For today's Japan photo, I thought we would look at a flower that is currently starting to bloom everywhere—higanbana, or as I like to call them, Death Flowers!
So why do I call them death flowers? There must be a good story behind this, eh?
First off, the name in Japanese is higanbana and the name in English is Spider lily. I've seen white ones occasionally, but they are almost always red. They bloom in late summer/early autumn and they need a lot of water, so they often grow near rivers or streams.
That's a heck of a name, isn't it? Spider Lilies. I suppose they are called that because the leaves are long and slender and kind of resemble spider legs. Is that creepy? You don't know the half of it.
In addition to growing wildly along rivers, they are generally grown along rice fields. This is partially for decoration, but also to keep away pests. See—the flowers are poisonous to mice, rats, and other pests, and so just having them around is enough to deter the creatures from snacking on the rice.
Either way, that's not the creepy part.
The plant is associated with death in Japan. It is used in Japanese funerals, and it used to be grown in grave yards. This may be a holdover from long ago before cremation became common in Japan and so the poisonous flower bulbs would have prevented pests from feasting on the dead.
One of the meanings of higan is the shores of the Sanzu River. Think of the Sanzu River as the Japanese version of the River Styx, i.e, the afterlife. The bright red blooms guiding souls into the next incarnation. Another name for the flower is Shibito-bana or Flower of the Dead.
It also symbolizes people, often lovers, who are kept apart and can't meet and it is said that when you meet someone for the last time, the flowers will bloom up along the path as they depart.
All in all, a pretty gloomy flower, huh? Bet you won't look at it the same way anymore.
Don't miss the other great photos in the Flowers of Japan series!
Thank you for reading. :)
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I post one photo everyday, as well as some misc posts such as haiku, videos, more Japanese history, and so on. Let me know if there is anything about Japan you would like to know more about or would like to see.
David LaSpina is an American photographer lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time.