The Origin and History
The furoshiki goes back to the 9th century Nara Period. Furoshiki is a Japanese traditional wrapping cloth or bundle handkerchief. Furo means ‘bath’ and shiki is a noun for the verb shiku, ‘to spread’. In the 9th century, the main purpose of taking a bath was to cleanse mind and body, which made it a respected event for noblemen. Steam baths were located only inside temples. People got ‘dressed’ into white clothing before going to the bath, and they would spread their furoshiki to claim their own corner for the changing ceremony. In the Edo period, public bathhouses for ordinary people became common and they would wrap their clothing in a furoshiki rather than spreading it on the floor. Ordinary people in the Edo period did not bother to follow the custom of noblemen. This is how the furoshiki became a wrapping cloth from its original meaning of furo-shiki, ‘spreading in a bath’. Since the Meiji period, furoshiki became more popular in people’s everyday lives. For traditional ceremonies, for business, and for using as a bag, the furoshiki became a necessity in people’s lives. This carried on until the1960s. In the 1970’s a large quantity of furoshiki were made from nylon but the furoshiki started to disappear due to the proliferation of the plastic shopping bags. Similar items to the furoshiki are used in other parts of the world like Asia, South America and East Africa. They are called the pao-fu in China, the pojagi in Korea and the Kanga in East Africa. Although there are still furoshiki users in Japan, their numbers have declined in the post-war period, in large part due to the abundance of the plastic shopping bag. In recent years, it has seen a revival as environmental protection has become a concern.
The Furoshiki
A Traditional Japanese Cloth to Achieve the 3Rs
MOTTAINAI and 3Rs
Ms.Wangari Maathai, the first Nobel Prize winner in the environmental field, is also the Deputy Minister of the Environmental Agency of Kenya. She established the ‘Green Belt Movement’ in her country. When she visited Japan in 2005, she was deeply impressed by the word “mottani-nai”, saying that it was wonderful word to express all three of the environmental issues: reduce , reuse, and recycle (3R's). She has been promoting the ‘Mottai-nai’ campaign by declaring “Mottai-nai” as a universal term, and introducing the Japanese way of respecting material.
What is Mottai-nai?
The word comes from a term used in Buddhism. “mottai” means the true and original form of an object. The suffix "nai" negates it, making the word "mottai-nai' to express the lament and regret for wasting the life and the true role of materials. Also, it includes the feeling and sense of reselecting lives and materials. This spirit of mottai-nai and its humble life style in the modern society filled with materials may perhaps go to help environmental preservation of our world.
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