Sep 14, 2026 · 20 min · 15 segments
The cicadas are fading, the bell crickets are singing, and autumn is beginning to creep into Japan. There’s an old saying: *aki no hi wa tsurube otoshi*—“an autumn day falls like a well…
I've been talking about bugs a lot lately, haven't I? I know you're on the edge of your seats, so yes, more bug banter, but just a little.
Remember how all types of cicada were the sound of summer? Well, as you already know, crickets are the sound of autumn.
But did you know, in old Japan there was something called mushikiki, listening to insects.
So rather than people thinking of bugs being an annoying noise in the background, they actively went out at night and listened to them.
where all the literary types would gather to sit, sip sake, gaze at the moon, and listen to all the different variety of singing insects.
Another thing people did was to catch one or two and keep them in these fancy little cages called mushikago.
Then they set them around the house so their homes would be filled with the ethereal trills and songs.
And do you ever feel that people of old were just so much more in tune with the natural world, a little more enlightened, noticing and appreciating the change of seasons, maybe the way the moon rose on a certain night, or the wind blew colder, a different bird began to sing, and now we all have a screen up to our noses and don't even notice the real-life rainbow right in front of us, or how the clouds look like a dragon blowing smoke, Yeah, I think so too.
I've been talking about bugs a lot lately, haven't I? I know you're on the edge of your seats, so yes, more bug banter, but just a little.
Remember how all types of cicada were the sound of summer? Well, as you already know, crickets are the sound of autumn.
But did you know, in old Japan there was something called mushikiki, listening to insects.
So rather than people thinking of bugs being an annoying noise in the background, they actively went out at night and listened to them.
where all the literary types would gather to sit, sip sake, gaze at the moon, and listen to all the different variety of singing insects.
Another thing people did was to catch one or two and keep them in these fancy little cages called mushikago.
Then they set them around the house so their homes would be filled with the ethereal trills and songs.
And do you ever feel that people of old were just so much more in tune with the natural world, a little more enlightened, noticing and appreciating the change of seasons, maybe the way the moon rose on a certain night, or the wind blew colder, a different bird began to sing, and now we all have a screen up to our noses and don't even notice the real-life rainbow right in front of us, or how the clouds look like a dragon blowing smoke, Yeah, I think so too.
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