that I run a sideblog full of writing prompts and advice. I joined a Discord for writers and I’m really enjoying it there, so I thought I’d share it with everyone on my Japanese langblr as well! 

If you’re a writer and you’re looking for a place to chill with other writers and get support, look no further!

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted, but the kanji are N1 and N4 respectively.

Okay, this one is so low frequency you’ll probably never see it. But I like how it sounds so I’m gonna talk about it haha. 

紛

On-yomi: fun

Kun-yomi: magi.reru, -magi.re, magi.rasu, magi.rawasu, magi.rawashii

Meaning: distract, be mistaken for, go astray, divert

物

On-yomi: butsu, motsu

Kun-yomi: mono

Meaning: thing, object, matter

So if we put these two together we get “something that one mistakes for something else.” Pretty easy to understand, I think. I wanted to talk about the etymology of the kanji 紛 but I couldn’t find anything. T-T

[omoi-no-hoka]

Omoinohokaさん, in your latest post, you mentioned using etymology sites. I was wondering if you would have the time to share them, or maybe your favorite one? In any case, thank you for always creating such interesting posts!! I hope you're having a nice, peaceful evening. Take good care of yourself! :)

namidagawaさん、thanks for your lovely ask! 💗

I use a ton of different resources to make the Word of the Day posts. Here’s the ones that I use the most.

First, I go to good old Google and type in the word and 語源 gogen (etymology). I also do the same thing with the word and 由来 yurai (source). Then I comb through all the different results and find the most credible ones.

1. 語源由来辞典 gogen-allguide.com

This site doesn’t have all words, but it is my first go-to. Here’s where I learned about 村八分 murahachibu (ostracism). It gives you the definition and then the etymology and is very highly reputed.

2. 漢字・漢和・語源辞典 okjiten.jp

This site explains how each kanji means, how it came to be, and the etymology behind its very first iteration. Here’s what it had to say about 蔓, one of the recent words of the day.

3. Yahoo Questions

I know that the English Yahoo Questions are kinda famous for being meme and joke fodder, but the Japanese take Yahoo Questions very seriously. While I don’t like relying on it for answers, sometimes I find that Japanese people have asked the same questions about words I’m looking up. If the best answer includes sources, I will use it as an explanation.

4.  成り立ちで知る漢字のおもしろ世界: 人体編 The World Becomes More Interesting by Knowing Kanji Etymology: Human Radical Collection

This is a book I found very recently online. It has a lot of explanations about kanji and their etymology. This is where I found 脆い’s etymology the other day.

5. Wikipedia

It’s not very common for there to be an entire page about a word, but sometimes there are! When I was looking up the etymology of 嘆く nageku (to wail, lament) I read up about 旱魃 Kanbatsu (drought or the God of Drought) on Wiki.

6. 苗字由来net https://myoji-yurai.net/

Sometimes I do collections of unusual Japanese surnames, and this is where I get all of that information from. It’s a super cool site! I use this to look up people’s names when I can’t read them or I want to know more about them as well.

It gives you their name, how common it is in Japan, about how many people have it, how it’s read, and, sometimes, the etymology of the surname.

7. jisho.org

Where would any learner of Japanese be without jisho? God praise the people that made that site. This is where I get each word and kanji’s on-yomi, kun-yomi, and meaning in English. I also use their example sentences if they have them.

8. 用例.jp http://yourei.jp/ and ふりがな文庫 https://furigana.info/

Sometimes the words I have are so low-frequency that jisho doesn’t have an example sentence, so I turn to other examples on Japanese sites like yourei.jp or furiganabunko, which both have examples of words pulled from various published works like books and newspapers. Some of the examples they use are very old, like from before WWII, and are hard to understand, so I have to hunt for ones that I think will be easier to understand for everyone.

And that’s about it!

Other than that, sometimes I happen to come across entire articles about “Did you know the true meaning of x kanji?!” that are super helpful haha. 

Now you guys know all of my secrets and can look up the etymologies all on your own! XD

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted, but the kanji are N4 and N5 respectively.

This is a pretty low-frequency word. It sounds pretty old-timey, and it makes sense because I found it in a manga that takes place in the Edo Period haha. 

Let’s take a look at the kanji:

夜

On-yomi: ya

Kun-yomi: yo, yoru

Meaning: night, evening

半

On-yomi: han

Kun-yomi: naka.ba

Meaning: half, middle, odd number, semi-, part-

Put them together and you get “the middle of the night.” Pretty easy, right?

[nippon-com]

This story of a round UFO-like vessel, referred  to as an utsurobune (”hallow ship”), drifting ashore on the Japanese coast in what is now Ibaraki Prefecture is found in many records of the Edo period. The craft was marked by mysterious writing and a beautiful woman emerged, wearing strange clothing and carrying a box. Gifu University professor Tanaka Kazuo has studied the topic in detail and even written a book (under a pen name) about it titled in English The Mystery of Utsuro-bune.

“Utsurobune”: A UFO Legend from Nineteenth-Century Japan

[omoi-no-hoka]

Oh man, my favorite anime Mononoke had an episode about the utsurobune!!

For real, go check it out.

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted

蔓

On-yomi: man, ban

Kun-yomi: habiko.ru, tsuru

Meaning: vine, tendril, influence, connections, good offices, spread, sprawl, thrive, rampant, powerful

You’re very unlikely to see this kanji in a book, as they’d probably write it in katakana. However, this is sometimes used in last names. 

You may recognize the ⺾ radical at the top. This is the “grass” radical and represents “plants.” The other three radicals, 曼, when put together like this, mean “long.” 

Here we see the very original kanji for tsuru. At the top we have grass planted in a row. Beneath those we have a hat, followed by a hand, an eye, and another hand at the bottom. I’m not sure why there’s a “hat” here, but there is a hand above and below the eye to signify someone holding out their hands to gesture how tall or “long” something is.

So, something “long” 曼 plus “grass”  ⺾ = vines. pretty easy! 

Also, as a sidenote,  most kanji with 曼 have an on-yomi of “man.”

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted, but the kanji is N1

This has an etymology different from what I had expected. Let’s look at the parts!

⼖ to conceal, hide

若 soft mulberry leaves

Now, anyone who has been studying their kanji is probably looking at that definition of 若 and going, “Omoi-no-hoka, you’ve lost the plot” because 若 means young. 

And see, I knew that it meant “young” too, so I thought maybe this was a reference to something like “protect the women and children.”

But nope! This, my friends, is all in reference to silkworms.

Silk was an incredibly important textile in Japan. The silkworms live in mulberry trees, eating the young, soft leaves. 匿 represents the mulberry leaves that fill up the silkworms’ bellies and stay hidden there. 

Kinda weird, but there ya go!

[omoi-no-hoka]

JLPT Level: Unlisted, but the kanji are N4 and N3 respectively.

While not a super common word, you do have a chance of hearing it in conversation once in a blue moon. It’s also incredibly easy to understand once you know the parts.

言い ii, to say

伝え tsutae, to communicate, transmit

So 言い伝え is something that is spoken and transferred from one generation to the next.