Bear Hunting

| Another name for a bear: | Shiro

| Since bears always | live in the | hollows of large trees and | sleep soundly, | hunters use | wisteria vines to | tie logs together like a | lattice to | block the entrance of the | hollow. Then, they | cut tree | branches and | push many of them into the | hollow. The | bear | pulls those | branches in, | filling the | hollow, and finally, | waiting for it to appear at the | entrance, in | Mino | Province, they use | bamboo spears; in | Inaba, | spears; in | Higo, | guns; and in the | northern provinces, they use a | weapon like a | naginata called a nataki to | either cut or | stab it to death.

* Regarding "Shiro," in the entry for "Mountain Whale" in the "Edo Hanjoki," written in the late Edo period, there is a description that writes "Shiro" and has it read as "kuma" (bear).

| In all cases, the | vital point is | slightly | above the | moon-shaped mark on its chest. Also, in the | mountains of | Iwami Province, | long ago, people | burned charcoal and | lived in | old caves. To | catch them, they do not | quickly shoot them with | spears or | guns, because the | gall bladder would be | very | small; instead, they | torment it until it is | exhausted and | enraged, then | strike and | kill it.

| Also, another method is to | catch them with a | trap. In | Yoshu, this is | called a ceiling trap (also called an oso). In | Ashu, it is called an osu (osu is an old word for oshi). You can | understand the | method from the | illustration.

| Under a | bamboo raft-like structure | over two | ken (approx. 3.6 meters) | long, | deer | meat is | smoked over a | fire as | bait. Also, | oak | nuts and shiyashaki | nuts are | scattered.

| On | top, about twenty | loads of | large stones are | placed (also, in | Ashu, it is said that seventy-five | loads are | placed), so the | sound when it | falls is like | thunder. After it | falls, the | mechanism is | triggered from below for about three days. | Seeing the | time when it | stops, they | remove the | stones and | lift the | mechanism; the | bear is found dead with its | feet | stepped about one | shaku (approx. 30 cm) into the | ground, as is always the case.

* "Shiyashaki" is thought to refer to the Hisakaki (an evergreen small tree of the Pentaphylacaceae family, Eurya genus).

| Also, another method is a | trap, which is | similar to the | mechanism of the | previous trap. | Among them, in the | provinces of | Hida, | Kaga, and | Koshi, they | use | large | spears to | chase and | catch them. | Since they | run away | very | fast, if you | shout "Turn back!" once, the | bear | turns around and | faces the | person. | At this | time, | again, | upon hearing the | single phrase "moon-shaped mark," it | appears to be | frightened, and they | suddenly | rush in and | stab it to death. This | requires the | hunter's | courage, and | skill and | quickness; otherwise, it is | often | dangerous.

* "Koshi no Kuni" is the name of a region in the ancient Hokuriku area, corresponding to the southern parts of Echizen, Kaga, Noto, Etchu, Echigo, Sado, and Dewa provinces during the Nara period.

Also, in another method, to | catch them in | Fuchu, | Sunshu, | two people | wait on | either side of the | bear's | nest | hole, | holding | large | axes | raised. | Another | one or | two | people | use tree | branches to | poke and | probe inside the | nest | hole. The | bear, trying to pull the | tree into the | nest, | reaches out its | hand, and when it | pulls, it is | exposed. Watching for when it | reaches out its | hand here and there on the | branches, they | strike and | cut off | both hands with the | axes from | both sides. | Since the | bear is a | creature with | great | strength in its | hands, it | gains momentum from this, and they | finally | catch it. Thus, they | take the | gall bladder and | remove the | skin; this is | common in | Oshu. In | Tsugaru, they | eat the | meat of the | legs, and even | add this to the | meals of | nobles.

| Things that | bears | usually | eat are | mountain ants, | bamboo shoots, crabs, and | generally, they | prefer | sweet | tree | nuts. It is not that they do not | eat | animal meat. It is even said that in | Ezo, they are | raised on | human | breast milk.

|Taking Gallbladder

|Bear gallbladder| from |Kaga| is considered the |highest quality|. |Those| that |come| from |Echigo|, |Etchu|, and |Dewa| are |next| to this. |Others| are |produced| in |Shikoku|, |Inaba|, |Higo|, |Shinano|, |Mino|, |Kishu|, and |various other places|. |Those| that |come| from |Matsumae| and |Ezo| are |often| of |low quality|. However, |Kaga| |is not necessarily| of |high quality|, and |Matsumae| |is not necessarily| of |low quality|. |Because| of |their| |nature|, |the season|, and the |skill| or |lack of craftsmanship| of the |person| who |butchers| them, it is |difficult| to |discuss| them |in general terms|.

|There are three types| of |what is considered high quality| in |Kaga|: |black-like|, |bean-powder-like|, and |amber-like|. |Among them|, the |amber-like| |is the most| |superior|. |These| are called |summer gallbladder| and |winter gallbladder|, and their |names| |differ| depending on the |season| in which they are |taken|. |Summer| |items| have |thick| |skin| and |little| |bile|. They are considered |low quality|. |Those| from August |onward| are called |winter gallbladder|. |These| have |thin| |skin| and are |full| of |bile|. They are considered |high quality|. However, the |amber-like| |type|, even if it is a |summer gallbladder|, |surpasses| the |winter| |gallbladder| in that it is |yellowish-red| and |transparent|, whereas the |black-like| |type| is not. |Black| |with a luster| is |common| in the |world|.

