Horror & Mystery Series Vol. 4: The Mystery of Aokigahara “The Sea of Trees”

As per user’s request, in this installation, we will delve into the mystery of Aokigahara, the “Sea of Trees”, or often known as ‘suicide forest’. How come this place is so gloomy? What is so special about it? Let’s find out in details, right away!

Aokigahara is an area of thick forest situated on the foot of Mt. Fuji, to the northwest of the mountain itself. It is often said that Aokigahara “is in the shadow of Mt. Fuji”. The forest has literally 2 layers; shallow parts which are frequented by people, and deeper parts which are avoided by even animals due to its thickness.

The name Aokigahara, spelled as 青木ヶ原 in Japanese, means a field of green trees. Particularly because the trees here are tightly packed and form thick foliage that barely let the light through. But how can they do that on Aokigahara and nowhere else? Well, let say it is related to the uniqueness of this place.

Volcanic Rocks

The ground of Aokigahara are cluster of rocks made from hardened lava spilled out during the eruption of Mt. Fuji, around the 864, some 1200 years ago. After the lava cooled down and form a wasteland of volcanic rocks, life found a way back to this place over the span of 1200 years, including trees, mosses and shrubs, as well as some animals like insects, rodents, squirrels, bats and birds.

Creeping Beautiful Trees

With barely an inch-deep of soil, plants and trees had to spread their roots sideways, causing the roots to creep along the surface as if they are crawling. The lack of rooting area permits the trees to grow close together, forming a very dense forest. Hence, it earned the nickname “Sea of Trees” (樹海 Jukai).

Three Unique Caves

The formation of volcanic rocks also created unique and beautiful caves. The Lake Sai Bat Cave (西湖蝙蝠穴 Saiko Koumori Ana) is all-year warm cave of about 350 meters long and home to many bats during there hibernation. The Fugaku Wind Cave (富岳風穴 Fugaku Fuuketsu) has average temperature of 3 degree Celsius and about 201 meters long. In the past it was used as a refrigerator. The cave walls are also basaltic rock, so the sounds are absorbed without causing any echo. The Narusawa Ice Cave (鳴沢氷穴 Narusawa Hyouketsu) is a 153 meters long cave that has ice pillars all year round, cold even in the summer.

Unique Natural Phenomena

Due to its unique geography, flora and fauna, some strange natural phenomena can be found at Aokigahara.

Magnetic Field Can Disrupt Machines… and Minds

Although often portrayed as a place in which compass would stop working, that is only half truth. If the compass is placed directly above the volcanic rocks, it would follow the innate magnetic field of the lava rock. However, if you hold the compass at normal height, it would work normally.

There are rare cases that the magnetic field would disrupt cellular signals or causing noises in video camera. Some animals such as small insects also use magnetic lines to navigate, and many of them avoid this place as it would disrupt their navigation system. As for human, there are some reports of “hallucination”; although it is unclear whether the cause is the magnetic field, or yuurei…

So Silent That You Can Hear Whispers

The ground is covered by roots and rocks, barely any soils, so it is hard to walk, and almost impossible to dig through. They are also basaltic rocks, so the sounds such as footsteps are absorbed, making it so peacefully quiet. However, the sounds that travel through the airs can also be heard from far away due to such a silence environment.

Origins of Its Infamous Legends

Before some Youtuber made his infamous trip to expose Aokigahara to the world in early 2018, there are legends and myths about death associated with this place.

Home of Ghosts

Due to the strange phenomena and before the coming of scientific knowledge, Japanese believed that the causes of all the strangeness in Aokigahara are yuurei (幽霊 ghosts) haunting this place.

There was also a cruel practice of Ubasute (姥捨て leaving the elderly people to die) during the time of poverty or insufficient food supply. With all the natural phenomena in this place, it is easy to get lost there and die of starvation, eaten by animals or food poisoning. Some believe that the ghosts in Aokigahara are of those who were left to die.

Images Created by Literatures and Urban Legends

In 1961, Seichou Matsumoto (松本清張) published a novel Nami no Tou (波の塔) about the two lovers who decided to go to Aokigahara in the end of story. There are also many Manga (漫画 Japanese cartoons) portraying the Aokigahara as the mythical forest you would get lost easily (compasses do not work, no animal at all, poisonous plants). You can even find some Japanese games have certain stages like Aokigahara. There are even rumors or reports from survivors that some yuurei or yokai lure people deep into the forest… Sounds like some witchcraft at work here!

Three Kinds of Visitors

There are three kinds of visitors to Aokigahara. First of them are hikers hoping to enjoy the natural scenes of well-preserved forest. Second kind are adventurers/treasure hunters looking to find some thrills or loots left by others．Also there is a voluntary annual sweep to find bodies in the forest. The quietness of Aokigahara also makes it a good place for deep meditation for those who seek a temporary respite from busy life; the third kind. Among these three kinds exist some who got lost in there forever, by some unfortunate turns of event.

Although dead man tells no tales, those who went in there and came back alive carried some scary stories for us to hear. Maybe they provide the clues as to what really happened there… we will investigate these stories, in our next episode!

Horror & Mystery Series Vol. 4: The Mystery of Aokigahara “The Sea of Trees”