Travel like the wind
: Suchart Choolee
The history of humanity is filled with stories of journeys across continents, oceans, and cultures. Migration is a phenomenon that reflects the interconnectedness of people from many places, often driven by natural disasters, wars, and internal conflicts.
These forces compel people to migrate towards lands of hope. Such was the case for the samurai who served as a palanquin bearer for “Okubo Jiemon,” the lord of “Sunshu” province, before deciding to leave Japan to seek his fortune in the great city surrounded by three rivers: the Pasak River, the Chao Phraya River, and the Lopburi River.
Originally, this area was not an island. However, King Uthong decreed that a canal be dug to connect the three rivers, creating a natural fortress to protect against enemies.
This also became the site of Ayutthaya, which, being distant from the Gulf of Thailand, served as a center for trade with foreigners and as an “inland port.”
Historical records tell of the samurai palanquin bearer who journeyed to the royal capital of Ayothaya, or Ayothaya Sriramathepnakhon. He became a merchant named Yamada and a volunteer soldier whose career flourished. He gained the King’s trust and was appointed to important positions in the royal court. He became a leader who established a Japanese community, village, and religious sites.
However, with good often comes bad, and the latter part of his life was fraught with hardship, until his death while serving as the governor of Nakhon Si Thammarat
In the present era, travel is convenient, shortening distances. Borders, territories, and rivers are no longer significant obstacles; the horizon cannot obstruct the other side of hope.
National identity, then, can be merely a conceptual framework that hinders the universality of humankind.
While observing the way of life of Japanese people worshipping at shrines, some areas even have signs prohibiting photography. Yet, what is seen and deeply remembered is their unwavering faith.
As long as humans cannot transcend the depths of suffering, fate and hope, though arising from the deepest psyche, require an anchor. And water, too, plays a part in cleansing impurities.
The story of the samurai palanquin bearer led his life to a pinnacle, with a monument now standing majestically on the banks of the Chao Phraya River. No one can truly know what the “other side of hope” will entail. In an age where countless travelers fly across their own shores to visit, reside, and learn in distant lands, the sun, wind, and water continue to connect us all, acting as a current that nurtures all existence.
Japanese Village
Address: Tambon Ko Rian,Amphoe Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya 13000
Tel: 035 259 867
Opening hours: Open daily Mon-Fri 09:30-18:00 hrs.Sat-Sun 08:30-18:00 hrs.
Admission fee Adults 50 baht, Children 20 baht, Foreigners 50 baht
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