Thousands of Deer Flood the Streets of Japan's Nara

Nara is an ancient Japanese city with a rich history, which was once the capital of the Land of the Rising Sun. Numerous landmarks, ancient temples and other buildings that attract tourists and pilgrims remain from its former glory. But the main attraction of the city is its spotted deer, which are declared sacred animals here.

There are currently about 1,200 lazy, well-fed deer in Nara, who roam the city streets in herds and cheekily poke their snouts (or hooves) at tourists, waiting for a handout. Special crackers are sold everywhere for the deer. Hundreds of animals roam the city, and no laws apply to them. You can't chase a sleeping one away, even from the highway. You should carefully drive around it.

The thing is that the locals have been following the rule for over a thousand years. According to one legend, all local ungulates are descendants of the mythical deer on which the first emperor of Japan descended from heaven. The only thing that is allowed is to buy them healthy and nutritious food.

According to legend, after Heijō-kyō (the old name of Nara) was declared the capital of Japan, the god of the Kasuga Taisha shrine came to protect the city on a white deer. Since then, deer have been considered messengers of the gods, protecting the city and the country.

The guidebooks say there are 2,000 deer there. They really are everywhere. And they crowd around every shop selling shika-senbei (deer cookies), surround tourists and crave these cookies. Deer no longer consider tree leaves or grass food compared to shika-senbei.

As soon as someone buys cookies, the deer start to fight for them. The animals come from all sides, push each other away, fight for the cookies, snatch them from hands. If they had antlers, the deer would hurt each other. But deer don't always have antlers.

Every October, Nara holds a special festival called Shika-no-tsunokiri. On this day, all deer that have grown antlers are caught and their antlers are removed.

Another tradition is connected with these deer. At the end of winter, when there is too little food, the deer are specially fed. They are called to dinner by a musician playing Beethoven's 6th Symphony on a bugle. This tradition has existed since 1892 and was interrupted only during the Second World War, but was restored in 1949. On February 11, 1979, the famous Italian trumpeter Nini Rosso conducted an experiment and played them the 6th Symphony not on a bugle, but on a trumpet. The deer recognized the familiar melody and came out of the thicket to him.