There is a fourth wise monkey. The origin of the symbol of the three monkeys Monkey with closed eyes

The famous Shinto shrine Nikko Tosho-gu in the Japanese city of Nikko houses a work of art known throughout the world. A carved panel depicting three wise monkeys has been located above the door of this temple since the 17th century. Made by sculptor Hidari Jingoro, the carving is an illustration of the well-known phrase "See nothing, hear nothing, say nothing."

Three wise monkeys. / Photo: noomarketing.net

It is believed that this proverb came to Japan from China in the 8th century as part of the Tendai Buddhist philosophy. It represents three dogmas that symbolize worldly wisdom. The monkey carved panel is just one small part of a large series of panels at the Tosho-gu shrine.

Three monkeys at the Tosho-gu shrine in Nikko, Japan.

There are 8 panels in total, which are the "Code of Conduct" developed by the famous Chinese philosopher Confucius. In the collection of sayings of the philosopher "Lun Yu" ("Analects of Confucius") there is a similar phrase. Only in the edition, dating from about the 2nd - 4th centuries of our era, it sounded a little differently: “Do not look at what is contrary to decency; do not listen to what is contrary to decency; do not say what is contrary to decency; do not do what is contrary to decency." It is possible that this is the original phrase, which was shortened after it appeared in Japan.

World War II poster addressed to the participants in the Manhattan Project.

The monkeys on the carved panel are Japanese macaques, which are very common in the Land of the Rising Sun. Monkeys sit in a row on the panel, the first of them covers its ears with its paws, the second closes its mouth, and the third is carved with closed eyes.

Monkeys are commonly known as "see not, hear, not speak", but in fact, they have their own names. The monkey that covers its ears is Kikazaru, the one that covers its mouth is Iwazaru, and Mizaru closes its eyes.

Three wise monkeys on the beach in Barcelona.

The names are probably puns as they all end in "zaru", which means monkey in Japanese. The second meaning of this word is "leave", that is, each word can be interpreted as a phrase aimed at evil.

Together, this composition in Japanese is called "Sambiki-Saru", that is, "Three mystical monkeys." Sometimes, a fourth monkey named Shizaru is added to the well-known trio, which represents the principle of "doing no evil." It is worth noting that according to the generally accepted opinion, Shizara was added much later in the souvenir industry, only for commercial purposes.

Casting from brass.

Monkeys represent an approach to life in the Shinto and Koshin religions. Historians believe that the symbol of the three monkeys is about 500 years old, however, some argue that such a symbolism was spread in Asia by Buddhist monks, originating in the ancient Hindu tradition. Pictures of monkeys can be seen on ancient koshin scrolls, while the Tosho-gu shrine, where the famous panel is located, was erected as a sacred building for Shinto believers.

The oldest monument is Koshin.

Contrary to popular belief that the three monkeys originated in China, "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" sculptures and paintings are unlikely to be found in any other country than Japan. The oldest koshin monument that featured monkeys was built in 1559, but it only has one monkey, not three.

Surely you understand what kind of monkeys we will talk about: one closes its ears, the other closes its eyes, the third closes its mouth. They are painted on T-shirts, key rings and figurines are made with them. This symbol has become so popular that its meaning has been distorted more than once. For example, some interpret it as indifference to everything. But this is fundamentally wrong and has nothing to do with the real meaning!

Monkeys are known in the West as "See Nothing, Hear Nothing, Say Nothing". But to be precise, the figurines contain the idea of rejecting everything that is bad. The main point is to avoid evil deeds and practice wise caution.

Each monkey has its own name: Kikazaru, Iwazaru, Mizaru. Sometimes, along with them, they also depict a fourth named Shizaru, who covers her stomach with her paw. Its main idea is "not to do evil". But it is not so widespread, since in Asian numerology the number 4 is considered unfavorable. The endings of the names of animals are similar in sound to the word "saru", which means "monkey". Another meaning is "leave". Many see here a play on words.

In the composition, which is called in Japanese "Sambiki-Saru", the rejection of evil is embodied in monkeys for a reason. These animals in Shinto, the traditional religion of Japan, are sacred. They are considered a talisman that protects against slander.

The phrase became famous thanks to a carved panel depicting three monkeys. The sculptor Hidari Jingoro depicted them in the 17th century at the Shinto shrine Tosho-gu. It is located in the ancient city of Nikko - the religious and pilgrimage center of the country.

A similar idea of the phrase was seen in the book of sayings of Confucius. Here's what he said:

“Don't look at what's wrong; Do not listen to what is wrong; Don't say what's wrong; Don't do what's wrong." Some believe that the Japanese adopted it and reduced it.

