Its
image has graced both the pages and cover of several books
about the “Battle of Okinawa.” One famous picture from the
period shows only the solitary stone statue perched on a
knoll that is completely barren of vegetation.
Another picture shows U.S. military personnel hunkered
down beside it to avoid enemy snipers on the next ridge.
With its sardonic grin and its piercing eyes fixed in a
resolute gaze, the Tomori Lion statue is one of the Battle’s
best known survivors. Surprisingly, even though tourism is
one of the pillars of the local economy, it is also one of
the least visited sites on the island.
This part of tiny Okinawa is where the great WWII battle, known to locals as the “Typhoon of
Steel,” drew to its bloody close. It’s also where some of
the most ferocious and desperate fighting took place. The
true number will probably never be known, but ballpark
guesstimates say that as many as a quarter-million souls met
their maker during the three month long battle. To see it as
it is now and compare it to historical photographs shows
just how fierce the fighting was and how much the place has
changed.
Copyright 2010 © Michael Lynch
All Rights Reserved
In memory of those who died here--Photoshop enhancement by
M. Meier
"Goose
Bumps" Marla--don't know what else to say! This has special
meaning to anyone who's ever lived through bombs, bullets,
grenades, mortars and artillery and lived to talk about it.
We lock it away somewhere and only talk about it with others
who've been there, too. And that's only when we get drunk.
That's all I can tell ya. >>>Mike
Pentax
K10D, f/11 1/8 ISO 100, Pentax 18-250 Focal Lenght 65mm,
Manfrotto 725B and Cable Release
Though the lion amazingly survived intact, it did not go unscathed. Pock marks of varying sizes mark its body to indicate that it was hit by gunfire from just about every conceivable direction. On its left side are several large holes that were obviously made by a high caliber machine gun. The size, angle and depth of the holes indicate that it was probably made by an American aircraft during a strafing run.
But the story of the
Tomori Lion predates the great battle.
Legend has it that in the late 17th Century the
people of Tomimori
Village, as it was called back then, were plagued by frequent fires. So great
was the problem that they consulted with a “Holy Man” who
told them that in nearby Mt. Yaese there was an
evil spirit that caused fires. He advised them to make a
Shisa and place it so it faces the mountain. By doing
so, it would allow no evil to approach from that direction.
The legend goes on to say that the fires miraculously
stopped.
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Just what the heck is a Shisa you ask? A Shisa is a lion or “lion dog” which originated in China. They are powerful talismans that are believed to have the power to ward off evil. Today they are a cultural icon closely associated with Okinawa. They can be seen just about everywhere you look to include the entrances to homes, castles, temples, bridges, mausoleums and as is the case with the Tomori Lion, as guardians of the village.
Incidentally, in addition to being the largest, the Tomori Lion is assumed to be the forerunner of all village Shisas on Okinawa. Apparently the advice provided by the Holy Man must have worked, because soon afterward, other villages in the district built their own Shisa, which coincidentally on this part of the island, also face Mt. Yaese. Nothing quite breeds like success, because it wasn’t very long before village Shisa of varying sizes were to be found all over the island.
