The "Dangerous Clouds" Hidden on the Back of the New 1,000 Yen Bill: Signs of Disaster Illustrated by Hokusai and the Japanese Way of "Coexisting with Nature"

1. Why is the new 1,000 yen bill "The Wave and Mount Fuji"?

In July 2024, Japan's banknotes were redesigned for the first time in 20 years. The redesign includes three denominations: 10,000 yen, 5,000 yen, and 1,000 yen. The new 1,000 yen bill features bacteriologist Shibasaburo Kitasato on the front and Katsushika Hokusai's "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" from "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji" on the back.Newsgawakaru

According to the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Japan, there are two main reasons for choosing this design. First, it includes Mount Fuji, a symbol of Japan. Second, Hokusai's work is internationally renowned and has continued to influence artists worldwide.Kurukura+1

In fact, "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" is often referred to as "The Great Wave" overseas and has been frequently introduced as having shocked European artists like Van Gogh in the 19th century.Nippon
Thus, the new 1,000 yen bill serves not only as a practical domestic currency but also as a visual self-introduction card saying, "This is Japan." The wave by Hokusai is Japan's everyday business card presented to the world.

However, beyond this point, there is a uniquely Japanese interpretation that is difficult for foreigners to grasp. The Japanese sensibility does not stop at "This wave is so cool."

Between this "cool wave" and "Mount Fuji," there is a compressed sense of "the fear of nature" that the people of Edo felt in their bones—many people think this way.

Recently, what has been discussed on social media and in the media is the "cloud" in this picture.
You might think, "Cloud? Not the wave?" But this cloud is considered a "dangerous sign."

2. What is the "dangerous cloud"? Why has the "cloud" attracted attention?

"The Great Wave off Kanagawa" depicts a scene where a giant wave curls up like a claw in the foreground, threatening to engulf several small boats (believed to be cargo boats). In the background, Mount Fuji stands quietly, and the sky is faintly colored.note

At this time, a theory has emerged that the sky pattern and cloud shape drawn above Mount Fuji are not "just a design" but "dangerous clouds" like cumulonimbus (thunderclouds) or "anvil clouds."

Meteorologists explain that cumulonimbus clouds, especially "anvil clouds" that spread out flat at the top, are often precursors to severe thunderstorms, gusts, hail, and short-term heavy rain. It is said that weather can suddenly worsen with rain, hail, lightning, and gusts all at once under such clouds, and caution is advised.Thank you!

In other words, the "dangerous cloud" is not just a "pretty summer cloud," but a sign that says, "Really bad weather might be coming, so the boats are risking their lives."

Applying this to Hokusai, it becomes like this.

• A giant swell (like seasonal winds or typhoon-induced high waves)

• Cumulonimbus clouds as a precursor

• Fishermen in small boats challenging it
  In other words, "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" is a document condensed into one piece, capturing the real "sea danger forecast" of Edo.

This perspective has recently been linked to the narrative that "the depiction on the back of the new 1,000 yen bill is the very disaster risk Japan faces."web Mu: News & Analysis of the World's Mysteries and Wonders

Of course, it cannot be academically confirmed that "this cloud is definitely a cumulonimbus cloud." Hokusai was a painter, not a visual recorder, so rather than snapping a real landscape, he combined multiple observations, memories, exaggerations, and performances. However, it is undeniable that for people living by the sea in Edo, "reading the weather from the clouds in the sky = wisdom to protect life." Therefore, it would be a waste to dismiss the nuances of the clouds as "just a background."

3. Misunderstandings Spreading Online: "Tsunami? Prophecy? Ominous?"

Since the design of the new 1,000 yen bill was unveiled, voices have emerged both overseas and in Japan saying, "Isn't this wave a tsunami?" or "Is it okay to use such an ominous picture on a banknote?" Especially on social media, there were sensational claims like "a prophecy of a great tsunami."web Mu: News & Analysis of the World's Mysteries and Wonders+1

However, experts repeatedly point out that "The Great Wave off Kanagawa" is not "a tsunami itself."X (formerly Twitter)

What Hokusai depicted was the "rough sea" that commonly occurred around Sagami Bay to Edo Bay during the Edo period and the lives of people challenging it. High waves like "doyo-nami," which suddenly rise due to seasonal winds or low pressure, were a real fear for fishermen, and capsizing meant an immediate life-threatening situation. The famous frame captures this moment of being almost swallowed up in a dramatic way.

Therefore, it is more realistic to think of this picture as "visualizing the risks that were always present in everyday life" rather than "an ominous prophecy of the future."
Rather, this sense of "everyday risk" is often a point of surprise for foreigners.

When this painting was loved in Europe and North America, many people were fascinated by the "sublimity of nature" and the "dynamic beauty of the waves."Nippon
On the other hand, many Japanese people perceive a vivid realism akin to live commentary from the same painting, thinking, "The people on board are really about to die," or "Aren't those clouds a sign of bad weather?" That's the decisive difference.

4. Was Hokusai a "disaster artist"? — The sense of survival etched in waves, clouds, and Mount Fuji

Hokusai (1760-1849) is often introduced as "the most famous Japanese artist in the world." However, he himself was not just a "stylish ukiyo-e artist." Researchers and museum explanations state that Hokusai actively absorbed Western painting perspectives and new pigments (Prussian blue) throughout his life, thoroughly evolving the expression of waves.Obuse Hokusai Museum | The Art Museum of Katsushika Hokusai, the Eccentric+1

Especially in "The Great Wave off Kanagawa," the wave bends and breaks like a living creature, with spray extending sharply into the sky like claws. Beyond that, Mount Fuji stands almost motionless, serene. This contrast between the "raging sea" and the "immovable Mount Fuji" was the very "destiny of the Japanese archipelago" for the common people of Edo.

• Sea: Suddenly bares its fangs. Typhoons, storms, doyo-nami, high waves. If the boat is overturned, it's an immediate crisis.

• Mount Fuji: Always there. However, it is also a volcano. Therefore, it is not completely safe.

• Clouds: Signs that warn you. Cumulonimbus clouds = signals of lightning, gusts, and heavy rain.Thank you!

Hokusai continued to depict "raging water" in many works. The ceiling paintings called "Man Wave" and "Woman Wave" left in Obuse, Nagano, in his later years are known as "Angry Waves," depicting waves with the presence of a giant dragon.Obuse Hokusai Museum | The Art Museum of Katsushika Hokusai, the Eccentric
For him, waves were not just a landscape but a giant, capricious creature = nature itself.

This perspective of "nature is overwhelmingly strong" and "yet humans live there" is a very real outlook on life in Japan, where tsunamis, typhoons, and earthquakes are common. Hokusai turned this into an international-level visual art with dramatic compositions and innovative blue gradations for the time.Bijutsu Techo+1

That's why the "dangerous cloud" also becomes something you want to read as part of the story of the relationship between nature and humans.

5. The "dangerous cloud" is also a disaster prevention sign

Let's talk about something modern here.
Cumulonimbus clouds (thunderheads, anvil clouds, etc.) are still "signs to protect life" for us today. Meteorologists often call out, "If you see an anvil cloud, be careful as there may be severe thunderstorms or gusts."Thank you!
It is not uncommon in Japan in the 2020s for roads to flood in a short time, power outages due to lightning, or outdoor events to be canceled. Linear rainbands and guerrilla downpours have become more of an "annual danger" than a summer feature.

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