＜prologue＞
I started a blog called “The Baby Boomer Generation’s Miscellaneous Blog”（Dankai-sedai no garakutatyou:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳） in July 2018, about a year before I fully retired. More than six years have passed since then, and the number of articles has increased considerably.
So, in order to make them accessible to people who don’t understand Japanese, I decided to translate my past articles into English and publish them.
It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I would like to make this my life’s work.
It should be noted that haiku and waka （Japanese short fixed form poems） are quite difficult to translate into English, so some parts are written in Japanese.
If you are interested in haiku or waka and would like to know more, please read introductory or specialized books on haiku or waka written in English.
I also write many articles about the Japanese language. I would be happy if these inspire more people to want to learn Japanese.
my blog’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多（がらくた）帳 | 団塊世代が雑学や面白い話を発信しています
my X’s URL:団塊世代の我楽多帳（@historia49）さん / X
Wedding speeches often include phrases like, “I hope you create a joyful home filled with laughter,” and I believe laughter is essential for a happy life.
With no end in sight to the global spread of the novel coronavirus pneumonia pandemic, Japan has also reached a critical situation, leading the Japanese government to finally declare a state of emergency on April 7th. However, laughter is said to have the effect of boosting the immune system. Now, as we spend more time at home due to self-restraint measures, it’s a great time to watch a comedy show on TV or a streaming service and have a good laugh to blow away your gloomy mood.
While we all want to avoid being ridiculed, mocked, or made a laughing stock…
So, today I’d like to consider laughter.
1. What is laughter?
Laughter is an emotional expression that expresses fun, joy, and humor.
It is generally believed that humans are the only animals that laugh. Primates such as chimpanzees often show a toothy grin that resembles a human smile, and they sometimes make sounds similar to human laughter, but they do not appear to have the same variety and complexity of laughter as humans. Furthermore, I have never seen a scene where many chimpanzees burst into laughter at the same time, as humans do.
2. Research on Laughter
(1) Ancient
① The ancient Greek philosopher Plato (427 B.C. – 347 B.C.) wrote about laughter. In his Philebus, he states that “laughter is usually at the expense of others,” and points out the “malicious nature” of laughter. While this is just one aspect of laughter, it is also an important one.
② The oldest record of laughter in Japanese literature is the “Ame-no-Iwato” (Hiding in the Rock Cave) in the Kojiki.
This is when Amaterasu Omikami, fed up with her younger brother Susanoo-no-Mikoto’s excessively violent behavior and mischief, hid herself in the Ame-no-Iwato, causing the light of Takamagahara to go out, resulting in a period of darkness and uproar among the gods.
So, a plan to lure Amaterasu Omikami out was devised: a naked dance by the goddess Ame-no-Uzume-no-Mikoto. When the eight million gods (most of whom were male?) saw this, they were delighted and laughed out loud, so Amaterasu Omikami, wondering what was going on, opened the rock door and light returned to the world.
As an aside, Amaterasu Omikami, who is said to be the ancestor of the Imperial family (Imperial Ancestor Deity), is actually a goddess, and the daughter born solely to Izanagi (a male god). She was not born to Izanami (a goddess).
(2) 18th Century
The German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) famously said, “Laughter comes from the release of tension.” He said, “It is an emotion that arises from the sudden disappearance of tense anticipation.” In other words, laughter occurs when you hold your breath or hold your breath for something unexpected, and then you are released.
The Rakugo performer Katsura Shijaku II (1939-1999), known as the “King of Laughter,” repeatedly demonstrated his theory that “relaxation of tension produces laughter” (the so-called “relaxation theory”) on stage, in his books, and on television, leading many to believe that it was originally his.
(3) 19th Century
① French poet Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867) argued that there are two types of humor: “meaningful humor” (ordinary laughter caused by human behavior) and “absolute humor” (profound, primitive laughter caused by the grotesque).
② Charles Darwin (1809-1882), proponent of the theory of evolution, wrote that tickling induces laughter in apes such as orangutans and chimpanzees.
(4) 20th Century
French philosopher Henri Bergson (1859-1941) stated that “laughter is the result of mechanical stiffness in living humans.”
(5) 21st Century
From a neuroscience perspective, Ryo Kobayashi of the Research Center for the Neuroscience of Desire proposes the “Memory Association Theory,” which states that “laughter occurs due to the association of memories caused by the release of multiple synaptic tags, and the resulting parasympathetic nervous system dominance.”
3. The Effects of Laughter, Laughter Yoga, and Comedy Ritual
(1) The Health Benefits of Laughter
Laughter is said to have health-promoting effects, such as increasing the activity of “NK cells” (natural killer cells) in the immune system. Conversely, anger is said to weaken the immune system.
As the old sayings go, “Good fortune comes to those who laugh,” “No arrows are fired at a smiling face,” and “No one loses from laughing,” it seems that laughter has a variety of benefits, such as activating the immune system, reducing stress and promoting positive thinking, helping to prevent heart disease, and enriching human relationships.
(2) Laughter Yoga
“Laughter Yoga” is an exercise method that combines “laughter exercises” and “yoga breathing.”
It was started in 1995 by Indian physician Madan Kataria and his wife, a yoga master. It has now spread to over 100 countries worldwide, with over 10,000 clubs regularly holding activities.
(3) Comedy Ritual
1. “Waraiko” at Omata Hachiman Shrine in Yamaguchi Prefecture
The “Waraiko” is a festival that began in the Kamakura period. It involves offering crops to the gods in gratitude for the year’s bountiful harvest and prayers for a bountiful harvest the following year, as well as “offering three laughs to the gods.”
Members, formally attired in crested hakama, hold sakaki branches and laugh together three times, giving thanks for the year’s harvest and praying for a bountiful harvest the following year. This unique New Year’s celebration laughs away the year’s sorrows with hearty laughter.
② The “Shimenawakake Shinji” (commonly known as the “Comedy Shinji”) at Hiraoka Shrine in Osaka Prefecture
This shrine, whose main deity is Ameno-Koyane-no-Mikoto, holds this year-end ritual based on the Japanese myth that Amaterasu Omikami hid in the cave, recited a prayer in front of it, and the laughter of the gods caused Amaterasu Omikami to open it. This ritual is held to bring good fortune and bring good luck in the new year through laughter.
After the chief priest’s “Ahahaha” laughter, participants are asked to laugh three times, and then continue laughing freely for 20 minutes.