Photo/Illutration A lumber warehouse for reconstruction of Shuri-jo castle’s Seiden main hall, which burned down three years ago, is seen in Naha on Oct. 20. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Chosho Tokuyama saw Shuri-jo castle go up in flames during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945.

Tokuyama, who was a student soldier at the time, described the scene in his 1978 book “Minnami no Iwao no Hate made” (To the end of the great rock of the south).

“The scarlet flames, spiraling and roaring as they whipped up the wind, are soaring to the heavens,” he wrote. “Alas, the curbed gable (of the castle)--the national treasure, our pride and the symbol of Okinawa--is being consumed by flames.”

Three years ago, I saw a similar scene, something I’d never imagined I would.

The castle’s silhouette, familiar to me from my past stint in Okinawa Prefecture, collapsed amid flying sparks. I was rendered speechless.

Video footage of a woman, staring at the burned-out rubble with tears in her eyes, is still vividly etched in my memory.

A local resident said they realized how deeply the castle’s presence had taken root within them only after the loss.

A groundbreaking ceremony to restore Shuri-jo’s Seiden main hall takes place Nov. 3.

A 9-meter-long piece of lumber, which will be used as a beam, will be paraded through Naha with song and dance as part of a big celebration.

I want to believe this will bring a smile back to the face of the weeping woman in the video.

The Ryukyu Kingdom (1429-1879) flourished from trade with China and Southeast Asian nations.

Seiden, which epitomized the finest local craftsmanship, was touted as “giant Ryukyu lacquerware.”

For Okinawa, Shuri-jo, before it burned down, was the symbol of the prefecture’s unique history and culture.

At the same time, I think the castle’s presence taught us that Japan was made up of rich and diverse “veins of water.”

Probably for that reason, the restoration project is said to have attracted more than 4,000 volunteer workers from around the nation.

They scraped baked-on soot off the castle’s precious red roof tiles so they could be reused.

The part played by each volunteer may have been small, but their collective efforts were what mattered.

Standing on the hill of Shuri, one can feel gentle breeze from the sea graced by the silhouettes of the Kerama Islands far off in the distance.

Under the bottomless blue sky rises Shuri-jo in its vivid scarlet glory.

I cannot wait to see “our pride” again.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Nov. 3

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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