The Lost Souls of Aokigahara Forest.

There are few places in the world that conjure up feelings of sorrow, pity, fear, and ultimately fascination as Aokigahara Forest in Japan. Also called the ‘Sea of Trees’, this dense woodland at the base of Mount Fuji has the unfortunate fame of being one of the most well-known places to commit suicide in the world. It is known to be haunted by the ghosts of the hundreds who have died there. 

Aokigahara Forest is the most popular place to commit suicide in the whole of Japan; in fact it is only second to the Golden Gate Bridge in the world. Since records began being taken in the 1950’s, over 500 people have taken their own lives amongst its trees, most by hanging, some by overdoses or other methods. The gruesome trend supposedly began after the publication of Seicho Matsumoto’s novel Kuroi Kaiju (Black Sea of Trees) where two of his characters commit suicide at Aokigahara, however the history of suicide predates this and the forest has had an association with death for a long time. 

Due to the high numbers of incidents, the unenviable task of an annual body search began in 1970, consisting of a small collection of police, volunteers, and a few journalists. These groups follow official and unofficial forest trails as well as going off the beaten track to recover bodies and mark the places with tape – this tape is never removed. They have found over 100 corpses per year in recent times, but who knows how many they never find? The first kilometer in is where most of the bodies are found, and some people are saved from their attempt, but those who are determined tend to walk a long way into the woods. 

These lost souls are said to haunt the forest, which is in itself a very eerie place. The densely packed trees mean that there are parts that are in continual darkness, the light blocked out by the foliage. Due to the closely growing trees there is hardly any wind and an odd absence of wildlife gives the forest a silent, foreboding atmosphere. The ghosts of people who took their own lives are likely to be troubled, unable to rest, and there have been many reports of spooky encounters.  

Due in part to its reputation, the Aokigahara Forest is a popular tourist destination as is Mount Fuji itself. People have talked of the feeling of being watched, followed and taunted by unseen entities as well as hearing sounds which can’t be explained. 

The trend of suicides at Aokigahara doesn’t seem likely to diminish any time soon. The Japanese government has tried to dissuade people by employing officials to position signs, in both Japanese and English, urging those who have gone to the woods in order to commit suicide to seek help, think of their families and not kill themselves. Whether it is due to folklore, the draw of a novel or the fame that precedes it, the lost souls of Aokigahara Forest will most likely continue to grow in number for the foreseeable future. 

What is Neo-Paganism?

The term "Neo-paganism" encompasses a very broad spectrum of organizations, groups and beliefs. A neo-pagan (sometimes referred to simply as ‘pagan’) religion is a relatively modern faith which has been reconstructed from philosophies , symbols and practices of a much more ancient religion, particularly those influenced by the pre-Christian values of Western Europe that include a wide range of beliefs such as animism, polytheism and pantheism.

The word "pagan" comes from the Latin ‘paganus’, originally meaning "country-dweller" or "rustic" but the term ‘neo-pagan’ appeared first in the 19th century in reference to Renaissance and the classical revival where culture was challenged with a new way of thinking. It has found particular growth in the USA and Britain, but also in many parts of Europe. 

Many neo-pagan religions observe spirituality that is very modern in origin, while others tend to focus on trying to accurately revive traditional, ethnic religions as can often be found referenced in historical texts and in folklore worldwide, these group often reject the ‘neo’ part of the title as it is seen to modernise their objective unnecessarily . The largest neo-pagan religion today is ‘Wicca’ – a form of modern witchcraft, but there are other significantly sized neo-pagan faiths which include Neo-druidism who draw on several belief systems and inspirations from the ancient Druids and Germanic Neo-paganism which has really grown since the 1970s. 

The fundamental beliefs of neo-pagan faiths are those of peace, ritual, tradition and a reverence for nature, although many groups practice polytheism – a belief in multiple deities – the figure of a ‘Mother Earth’ or ‘Gaia’ goddess is usually the most revered, associated with fertility, growth and rebirth. The misguided, ignorant view  of many is that ‘Satanism’ or ‘devil-worship’ is involved in pagan rituals, these are fundamentally Christian ‘inventions’ and have no recognition in the belief systems of any pagan faith. Many neo-pagan religions incorporate the use of ceremony and magic into their ritual practices and these are more often than not observed outdoors to encompass the power of nature and the moon. There seems to have been a sort of neo-pagan revival in the 1960s and 1970s - Wicca especially was influenced by feminism. 

During the 1980s there was the popular use of the term ‘new-age’ to describe neo-pagan groups and many festivals began to appear to bring people together. Today, any new religion that encompasses nature-worship and/or pantheism (the view that the nature and God are as one) are grouped under the umbrella term of neo-paganism. The development and rapid growth of the internet in the 1990s has aided the spread of the religion throughout the world as people from different countries communicate and share their beliefs on a wider scale. 

The vanishing hound of Aylesbury.

This account dates from before the 20th century. For many nights in a row, a farmer walking to milk his cows early in the morning, came across a large, black dog which blocked his path. Gradually he became annoyed with having to walk around the dog and hit the creature which instantly vanished...the man however was said to be paralysed from that moment, never to speak or move again.

Lych Way, Dartmoor - The Way of the Dead.

Ghostly funeral processions travelling through the Dartmoor mist have sometimes been seen along this ancient pathway. Lych Way is a track along which people used to have to carry the dead for burial at nearby Lydford where interment of the deceased was compulsory, so for people living on the far side of the Moor, this was an arduous task especially in the winter months. Things became slightly easier in the 1200's when Widecombe was permitted for use, however the ghostly site has still been reported in modern times.