Japanese Cranes, Symbols of Peace
Sadako Sasaki, a Young Hiroshima Victim, Made Paper Cranes a Symbol of International Peace
Jul 25, 2006 Rosemary Drisdelle
The Red-crowned Crane, once common in East Asia, is sometimes referred to as the Japanese Crane, but the birds' numbers have severely declined in Japan in recent decades due to habitat loss. Today, conservation efforts are succeeding in helping the birds make a comeback. In Eastern culture these beautiful birds are symbolic of marital bliss, happiness and good fortune, and also of peace.
Sadako Sasaki
August 6, 2006, marks the sixty-first anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan. Ten years after the bombing, a young Japanese girl called Sadako Sasaki died from leukemia caused by radiation from the blast. Before she died, however, Sadako folded almost a thousand origami paper cranes.
A thousand paper cranes
Sadako began her project because of a legend that said anyone who folded a thousand paper cranes would be granted a wish. She wished to healthy again so that she could run and play like before, and she pursued her goal with such determination that, although she died of her disease, she succeeded in transforming the paper crane into a symbol of peace for children all over the world.
Sadako's peace park
After Sadako's death, children joined together to raise money for a peace park in Hiroshima, and a statue of Sadako holding a crane. Today there is also a small peace park with a statue of Sadako in Seattle, Washington, and children everywhere fold origami paper cranes in her memory and send them to Japan and Seattle threaded on long strings to be draped over the statue. Sadako's story is used to teach children about the consequences of war, and the power of individuals to bring about change.
Kokishi and Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes
Author Eleanor Coerr visited the Japanese statue of Sadako in 1963. She was interested in Sadako's story and learned that the young girl also wrote an autobiography, titled Kokishi, before she died. Coerr eventually found a copy of Kokishi and had it translated into English. She used it when she wrote her famous book, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, now translated into many languages. Later, an award winning video by the same name was produced based on Eleanor Coerr's book.
Fold a paper crane
On August 6, remember Sadako and her thousand paper cranes, and the beautiful Red-crowned Cranes of Japan, all symbols of peace and harmony in the world. If you like, you can try to fold a few origami paper cranes yourself. The folding is complex, but with a good set of instructions on how to make a paper crane, you can easily make a fairly good one. If you fold a thousand, who knows what will happen.
Related articles:
Phoenix - Symbol of Immortality
The Scar Still Runs Deep in Hiroshima
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