WHEN ASKED to offer their idea of an ideal holiday trip, many Japanese, especially those of the older generation, are likely to mention a quiet inn in one of Japan's numerous hot-spring resort areas. Resting in the soothing-and reputedly therapeutic-mineral waters, the traveler
forgets the cares and tensions of daily life
In ancient times the Romans built magnificent baths throughout their empire and took
great pleasure in the relaxing effects of the hot water and steam. Perhaps we could also say that
bathing devotees are Japanese about their bath. Despite the rise of such activities as skiing and
mountain climbing, onsen remain an important feature of Japanese tourism
Many Japanese would undoubtedly agree with the statement that their country is, more
than any other, the "land of hot springs." For one thing, because of the geological history of
these volcanic islands, Japan has an exceptionally large number of hot springs. Yet another
factor is undoubtedly the history of the Japanese people themselves, for whom onsen have
been an inherent part of a long cultural heritage. Washing with water as a purification rite
( misogi) is a central element of Shinto religion. The eighth-century Fudoki reports that as part
of the rite of delivering felicitous messages to the emperor the priestly aristocrats of Izumo
would bathe in hot springs.
Of course onsen have also been popular for recreational purposes as well. A measure of
their importance is the fact that until the end of the Edo period onsen were classified according
to a number of categories based on social position: There were, for example, shijinto for
samurai and choninto for commoners. Today money, leisure, and personal preference are
more likely to determine an onsen's clientele.
In eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Europe, hot-spring resorts were a favorite gathering place of the wealthy and aristocratic. The word "spa," now commonly used to translate onsen, was originally the name of a hot-spring resort in Belgium. But the European appreciation of hot springs hardly compares to that of Japan. The magnificent center built by the Romans in Bath, England, the site of the country's only hot springs, was destroyed by Saxon invaders and then left neglected until the eighteenth century.
The alleged health benefits of hot-spring bathing have long been a major reason for their
popularity. The actual physical benefit is still a subject of controversy, but for those who suffer
from tension and insomnia, the soothing effects of both the water and the relaxed atmosphere
can hardly be disputed. Karl Marx is known to have traveled on several occasions
to a continental spa to lose weight and otherwise try to undo the effects of his rather unhealthy
life
For foreigners in Japan, onsen may suggest the romantic setting of Yasunari Kawabata's
Yukiguni, translated into English by Edward Seidensticker as Snow Country. Though a traveler
may still find adventure suitable for what Seidensticker calls the "unaccompanied gentleman,"
the most exotic aspect of a modern onsen for the foreign visitor is more likely to be the
temperature of the water, which is several degrees above what most Europeans and Americans
are accustomed to. Yet for those who do get used to the water, Japanese hot springs are
considerable sources of enjoyment. Like the Finnish sauna, they are cultural institutions
which people of many countries, regardless of language, can come to appreciate.
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