5 Life Lessons from Deer in Japan
Has some old guy in a bar ever told you about the wonders of travel?
“It will change you. You’ll come back a different, better person. You’ll learn so much about yourself through other people’s culture.”
Japan is pretty much where the concept of a ‘life lesson’ originated. It’s a strange place, worthy of magical tales of Geisha and Samurai and strange spirits.
Nara Deer Park is one such place. It’s not so much a park as it is a playground of happiness and joy that is so precious, it’s protected by the government.
The park is home to 1200 semi-tame deer that wander around freely.
Back in the days of old, the deer were considered holy by the monks of Katsuga Shrine. Every morning, the monks would go about their daily business, bowing to the deer whenever they saw them and giving them a little treat. The deer, naturally deviously in nature, quickly learned to bow back to the monks — earning themselves praise and more food. This habit escalated, giving the deer divine status and a steady supply of treats.
Today, you can walk through the expansive park and up the side of the wooded mountain to visit the shrine. Along the way, vendors sell deer biscuits which you can offer to deer in return for a bow. If you are daring enough to try, some deer even let you stroke them while they munch the biscuit from your hand.
If you thought cat pictures melt your heart, you ain’t felt nothing yet.
Amidst many visits, I’ve learned a fair few lessons from these holy deer and the community that protects them. Naughty, greedy, herd animals, deer are experts at survival and turning the situation to their benefit.
1. Harmony with nature isn’t perfect, but it’s possible
How can a modern-day town make space for so many wild deer? Can you even imagine 1200 wild deer wandering through your streets?
Love. That’s how.
The residents of Nara love the local deer. Sure, the government gives them some extra protection, but the community keeps the peace. It’s not always perfect, farmlands are sometimes invaded, and more than a few tourists have been headbutted (63% of those tourists were Chinese last year. Fair warning, if you wanna be pushy, you’ll be pushed back). But these deer are so loved that none of that trivial stuff matters
Nara is a rare, heart-warming example of how humans really can live in peace with the natural world. Fill your heart with love for your surroundings — no matter the imperfections — and you’ll find yourself more grounded and happy.
2. Don’t take being ‘holy’ too seriously
People flock to these religious power houses to marvel at the structures and buy protective charms and amulets. In between feeding the deer, they even manage to get a little praying in.
The Katsuga shrine is Shinto and there are plenty of nearby Buddhist temples in the area. These religious buildings are by no means low-key. The Katsuga is a Main shrine and spans up a good portion of the mountainside. The nearby Buddhist temple in Nara is home to the biggest bronze Buddha in Japan.
Even among all this religion, no one gets caught up on the semantics of ‘holy’. The deer certainly don’t care, they just want that biscuit in your hand and then maybe a nap. The takeaway is to relax — don’t let the internet trolls get to you. Enjoy the proverbial flowers in life and stop worrying about where they come from.
3. Food is the most important thing in the universe
At least to the deer it is. Us humans are a complicated bunch, getting caught up in love affairs and business relations, using complicated works like ‘therefore’ and ‘existential’.
Deer only worry about food.
Next time you are sad, depressed, anxious or scared, remember that you still need to eat. And because you still need to eat, you are still alive. And because you are alive, you are going to be okay again.
4. Safety in numbers unless you are hungry
I noticed this amusing rule when I was walking through a particularly idyllic path to the shrine. Deer in packs ended up butting each other out of the way to grab a biscuit from the fingers of a laughing tourist. After snatching what they could, the deer got more aggressive and the tourist would hastily move on in fear of being butted. Funnily enough, the deer in question were almost always burly males.
The younger — the youth are always more cunning on account of being smaller — had devised a smarter method. In one’s or two’s they would flank the sides of the path, looking cute, hungry and lonely. More often than not, a tourist would offer a single deer an entire biscuit or more and take a special photo. The young deer gives you value in the form of one-on-one contact and is rewarded with more biscuits. Business practice 101.
Who'd have thought deer would teach you so much about business?
5. You can ignore people if you want to
There is so much going on in our world. Overwhelmed and trying to carve out your little piece of success, it’s easy to fall into the trap of being a ‘yes-man’.
Nara deer are not so inclined. If they don’t feel like attention or biscuits, they will just point blank ignore you. There are plenty of other deer that are more than happy to gobble down your offerings and endure a few photos.
The moral is, you don’t have to say yes to everything. There will always be someone to take up the slack if you need a break.
The deer know it’s okay to take a rest, there will always be something to eat tomorrow.
The deer hold many untold secrets, pity they can’t talk
Those old farts who profess the magical importance of travel aren’t wrong. Keep your eyes wide open on your journey and you might just learn something new.
The deer of Nara are a unique sight to see and will leave you with a full camera memory card, pockets full of biscuit crumbs and a bruise or two if you weren’t respectful.
If it’s life lessons you are after, Japan is where you need to be.