In addition, three monkeys accompanied the deity Vajrayaksha. He protected people from evil spirits and diseases.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It is believed that the belief goes back to the blue-faced god Vajrayakshaprotecting people from spirits, diseases and demons. In Koshin belief, he is called Shomen-Kongo and is often depicted accompanied by three monkeys.

There is a similar phrase in the book of sayings of Confucius "Lun Yu": "Do not look at what is wrong; Do not listen to what is wrong; Don't say what's wrong; Don't do what is wrong" Perhaps this phrase was further simplified in Japan.

According to the Buddhist school of Tendai, three monkeys were brought to Japan from China by the monk Saicho at the beginning of the 8th century.

Parallels with the symbolism of the three monkeys can be found in Taoism (“ Zhuang Tzu" and " Le Tzu"), Hinduism (" Bhagavad Gita"), Jainism (" Naladiyar"), Judaism and Christianity (" Ecclesiastes"," Psalter "and" Book of Isaiah "), Islam (sura of the Koran" Al-Baqarah "), etc.

Impact on culture

The plot of the "Three Wise Monkeys" is reflected in painting, in particular in the ukiyo-e genre.
Mahatma Gandhi carried with him figurines of three monkeys.
The film of the Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan, released in 2008, is called "Three Monkeys".
The series "Mountain of Three Monkeys" from the animated series "The Adventures of Jackie Chan" is dedicated to three monkeys
The three monkeys have been featured on commemorative coins from Somalia, the Cook Islands and Tanzania.
The three monkeys have featured on postage stamps from Iraq, Tajikistan and New Caledonia.
American thrash metal band Megadeth has a mascot named Vic Rattlehead, whose appearance is based on the idea of doing no evil.
In the 1968 film Planet of the Apes, during Taylor's trial, three monkey judges sit around a table, posing as three monkeys.
In the third episode see no evil("See No Evil") of the first season of the television series Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior is a metaphorical play on this cultural phenomenon.
Episode Sense and Sense Ability series "Charmed" the plot revolves around the totem of three monkeys.
Mentioned in Andrey Grebenshchikov's novel "Below Hell". The novel is part of the Metro Universe 2033 book series.
In the film The Woman in Black (2012) they are depicted as an interior element in the Il-Marsh estate
In the film "Dracula" (2014), they are depicted as an element of the interior of Dracula's castle.
In the novel by I. A. Efremov "The Hour of the Bull", Choyo Chagas, the ruler of the planet Yang-Yah, holds a sculpture of three monkeys on his table.
In The Men Under the Stairs (1991), the character Alice repeats the phrase "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" as a prayer.
In the computer game Gta 5, there is a mission in which the three main characters (Trevor, Michael and Franklin) make the following gesture: Trevor closes his eyes, Michael covers his ears, and Franklin closes his mouth. Thus, they depict those same three monkeys.
The symbols for the three monkeys are included in the Unicode standard: 🙈, 🙉, 🙊 (code points U+1F648, U+1F649, U+1F64A respectively).
In the computer game Far Cry 4, there are missions in which Hurk asks the main character to look for golden monkey figurines that depict those same three monkeys.
The image of three monkeys is present on the central part of the triptych "At the Source" by the artist Alla Tsybikova.
Episode The One with the Fake Monica the first season of the television series "Friends"

Gallery

"No Evil" Monkey LACMA AC1998.249.87.jpg

Composition with one monkey "I don't see, I don't hear, I won't tell", proposed by the netsukeshi Kaigyokusai. Netsuke, amber, Japan, middle - second half of the 19th century. Los Angeles Museum of Art

