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For many of those who survived, major earthquakes had the effect of enriching them with abundant, high-paying work. Skilled laborers in construction-related trades raked in the most money, but all sorts of laborers and small merchants would have benefited from the reconstruction work. Click on each thumbnail image below to see the full-sized version. Each image is numbered and a brief explanation is included below.
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1. Seppuku-namazu (Namazu disemboweling himself). This image depicts several aspects of a major earthquake. Above left are the spirits of the dead. Above right is the Kashima Deity, one of whose arrows is embedded in the giant namazu. He has apparently ordered the namazu to perform seppuku (self-disembowelment), and money pours out of his belly. The namazu puts the money in boxes marked "Money: 1000 gold ryô" and hands them to the survivors.
2. Hanjô takarabune (Prosperity treasure ship). This treasure ship features the body of an earthquake namazu. It floats on a sea of broken rood tiles, and its sail is a cracked wall propped up by a makeshift support. Inside the ship, around a huge pile of money, are the traditional *Seven Deities of Good Fortune,* who are often *depicted together in a ship.* But in this image, the deities are not dressed in their usual manner. Instead, they appear as: a carpenter, a plasterer, a general laborer, a roof tile seller, a fire fighter, and a courtesan. Presumably business increased for courtesans, perhaps on account of all the newly-rich laborers with cash to spent on entertainment (see #4 below).
3. Kashima kaname-ishi shinzu (True image of the kaname-ishi of Kashima). The top box depicts the kaname-ishi breaking through the surface of the earth in the shrine enclosure. A wispy line runs from the kaname-ishi to the earthquake namazu in the foreground, over whom the Kashima Deity has re-asserted control. Scattered about in the quake's aftermath are gold coins and the various tools of the occupations who will most benefit financially from the situation.
4. Jishin yoke no uta (Song to ward off earthquakes). Here the deity of good fortune, Daikokuten, rains down money from the clouds. The text of the song may be translated roughly as: "The largess of the god of water has aided our lives. We're off to a prostitute's house to have a good time." The first sentence probably has multiple meanings. First, literally, a rainstorm may have helped extinguish the flames. Next, the namazu, of course, dwells within the realm of water. Finally, it is as if money is has been raining down from the clouds. And, as we shall see later, there may be a connection between Daikokuten's name and Matthew Perry's steamships--stay tuned.