I think that Kiyoshi felt that Obaban was his mother's substitute because when his mother was sick Obaban came to visit her. After her visit his mother got better, but then Obaban got sick and died. He felt that Obaban took his mother's sickness and died from it because his mother still had children that she had to take care of and Obaban did not and had lived a long healthy life.
The Japanese believed in a superstition called Bachi, which, according to Murayama, was a punishment that a person got when they did something bad and got away with it. The thing about bachi was that the punishment did not necessarily have to happen to the person that did the wrongdoing. It could fall on anyone in that person's family. Obaban had told Kiyoshi that his mother could be suffering from someone else's bachi, but if she found another substitute to take the bachi she would get better. That is why when Kiyoshi's mother got better after Obaban came to visit and then Obaban died he felt that she was his mother's substitute.
Hi Michelle,
ReplyDeleteThe idea that an individual's actions directly affect not only that person, but possibly that person's family is a radical notion, especially in contemporary U.S. society. The definition of family and the expectations of each family member is quite different if one accepts the notion that family members are interconnected.
This definition of family will help explain the Oyama's expectation that their sons help pay off the family debt.
Thanks for your insights.
Take care,
Lauren
Hello !
ReplyDeleteI liked that you mentioned that Obaban was old and had lived a long life already, I believe that those were the thoughts that Kiyoshi used to make himself not feel guilty for his happiness. Kiyoshi experienced many mix feeling with this event in his life because he truly believed that his mother’s health was linked to his grandmother’s dead.
Thanks for sharing,
Natalia
Thanks for your reading!! The word Bachi, as I know it is a Japanese origin and is translated as Divine Punishment/Retribution to be punished by Heaven or as the saying goes what comes around goes around 10 fold.
ReplyDeleteI look at it like Sometimes luck has nothing to do with bad luck its just a payback for something you already did you shouldnt have...Thanks for the posting!! Daye
Hi Michelle,
ReplyDeleteI got the same thing out of the reading as you did. I firmly believe that Kyoshi's mom was very superstitious and they all believed that Baban took the place of Kyoshi's mother when she passed away. I love reading about the ways and thoughts of other people. IT's very interesting because we are all so different and that's what makes the world a great place. Thanks for sharing.
Dina