Page 113 - English Expedition Class 4

17 A Thousand Origami

Cranes

The word origami comes from the Japanese words ori meaning ‘folding’ and kami meaning
‘paper’. The art of creating tiny structures by folding paper is called origami. The famous
German educator Friedrich Fröbel, who designed the educational system of the kindergarten,

considered origami an effective tool for teaching children about geometric shapes. Traditionally,
origami refers to the practice of making structures out of paper by simply folding it. Aids such
as glue and scissors were avoided. However, artists nowadays also make use of technology to

make beautiful origami.
Read on to know about the Japanese tradition of folding paper cranes.

It was summer vacation in school. Reem and Taher were watching a movie in Reem’s

house. It was about a twelve-year-old Japanese girl called Sadako Sasaki who died due
to radiation sickness in 1955.
1
Sadako was only two years old when atom bombs were dropped about two

kilometres away from her home in Japan. When she was eleven years old, symptoms of
2
the ‘bomb disease’ started appearing on her body. The doctors told her that she would
probably live for another year.
It is a popular belief in Japan that anyone who folds a thousand paper cranes is
visited by good luck. This made little Sadako fold paper cranes using any paper that

she found around her. The movie said that Sadako had folded about six hundred paper
cranes before she died. The rest of the cranes were folded by her friends and well-
wishers and buried along with her when she died.

‘Such a touching movie!’ said Reem.
3
‘I wonder why the Japanese fold paper to make cranes,’ said Taher.
4
‘My mother makes small paper animals. Let’s go ask her,’ said Reem promptly .
Reem’s mother, Revathi, was an artist. She painted beautiful pictures and practised
origami as a hobby. The two children came running to her. ‘Mother, we watched the

movie you asked us to. We want to know more about paper cranes and how they bring
good luck,’ said Reem.

1 radiation sickness: a disease caused due to exposure to 3 touching: (here) arousing feeling of sympathy
radioactive chemicals 4 promptly: without any delay
2 symptom: sign
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