The long-forgotten saga of Saru Mawashi, the monkey showman

Once upon a time on the misty island of Mongo Mongo, there lived a monkey named Saru Mawashi. Saru was a serious little monkey, with a white face and deep black eyes.

Saru Mawashi knew from an early age that life in the jungle was not enough for him. At night, before sleeping, the lyrics of songs he had never learned ran through his mind, and he would wake in the morning taking bows from the stage he had never seen.

- - - hmmm, perhaps the REAL story of Saru Mawashi would be more interesting?? - - -

Sarumawashi are more a character of real life than of mythology. Sarumawashi is formed of the Japanese words saru (monkey) and mawashi (trainer). Sarumawashi are street performers, traveling from one place to another and making a living by entertaining people with their trained monkeys.

Unlike in Western civilizations, monkeys are a symbol of wisdom in Japan. Sarumawashi are neither a legend nor a thing of the past. Even today, they can be found in Japan in crowded places making a living by showing performances of their trained monkey. Sarumawashi performances are even shown on Japanese TV shows.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 30, 2002 at 3:52 PM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.