What happened
Aokigahara, known as Jukai – the “Sea of Trees” – covers 30 square kilometres of lava from Mount Fuji's great eruption of 864. Tree roots snake over moss-covered rocks, and the thicket is strikingly silent because the porous rock absorbs sound. The forest contains ice and wind caves reached by hiking trails. In Japanese folklore the forest is the home of yūrei – restless spirits of the dead who found no peace. According to tradition, ubasute, the abandonment of elderly people in times of famine, may have been practised here, and their souls are said to have remained in the forest. Since the 1960s, following Seichō Matsumoto's novel “Nami no Tō” (1960), the forest has also been associated with human tragedies, a painful subject in Japan. Signs at the trailheads urge visitors to think of their families and to reach out for help. It is also said that compasses go haywire in the forest and that it is easy to get lost forever.
Witnesses
Japanese folklore, local residents, forest rangers and volunteers who patrol the forest.
Explanations and hypotheses
The tale of compasses going haywire is exaggerated: the needle deviates only when placed directly on the magnetic volcanic rock, and works normally when held at an ordinary height – Japan's military has run navigation training here since the 1950s. Ubasute is more a motif of legend than a documented practice. The forest's story deserves respect: authorities and community groups run patrols and prevention work. Anyone in crisis can reach out to a local helpline – in the US, for example, by calling or texting 988.
Legend A story handed down through generations – it can be neither confirmed nor disproved.
Sources
- Rob Gilhooly, Inside Japan's 'Suicide Forest' (The Japan Times, 2011)
- Patrick Harrington, Hiking in a Forest Born Out of Mount Fuji's Lava (The New York Times, 2017)
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