Aokigahara Forest

While stumbling around on the internet this evening, I happened across a page containing a bunch of pictures of the Aokigahara Forest, at the foot of Mount Fuji, in Japan. For anyone who doesn't know about this forest, it is also known by the names "Jukai" (meaning "Sea of Trees"), "Forest of Death", or more popularly, "Suicide Forest". This forest is known as a major spot for troubled individuals to end their lives; over 100 victims of suicide are found here each year. The main method of suicide in this forest is by hanging, though some are also taken through overdose of sleeping pills, starvation, and dehydration. The link provided above contains some disturbing photos (individuals hanging from trees, human remains, etc.), so I would strongly encourage you not to have a peek if you are impressionable or get disturbed easily.

This forest has always sort of intrigued me in a way. On one hand, it's incredibly sad about the situation within the forest, but on the other, I had always wondered why people chose to go there, to that particular forest. So, putting off my other homework, I decided to have a peek around the internet to see if I could find any answers.

An image of a skull found in Aokigahara Forest, Japan

Straight away, I found a link on youtube to a short, two part documentary of sorts about the forest (I'll post these videos at the end for anyone who wishes to watch them). The 'host' is a Japanese geologist by the name of Azusa Hayano. He does patrols through the forest to check for remains, or to see if there are any individuals camping there. In the video he mentions that if a person brings a tent into the forest, they are usually still struggling with the idea of committing suicide or not. Near the beginning of this video, he mentions that in the old days, suicide was a practice of the samurai's, and that poorer families would often abandoned elders in the mountains, who would be left to die. As Hayano enters the forest, he stops to read a sign that is in place to help prevent further suicides. It says that ones life is a precious gift, and that one should speak to others rather than dealing with problems on their own. The sign also includes a number for a suicide prevention hotline.

The first thing that I noticed when Hayano ventured off the maintained paths of the forest was the amount of tape strung around trees. Apparently, individuals who enter this part of the forest wrap this tape around trees so that they may find their way out if they decide not to go through with it. Hayano mentions that if one follows the tape, one will almost always find something at the end, whether it be remains of an individual, or signs that someone had been there. Throughout the video, Hayano and his camera member come across the remains (a skeleton, still wearing clothing), an upside down doll nailed to a tree (representing the torture of society), suicide notes, a suicide manual, various tents, a living person in a tent (whom they later rescued), and, what touched me most, were two bouquets of flowers and a box of chocolate left for the deceased. It wasn't so much that there were goods left for someone who had taken their life, but what Hayano said about this: "You think you die alone, but that's not true. Nobody is alone in this world." I absolutely agree with this, and it really makes the sad reality of this forest come to light. People think they are alone, but they aren't. There are still people who love them. Hayano asked the same question I did. He wanted to know why people came to die in this "beautiful forest." He still hasn't found the answer.

After watching through the videos, I found a website that had some pictures and short captions about the forest. On this site, I found a couple of reasons why the forest may have become more popular and romanticized. Apparently, a 1960's book, Kuroi Jukai tells a tale of two lovers who both commit suicide together in Aokigahara Forest at the end. Another very controversial book in 1993, The Complete Suicide Manual, recommends Aokigahara as "the perfect place to die." I think this might explain why so many people come here to end their lives. Perhaps they feel it is honorable to die here, and for their souls to remain in the forest.

Because there are are so many deaths here, both in the distant and recent past, there are ghost stories surrounding the area as well. These angry spirits - yurei - are said to remain in the forest, and prevent others from leaving. I found this article that talked a bit about the yurei and also an interesting practice that took place if a body was found in the forest.

"However, even in these haunted woods, regular humans still have a job to do. Forestry workers rotate in and out of shifts at a station building in Aokigahara, and occasionally they will come upon unfortunate bodies in various states of decomposition, usually hanging from trees or partially eaten by animals. The bodies are brought down to the station, where a spare room is kept especially for such occasions. In this room are two beds: one for the corpse and one for someone to sleep next to it. Yup, you read that correctly. It is thought that if the corpse is left alone, the lonely and unsettled yurei will scream the whole night through, and the body will move itself into the regular sleeping quarters."

Kind of a creepy idea. Not entirely sure I could snuggle up to a corpse to keep it company... but that's just me.

Well, that's about the sum of my knowledge about the Suicide Forest. If anyone else has other information or knowledge to share with me, please feel free to post it. Or even just post comments and thoughts about the forest itself. Do you have any questions about what is going on here? Possible explanations? I'd love to hear ideas! For now though, I will leave those interested with the videos I found on YouTube, and I must get myself some sleep.

References:

CNN, 2009. Desperate Japanese head to 'suicide forest'. [online] Available at: http://articles.cnn.com/2009-03-19/world/suicide.forrest.japan_1_suicide-taro-aokigahara-forest/2?_s=PM:WORLD [Accessed 28 February 2012].

Davisson, Z, 2012. The suicide woods of Mt. Fuji. [online] Available at: http://www.seekjapan.jp/article-1/767/The+Suicide+Woods+of+Mt.+Fuji [Accessed 28 February 2012]

Forde, M, n.d. Aokigahara: Japan's forest of death. [online] Available at: http://www.environmentalgraffiti.com/news-aokigahara-forest-death [Accessed 28 February 2012].

Image:

[Aokigahara skull] n.d. [image online] Available at: http://funzu.com/index.php/crazy-pics/aokigahara-forest-of-suicides-29102009.html [Accessed 28 February 2012].

YouTube Videos:

NNekromantik, 2010. Aokigahara - Suicide forest 1/2. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6CK1KdAha78 [Accessed 28 February 2012].

NNekromantik, 2010. Aokigahara - Suicide forest 2/2. [video online] Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=V1eXOXYI3bc [Accessed 28 February 2012].