Sign of the Wind - Hokkaido - circa 1973

Sign of the Wind - Hokkaido - circa 1973

In Hokkaido fishing villages around 1973, the "first wind of spring," which blows with the arrival of spring, had a special meaning for fishermen. There was an old custom of predicting the direction in which the wind would blow in order to predict good or bad fishing conditions for the year, an act that was rooted in the beliefs and worldview of the people who lived with the sea, rather than simply predicting the weather. In the 1970s, with rapid urbanization, the spread of television, and the exodus of young people, these folk beliefs and oral traditions were gradually being forgotten. The fishing industry, too, was moving away from the traditional "wind-reading" rule of thumb due to the introduction of modern equipment and market-driven changes. The loss of sensitivity to the wind as the will of God in the face of scientific weather forecasting was not simply a decline in faith, but a transformation of the community's sense of time and connection with nature itself. When th
e memory of the wind is forgotten, it may no longer speak to us.