“Eating marine mammals is our national identity,” said the participants from Greenland. Their unity of viewpoint impressed this first-time participant.
Abe’s legacy included overseeing a dramatic shift in Japan’s whaling policy, from the decision to withdraw from the IWC to the restart of commercial whaling.
“We give thanks that we were able to make the catch without incident. We can’t forget our gratitude for the gift of another life” ー Taiji whaling captain.
Japanese whalers of the Edo period made huge fortunes from an ocean resource that belonged to no one. Other groups stole some meat but weren’t punished.
Practiced in Japan as far back as 4000 BC, and humans are still chasing whales 6,000 years later, largely for a spiritual reward not measured by economics.
The whaling economy was preceded by a battle to overcome a giant creature which, more than profits and losses, required a spiritual vitality.
Whales were resources that swam slowly through the sea. Once brought up onto land, their massive bodies were divided and used until there was nothing left.
There was a time when whale meat was so common in Japan that we almost expected it to be a part of every meal. But this changed from the late 1980s, when the International Whaling Commission (IWC) placed a moratorium on commercial whaling. Since then the overall whale market hasContinue Reading
The Taiji Whale Museum launches virtual 360-degree panoramas The Taiji Whale Museum, located in the small town of Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, is focused totally on whales and dolphins, a rarity in Japan. The museum features a three-story exhibition hall on whale biology and whaling history, live dolphin and whale shows,Continue Reading
Warming waters and the whims of the Kuroshio Current bring new fish and whales to the fishermen at the heart of Japan’s centuries-old whaling culture, and sometimes they turn out to be quite popular.