|Method for Testing Authenticity|

|It appears that| there are |many| |counterfeits| in |both Japan and China|, and the |Bencao Gangmu| (Compendium of Materia Medica) also |contains| a |testing method|. |It is said| that |if you| |place| a |grain of rice-sized| |piece| of |gallbladder| on the |water surface|, it will |avoid| |dust|, |rotate|, and |draw| a |line| like a |thread| to the |bottom of the water|, which is |true|. |However, upon| |consideration|, |this| is a |method| from |ancient times| and |seems| |incomplete|. |In general|, |any| |animal| |gallbladder|, |no matter what it is|, will |rotate| on the |water surface|; it is |not limited| to |bear gallbladder|. |I have| |tested| and |known| that |even| |house soot| from |butchering| |animal meat| or |boiling| it, |also| |rotates| on the |water surface|. However, for |amateurs| to |test| it, there is |no other| |method| than this. |If| you |must| |test| by |placing| it on |water| and |drawing| a |line| to the |bottom of the water|, the |rotation| should be as |fast| as |flying|, the |line| should be |extremely| |thin|, and the |fastest| |one| is considered good. |Items| that |rotate| |slowly|, or |those| that |rotate| |gently| and |stop|, are |all| not good. Also, even if the |rotation| is |fast|, |items| that do not |disappear| |completely| are not |good|. |Inferior items| naturally |lose| their |force|, and the |line| |is not swift|. |Also|, |items| that |fall| like |powder| should also be considered |low quality|.

Also, |those| that are |yellowish-red| at the |bottom of the water| are |high quality|, and |those| that are |brown| are |definitely| |counterfeits|. |Professionals| |distinguish| them by the |presence or absence| of |flavor and aroma|. Generally, |genuine| and |high-quality| |items| will |suddenly| |reveal| a |strong| |bitterness| when placed on the |tongue|. |That| |bitter-sweetness|, when it |enters| the |mouth|, does not |stick|, the |bitterness| |gradually| |increases|, and the |inside of the mouth| feels |refreshed| and |clean|. |Items| that only have |bitterness| are |counterfeits|. |Bitter-sweet| |items| are considered |good|. Also, |items| with a |fishy| |flavor and aroma| are not considered |good|, but |this| is the |nature| of a |bear| |nourished| by |meat|, so it is |not necessarily| |definitive| as a |counterfeit|, and |those| that are |sweet| at |first| and |bitter| |later| are |inferior|. Also, |burnt-smelling| items are |high-quality products|. |This| |testing method| |cannot be taught| just by |teaching| it. |Even with| |years| of |experience|, it is |easy| to |distinguish| |authenticity|, but |difficult| to |distinguish| |quality|.

|Method for Making Counterfeit Gallbladder|

|Phellodendron bark|, |gardenia fruit|, and |coptis root| are |made| into a |very| |fine powder|, the |gardenia fruit| is |slightly| |roasted| to |remove| its |scent|, and the |three ingredients| are |mixed| and |boiled| with |water| |added| until |thickened|. It will have a |black| |luster| and |dry| like the |real thing|. When |lining| this, |two sheets| of |Mino| |paper| are |joined|, and the |juice| of the |narcissus| |flower| root is applied and |dried|, so that when |lined|, it will not |leak| the |contents|. |Wrap| it, |squeeze| it, |press| it between |boards|, and |dry it in the shade|, and the |wrinkles| of the |paper| and the |moisture| of the |medicinal juice| |soaking in| will make it look like |real| |gallbladder skin|. |It is best| to |make| it in the |winter|, as it |easily| |rots| when it |reaches| the |summer|. |Therefore|, it is |always| |made| on a |summer day|. |This| is the |method| from the |Bingo| |area|, and |other regions| are |mostly| like this, but it is |difficult| to |know| |everything| about |other regions|.

Also, |popular belief| says that |something| called |kneaded| |persimmon|, which has a |bitter| |taste|, is |wrapped| in the |paper| of an |old umbrella|. |Sometimes| there are |also| |items| where |counterfeits| are |put| into |real| |gallbladder skin|, and |this| is a |very| |serious| way to |deceive| people.

Appendix

|Because| the |bear| is a |black| |creature|, it is called a Kuma, but it is |difficult| to |determine| for sure. |This| |must| be |entirely| a |Korean| |dialect|. |Calling| Kumagawa 'Komogai' is |immediately| a |corruption| of Kumakawa. |Even now|, the |custom| in |Korea| is to call a |bear| 'Kom'.

Author's note: ○ means a missing character, ● means a character that could not be deciphered.
I will update this as I decipher new characters or notice typos/misreadings. For details, please read the "Self-introduction/Disclaimer" section.📖