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Notes

An excerpt characterizing the Three Monkeys

- Yes, what is it? both Rostovs, the elder and the younger, asked.
Anna Mikhailovna sighed deeply: “Dolokhov, Marya Ivanovna’s son,” she said in a mysterious whisper, “they say he completely compromised her. He took him out, invited him to his house in St. Petersburg, and now ... She came here, and this rip off her head, ”said Anna Mikhailovna, wanting to express her sympathy for Pierre, but in involuntary intonations and with a half-smile showing sympathy rip off her head, as she named Dolokhova. - They say that Pierre himself is completely killed by his grief.
- Well, all the same, tell him to come to the club - everything will dissipate. The feast will be a mountain.
The next day, March 3, at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, 250 members of the English Club and 50 guests were waiting for dinner for the dear guest and hero of the Austrian campaign, Prince Bagration. At first, upon receiving the news of the battle of Austerlitz, Moscow was perplexed. At that time, the Russians were so accustomed to victories that, having received the news of the defeat, some simply did not believe, others were looking for explanations for such a strange event in some unusual reasons. In the English Club, where everything that was noble, having the right information and weight, gathered, in the month of December, when the news began to arrive, nothing was said about the war and about the last battle, as if everyone had agreed to keep silent about it. People who gave direction to conversations, such as: Count Rostopchin, Prince Yuri Vladimirovich Dolgoruky, Valuev, gr. Markov, Prince. Vyazemsky, did not show up at the club, but gathered at home, in their intimate circles, and the Muscovites, who spoke from other people's voices (to which Ilya Andreevich Rostov belonged), remained for a short time without a definite judgment on the cause of the war and without leaders. Muscovites felt that something was not good and that it was difficult to discuss these bad news, and therefore it was better to remain silent. But after a while, as the jurors were leaving the deliberation room, the aces appeared, giving opinions in the club, and everything spoke clearly and definitely. Reasons were found for that incredible, unheard of and impossible event that the Russians were beaten, and everything became clear, and the same thing was said in all corners of Moscow. These reasons were: the betrayal of the Austrians, the bad food of the troops, the betrayal of the Pole Pshebyshevsky and the Frenchman Lanzheron, the incapacity of Kutuzov, and (they spoke slowly) the youth and inexperience of the sovereign, who entrusted himself to bad and insignificant people. But the troops, Russian troops, everyone said, were extraordinary and performed miracles of courage. Soldiers, officers, generals were heroes. But the hero of the heroes was Prince Bagration, who became famous for his Shengraben affair and retreat from Austerlitz, where he alone led his column undisturbed and fought off twice as strong an enemy all day. The fact that Bagration was chosen as a hero in Moscow was also facilitated by the fact that he had no connections in Moscow and was a stranger. In his face, due honor was given to the fighting, simple, without connections and intrigues, Russian soldier, still associated with the memories of the Italian campaign with the name of Suvorov. In addition, in giving him such honors, the dislike and disapproval of Kutuzov was best shown.
- If there was no Bagration, il faudrait l "inventer, [it would be necessary to invent it.] - said the joker Shinshin, parodying the words of Voltaire. Nobody spoke about Kutuzov, and some scolded him in a whisper, calling him a court turntable and an old satyr. Throughout Moscow repeated the words of Prince Dolgorukov: “molding, sculpting and sticking around”, who consoled himself in our defeat with the memory of previous victories, and Rostopchin’s words were repeated that the French soldiers should be excited to fight with high-flown phrases, that the Germans should be logically argued, convincing them that it's more dangerous to run than to go forward, but that Russian soldiers only need to be restrained and asked: be quiet! From all sides more and more stories were heard about individual examples of courage shown by our soldiers and officers at Austerlitz. He saved the banner, he killed 5 Frenchmen , that one loaded 5 guns. They also talked about Berg, who did not know him, that he, wounded in his right hand, took a sword in his left and went forward. Nothing was said about Bolkonsky, and only How close those who knew him regretted that he died early, leaving a pregnant wife and an eccentric father.

On March 3, in all the rooms of the English Club there was a groan of talking voices and, like bees on a spring flight, scurried back and forth, sat, stood, converged and dispersed, in uniforms, tailcoats and some others in powder and caftans, members and guests of the club . Powder-coated, stockinged and clogged footmen in livery stood at every door and tried hard to catch every movement of the guests and members of the club in order to offer their services. Most of those present were old, respectable people with broad, self-confident faces, thick fingers, firm movements and voices. This kind of guests and members sat in well-known, familiar places and met in well-known, familiar circles. A small part of those present consisted of random guests - mostly young people, among whom were Denisov, Rostov and Dolokhov, who was again a Semenov officer. On the faces of young people, especially military ones, there was an expression of that feeling of contemptuous respect for the elderly, which seems to say to the old generation: we are ready to respect and honor you, but remember that the future is still behind us.
Nesvitsky was right there, like an old member of the club. Pierre, on the orders of his wife, let go of his hair, took off his glasses and dressed in fashion, but with a sad and dejected look, walked through the halls. He, as elsewhere, was surrounded by an atmosphere of people who bowed before his wealth, and he treated them with the habit of kingship and absent-minded contempt.
By age he should have been with the young, by wealth and connections he was a member of the circles of old, respected guests, and therefore he moved from one circle to another.

