The Wonder of Fire, Continuing for 400,000 Years [Today's Yoryoku]
When I want to focus, I sometimes play the sound of a bonfire. The continuous crackling sound, the occasional popping sound, the low, quiet sound of something smoldering. There is no fire actually in front of me. It is just an image on a screen or perhaps just sound. Even though I cannot feel the heat, for some reason, just listening to it calms my mind.
Today's Yoryoku introduced the history of fire-making. It seems that evidence of humans making fire 400,000 years ago was found at a site in the UK. It is said to be traces of using iron pyrite to create sparks and using fire continuously. The author reflected on the image of Neanderthals gathered around a bonfire.
What were the feelings of the humans who first decided to use fire 400,000 years ago? Fire is hot, and if you touch it, you get burned. At first, it must have been simply terrifying. Seeing flames spreading in forest fires, one would not think to approach them. But there was someone who stepped forward and thought, "Let's try using it." Being able to keep warm, keeping beasts away, roasting food. In an era without science or theory, everything must have started from the idea of "let's try it."
Fire has mainly been used as a tool. However, even just that sound has a mysterious power. Even if it is not burning in front of you, and even without heat or light, just listening to the crackling sound gradually calms the mind. Fire has a function not only to burn things but also to keep the mind at peace. It is truly a mysterious existence.
The sound of a bonfire has a rhythm called "1/f fluctuation," which is said to have a relaxing effect on the brain. That characteristic popping sound heard while it is burning is the sound of moisture inside the firewood evaporating and bursting. It does not happen with completely dried firewood. Did the Neanderthals of 400,000 years ago also listen to the same sound while keeping warm? Perhaps the reason we are calmed by the sound of fire is the work of genes spun from 400,000 years ago.