Brief introduction of Japanese wind chimes

The summer heat steams people, and the traditional three treasures in Japan are "wind chimes", "round fans" and "cold noodles". The sound of wind chimes swaying in the summer breeze brings a little coolness. So in Japan, wind chimes are also called "cool".

Ordinary wind chimes are like inverted teacups. There is a small stick hanging inside, and a thread is hung at the lower end of the stick. A slender piece of paper called "short book" is tied to the line. Simple books are commonly known as the tongue of wind chimes. It is used to increase the windward area, make the knocking point more sensitive, and make it hit the inner wall of the bell, making a crisp jingle. It is said that wind chimes originated from Zhanfengduo in ancient China, and were mainly used for divination. Some people also used it to judge the wind direction. According to records, in the Tang Dynasty, Wang Qi, the son of Tang Ruizong, hung a lot of jade pieces in the bamboo forest of his palace, and listened to the sound of jade pieces colliding to judge the wind direction. These jade articles belong to Zhan Fengduo. Later, such wind chimes were brought back to China by Japanese monks studying in Datang.

At first, wind chimes were hung in the front and back of the house as evil spirits. It is believed that no evil spirits and ghosts can get close to each other within the range of hearing the bell. There is a legend in Japan that there was a long steep slope near Tokyo's Jingqiao at the end of the reign, and ghosts haunted it from time to time, and no one dared to walk after dark. One day, a vendor selling wind chimes came home late. When he passed this barren mountain and slope, he saw a gentle and graceful woman standing on the side of the road, covering her face with long sleeves and crying. So the vendor asked, "Honey, why are you crying?" I asked again and again, but the woman didn't answer. The peddler couldn't help pulling at the woman's sleeve. The woman turned around slowly, but it turned out to be a face as smooth as an eggshell without mouth, nose and eyes. The peddler let out a yell and ran away. The wind chimes behind him are ringing loudly. The woman was going to catch up, but she suddenly disappeared as soon as she heard the bell.