Legendary Hachiko - a symbol of devotion in Japan

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

A bronze monument is erected near the exit from the Tokyo Shibuya Station building. a dog named Hachiko … It has long been one of the most popular meeting points in the Japanese capital. Every day, thousands of people pass by him, stop, take pictures. Why then dog monument so popular in a huge city with plenty of other attractions? The fact is that this is not just a monument - it is japanese national symbol of allegiance, loyalty and friendship.

Hachiko's story is not fictional. In 1923, a farmer presented an Akita puppy to a professor at the University of Tokyo, Hidesaburo Ueno. The professor lived near the Shibuya train station, and every morning the dog walked him to the train station. Hachiko looked after him, then sat on the square in front of the station and waited until the owner returned from work.

This became a daily ritual, and this continued until May 1925, when one day the owner did not return. The professor suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died suddenly. For the next nine years, Hachiko would come to the station square and wait. He showed up every day exactly at the hour of the train's arrival.

The story of the dog, who did not lose hope of waiting for the owner, attracted the attention of journalists and quickly became famous in Tokyo and beyond. Many people came to Shibuya Station to see Hachiko and feed him. The professor's relatives took him to their home, but the dog remained devoted to his beloved master.

Hachiko's legendary loyalty has become a national symbol of loyalty for the Japanese. Teachers and parents used the dog as an example for children to teach them true values and explain what friendship is, to loving couples Hachiko served as a symbol of selfless love and marital fidelity.

Hachiko died in March 1935. A year before his death, a bronze monument was erected at Shibuya Station, and Hachiko himself was present at its opening. During World War II, the statue was melted down for ammunition, but after the end of the war, in 1948, the monument was restored. Every year on April 8, a solemn ceremony of remembrance of Hachiko takes place in Tokyo.

In addition to the statue at Shibuya station, there are also monuments in Hachiko's hometown, in a museum, near the University of Tokyo, at the tomb of Hidesaburo Ueno. The exact place where Hachiko was waiting at the master's station is marked with a bronze commemorative sign. The story of legendary loyalty was learned around the world after the 2009 release of the Hollywood film Hachiko: The Most Loyal Friend, in which Richard Gere plays Professor Ueno. Hachiko's story is unique, but fortunately, not unique - there are many others incredible stories of dedication and self-sacrifice, after which I want to believe that true loyalty is not a legend.