Source: Noriaki Fukasawa, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Strikingly ominous photos of Mt. Fuji

Mt. Fuji is easily the most iconic symbol of Japan. Internauts often take pictures of the historic mountain, which only became a World Heritage Site in 2013, and share their content online. Naturally, at grape Japan we do our fair share of this as well. For example, we’ve written articles about a collaboration between a shrine and the World Heritage Site. We’ve also covered where to discover the best views of the iconic mountain.

A crescent moon over Mt. Fuji

Yet, there is certainly no shortage of content online. While many photos highlight Mt. Fuji’s more majestic side, others capture more ominous elements.

Take Twitter user Hitoshi Naitou (@hina21no3), for example. The photographer has captured many splendid views of Mt. Fuji in his photography. Just check out the artist’s Twitter page. It is full of magnificient shots of the iconic mountain in winter time or shrouded in the night-time hue of the city below. Pretty striking stuff.

Recently, Hitoshi posted this picture of Mt. Fuji at night:

With the moon hanging about to flatten the top of Mt. Fuji, the conspiracy theorist in me can’t help but think of the Eye of Providence featured on the US dollar. The symbol is loosely associated with Freemasonry organization and its rumored involvement in the founding of America...what could it all mean?

Anyway, Hitoshi’s followers responded:

  • “This photo is the one!”
  • “Thank you for this photo. I can feel a winter chill by looking at it.”

Mt. Fuji towering over the city

Twitter user Inagaki Yasuto (@inagakiyasuto) recently posted a fabulous photo of a snow-covered Mt. Fuji. Indeed, the image is striking and many SNS users were taken aback by the overwhelming presence of the mountain. See for yourself:

“A city that shows us how huge Mt.Fuji is."

Inagaki Yasuto took this picture from Honcho street in Fujiyoshida city, a famous spot for taking pictures of Mt. Fuji.

His followers reacted:

  • “It’s so big. I was almost scared.”
  • “I get excited when I look at Mt. Fuji. But I’ve never seen it appear so big. I want to go to Fujiyoshida city. Thank you for posting your pictures as always.”
  • “The towering mountain and the boy and his mother who are holding hands as they walk across the road are cute. Nice work. Thank you.”
  • “Wow, what a spectacular shot. I want to go there at once.”
  • “I was like ‘Hooo’ when I saw this picture the first time. It’s awesome.”
  • “Wow, somehow I cried. It’s wonderful!”
  • "I want to live in a town like this town. On my day off, I want to eat breakfast at the cafe and have a cup of coffee."
  • "It's a nice photo. It's like movie a movie scene."

Of course, the photo has not been edited. Yet, if you put any stock into online rumours, some say Mt. Fuji is becoming bigger, and it’s shifting slowly recently. Not sure whether it’s true or not, but I understand how someone might be led to think so after seeing a picture like this.

Yin and yang Mt.Fuji

Sure enough, there are other mysterious pictures of Mt.Fuji. Just look at Twitter user GAIA FORCE TV’s (@GAIAFORCETV) page. The handle recently tweeted this post:

“There is no snow on half of Mt. Fuji for some reason. Perhaps the surface of the mountain is getting warmer… is it going to erupt…?”

Usually, Mt. Fuji is completely covered in snow per the picture on the right. But the SNS user suggests that the surface of the mountain may be getting warmer. Which could only mean...it could be getting ready to erupt!

Naturally, his followers were shocked to hear the news. They reacted:

  • “I grew up near Mt. Fuji for 28 years, and I’ve never seen it like in this picture. This year is weird, isn’t it? I hope it doesn’t erupt.”
  • “Mt. Fuji has snow on top even during summer, right? This year something is wrong.”
  • “This year is so cold, and usually, Mt. Fuji has snow. But something seems unusual this year. Some people say perhaps it’s because of magma.”
  • “It will erupt in the near future.”
  • “If Mt. Fuji erupts, will the lava flow out?”
  • “I’m scared!”
  • "The Japanese islands move peculiarly recently. I think it’s not related, but the Hawaiian mountain Kilauea erupted recently. I hope nothing is happening.”
  • “It’s like yin and yang”

Mt. Fuji is, of course, loved as a Japanese symbol since long ago. In the past, technology was much cruder, so people could only suspect when the mountain might become active. Indeed, some Japanese people believe that if Mt. Fuji has an unusual appearance, it may be a premonition from the gods. Unfortunately, however, it means something bad—an earthquake, for example—may be about to occur.

On the other, maybe it’s just the latest sign of global warming and nothing to worry about...

By - Luke Mahoney.

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