Monkeys are commonly known as "see not, hear, not speak", but in fact, they have their own names. The monkey that closes its ears is called Kikazaru, which closes its mouth is Iwazaru, and Mizaru closes his eyes.

The names are probably puns as they all end in "zaru", which means monkey in Japanese. The second meaning of this word is "to leave", that is, each word can be interpreted as a phrase aimed at evil.

Hello, dear readers - seekers of knowledge and truth!

Perhaps among the oriental souvenirs you have come across figurines of monkeys covering their mouths, eyes or ears. These are three monkeys - I don’t see, I don’t hear, I won’t say. They have a curious and entertaining history dating back several centuries.

Today's article will tell you what cute figures of monkeys mean, where they come from, thanks to whom they saw the light, what non-obvious meaning they have, and also whether they somehow correlate with religion.

What are they called

The very name of the three monkeys indicates their national origin. They are called so - "san-zaru", or "sambiki-no-saru", which means "three monkeys" in Japanese.

I don’t see anything, I don’t hear, I won’t say anything - in this case, the word “nothing” should be understood precisely as evil. The philosophy and life position is as follows: I do not see evil, do not hear it, do not talk about it, which means that I am completely protected from it. Monkey figurines are a symbol of the rejection of the evil of this world.

Each monkey is named differently:
Mia-zaru - closes eyes;
Kika-zaru - covers the ears;
Iwa-zaru - closes the mouth.

The meaning of their names lies in their action, or rather inaction: "miazzaru" is translated as "not to see", "kikazaru" - "not to hear", "ivazaru" - not to speak.

"Why just monkeys?" - you ask. The fact is that the second part of all the above actions - “zaru” - is consonant with the Japanese word for monkey. So it turns out a kind of pun, the originality of which can only be fully appreciated by a true Japanese.

Recently, a fourth monkey has been added to the monkey trio more and more often. Her name is Shi-zaru, and she personifies the moral of the whole phrase - "I do no evil." In the images, she covers her tummy or “causal places” with her paws.

However, Shi-zaru did not take root among the relatives, especially in Asia. According to one statement, the reason for this is the unnaturalness of this monkey, because it was allegedly invented artificially as a well-adjusted marketing ploy.

Another opinion says that the problem is in Eastern numerology, which calls the number "four" bringing misfortune. So the famous figurine of the trio remained, and not the quartet.

Symbol origin

The figurine's hometown is Nikko, which is located 150 kilometers from the capital of Japan, Tokyo. The Japanese love this place, and this is not surprising - here is the Tosho-gu Shinto shrine. It is a striking complex of carved buildings - a real masterpiece of woodcarving.

No wonder Tosho-gu is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. But another of its attractions is the stable. It is here that the San-zaru carved sculpture flaunts above the door since the 17th century. Its author is Hidari Jingoro, the man who made the story of the three monkeys known to the whole world.

Monkeys are generally very popular in Japan. In this country, they are considered wise animals, personifying resourcefulness and entailing success.

Often near the houses you can see a sculpture of a monkey - Migawari-zaru. In another way, it can be called a double of a monkey. She drives away evil spirits, evil spirits that can attract misfortune, illness, injustice.

Religious overtones

An offshoot of Buddhist thought, Tendai, claims that the monkey symbol reached Japanese lands through the Chinese Buddhist monk Saicho in the 8th century. Even then, three monkeys meant a practical mind and boundless wisdom.

Indeed, he gladly accepts and supports the wise saying from the lips of San-zaru: you don’t need to notice the evil that takes place around, just as you don’t need to commit it, nourish it, and then the path to Enlightenment will be cleaner and easier.

Moreover, figurines of monkeys are quite often used in Buddhist shrines. But it would be wrong to consider that they originate in philosophy.

In fact, the three "dzaru" date back to the Japanese cult of Kosin, which, in turn, "migrated" from the Tao religion of China. According to the Kosin belief, certain entities live in a person who watch the owner.

If he cannot cope with internal evil, once every two months these entities find out the master's secrets about atrocities, directing them to the Almighty.

Three monkeys on the walls of Tosegu Temple, Nikko city, Japan

To avoid punishment, a person needs not to see, not to hear evil, not to talk about it and not to commit it, and on dangerous days, when entities can break out, one should not even sleep!

Similar worldly wisdom associated with renunciation, renunciation of evil deeds is found in many religious directions and their sacred texts: in the Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Judaic, Jain religions.

Conclusion

Thank you very much for your attention, dear readers! May wisdom and luck never leave you.

(!LANG:There is a fourth wise monkey. The origin of the symbol of the three monkeys Monkey with closed eyes