This monthʼs anciention: Ito takaku narashite keri. Yukineko translation: She made a very high sound and farted. The moon is shining and the night is full of the emotions of love. A high-ranking nobleman, FUJIWARA no Tadaie, is flirting with a woman (a woman who serves the court and nobility) who is reputed to be beautiful and loveable through a bamboo screen. Now, the mood is rising. Tadaie quickly flips open the curtain separating them, grabs the woman by the shoulders, and pulls her close. She wriggles, her hair in a mess and says, “Oh, what are you doing?” She was writhing. Oh, what a romantic scene. Then, an unexpected incident occurs. This beautiful woman farted so loudly! She was too embarrassed to speak and collapsed. Tadaie said, “What a hard time Iʼve had! This world is a waste of time. Yes, I shall be ordained!” He decides to leave her quietly. But after he had walked only two ken (3.6 meters), he reconsidered, “Why should I become a monk just because she made a mistake? I quit!” He then ran away. “He” (farts), the gas emitted from the buttocks, are also known as “onara.” This is a polite word derived from the verb “narasu (to sound),” and farting is also called “he wo hiru,” “he wo koku,” or “houhi suru.” Farting in public was considered shameful, and in the Edo period (17th to 19th century), there is a story that a woman who farted in front of guests attempted to commit suicide. In addition, a lady called “Heoibikuni” accompanied a young lady of a good family, and when the young lady farted in public, she would say, “I did it!” and took her place. Meanwhile, in Edo, “farting men,” who performed acrobatics with farting, received enthusiastic applause. They imitated the clucking of a chicken with their farts, or did a realistic representation of a water wheel by farting and doing a somersault. Some criticized the performance as vulgar, but the brilliant HIRAGA Gennai said, “How dare you take a useless fart and sublimate it into an original art form!” He defended the man. Coincidentally, in Paris at the end of the 19th century, a “petomane” (fart man) appeared and took the world by storm with a similar farting performance. There are also picture scrolls depicting enemies and friends attacking each other with farts and fighting. They would fight off the enemyʼs farts by fanning them with a fan, and they would store the stinky farts in a bag and spray them all at once into the enemy camp. If you search “He-gassen” on the Internet, you can see very funny “Fart Battle Picture Scrolls,” which will make you feel like you are in the middle of a fart fight. Did you laugh “he-” at this fart story? Letʼs smile and pray for “he-wa (peace)” together.