1
00:00:20,900 --> 00:00:25,050
Imagine a realm where the seasons' rhythms rule

2
00:00:25,100 --> 00:00:29,550
where centuries of agriculture
and fishing have reshaped the land

3
00:00:29,600 --> 00:00:33,150
yet where people and nature remain in harmony

4
00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:42,150
Sangoro Tanaka lives in just such a paradise

5
00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:47,550
At 83, he's a guardian of one
of Japan's secret watergardens

6
00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:57,950
Over 1000 years, towns and villages
have developed a unique system

7
00:00:58,000 --> 00:01:01,950
to make springs and water part of their homes

8
00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:11,950
From inside their houses, the stream
pours into Japan's largest freshwater lake

9
00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:15,350
near the ancient capital of Kyoto

10
00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:26,750
This is a habitat so precious,

11
00:01:26,800 --> 00:01:31,150
the Japanese have a special word for it: Satoyama

12
00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:35,150
villages where mountains give way to plains

13
00:01:43,200 --> 00:01:49,150
They are exceptional environments essential
to both the people who maintain them

14
00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:52,950
and to the wildlife that now share them

15
00:02:09,000 --> 00:02:15,050
Late February, at Lake Biwa,
an area 5 times the size of Paris

16
00:02:15,100 --> 00:02:18,450
Its year has 4 distinct seasons

17
00:02:23,500 --> 00:02:28,250
Reeds desiccated by winter winds
feel the heat of spring

18
00:02:31,300 --> 00:02:36,550
They are all remain, the rest have gone
to make roofs or screens

19
00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:42,350
Flames consume both pest and weed

20
00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:48,450
The ash will prove a powerful fertilizer

21
00:02:55,500 --> 00:03:02,450
Destruction creates the very conditions in which
a wide range of species will eventually flourish

22
00:03:06,900 --> 00:03:09,950
By April, new shoots sprout

23
00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,550
the fire and smoke have provoked new growth

24
00:03:15,500 --> 00:03:18,250
Spring puts on its new coat

25
00:03:23,300 --> 00:03:28,650
Melt water cascades from the mountains
swelling the lake till it brims over

26
00:03:28,700 --> 00:03:32,350
parched earth soaked into wetland

27
00:03:39,400 --> 00:03:43,250
Sudden sounds split the still of the day

28
00:03:51,300 --> 00:03:56,650
A chain of male carp dance after a female

29
00:04:02,700 --> 00:04:08,750
Some are longer than a man's arm,
but she's bigger still, heavy with eggs

30
00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:15,150
She releases her eggs up to 200,000 of them

31
00:04:15,200 --> 00:04:18,150
and the males race to fertilize them

32
00:04:31,200 --> 00:04:36,350
For the rest of the year,
these carp inhabit the chill depths of the lake

33
00:04:36,400 --> 00:04:39,650
To spawn, they must seek warm shallows

34
00:04:43,700 --> 00:04:47,350
Spring's rising energy is released

35
00:04:52,400 --> 00:04:56,250
Over 200 carp crowd here today

36
00:05:03,300 --> 00:05:06,450
The conditions created by the firing of the marsh,

37
00:05:06,500 --> 00:05:09,350
offer an ideal site for breeding

38
00:05:20,100 --> 00:05:25,950
There are only a few days a year
when so many fish throng here

39
00:05:33,000 --> 00:05:37,050
Sangoro, the fisherman, won't miss his chance

40
00:05:40,100 --> 00:05:46,350
His methods, his 20-year-old boat,
his bamboo pole all are tried and tested

41
00:05:51,400 --> 00:05:56,650
It takes years to really master
the art of punting

42
00:06:02,700 --> 00:06:06,050
The river courses with fresh mountain torrents

43
00:06:06,100 --> 00:06:10,150
but here and there, natural springs
well up from the bottom

44
00:06:19,200 --> 00:06:21,350
The marsh is a maze,

45
00:06:21,400 --> 00:06:24,650
but to Sangoro, it's as familiar as his garden

46
00:06:24,700 --> 00:06:29,450
He has some 50 traps set in various corners

47
00:06:50,500 --> 00:06:54,450
The carp are Lake Biwa's spring gift

48
00:06:56,500 --> 00:06:59,450
Sangoro only fishes from March to June

49
00:06:59,500 --> 00:07:02,950
when the shoals retreat to the lake

50
00:07:06,000 --> 00:07:09,950
He uses a simply snare of traditional materials

51
00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:11,750
There's not even any bait

52
00:07:11,800 --> 00:07:15,650
He just sinks a trap for the fish to swim into

53
00:07:25,700 --> 00:07:28,550
His haul includes other fish as well as carp

54
00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:32,450
as they all flock to spawn in the shallows

55
00:07:42,500 --> 00:07:46,750
This trap is full of carp called crucians

56
00:07:46,800 --> 00:07:50,850
With a single trap, he may
net a dozen fish to take home

57
00:08:35,300 --> 00:08:40,450
As soon as Sangoro returns,
he prepares the fish for the table

58
00:08:43,500 --> 00:08:47,750
The catch is usually sold
or cooked for super that evening

59
00:08:47,800 --> 00:08:51,050
But today, he's preparing funazushi

60
00:08:54,100 --> 00:09:00,750
Funazushi is believed to be how sushi
first started, perhaps 1000 years ago

61
00:09:04,800 --> 00:09:08,750
It's salted and fermented crucian carp and rice

62
00:09:08,800 --> 00:09:13,650
It smells sour and takes a long time to make

63
00:09:15,700 --> 00:09:18,550
First, salt your fish

64
00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:20,550
stand for 3 months

65
00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:23,350
mix with boiled rice to ferment

66
00:09:23,400 --> 00:09:26,750
leave another 6 months

67
00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:29,150
The ingredients - rice and fish

68
00:09:29,200 --> 00:09:32,950
are the key items of the Japanese diet

69
00:09:38,000 --> 00:09:43,550
Sangoro's home lies about
2km inland from the lakeshore

70
00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:47,950
Water from boreholes under the village
is piped into the houses

71
00:09:57,700 --> 00:10:02,650
After it's been used, the water
passes into a manmade stream

72
00:10:09,300 --> 00:10:15,150
What could be a barren canal
teems with hidden life

73
00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:25,650
As spring gives way to early summer

74
00:10:25,700 --> 00:10:28,650
aquatic plants reach for the sun

75
00:10:28,700 --> 00:10:32,750
This one takes its name from
the tree flower it resembles

76
00:10:33,800 --> 00:10:37,450
the palm flower underwater buttercup

77
00:10:52,500 --> 00:10:55,550
This little stickleback has no scales

78
00:10:55,600 --> 00:10:58,850
and can only live in the clearest of freshwater

79
00:11:00,900 --> 00:11:04,150
It normally prefers cold northern currents

80
00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:06,550
This is the further south it's found

81
00:11:14,100 --> 00:11:18,150
The channel also harbors
some strange-looking creatures

82
00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:31,350
brook lampreys, primitive jawless fish
that resemble eels

83
00:11:31,400 --> 00:11:36,050
A river crab discovers just
how slippery lampreys are

84
00:11:36,100 --> 00:11:40,850
The channel through the village is home
to creatures large and small

85
00:11:43,900 --> 00:11:46,150
The water sustains people, too

86
00:11:46,200 --> 00:11:49,450
And in turn, they use it sustainably

87
00:11:56,200 --> 00:11:59,850
Each home has a built-in pool or water tank

88
00:11:59,900 --> 00:12:03,550
that lies partly inside,
partly outside its walls

89
00:12:05,300 --> 00:12:09,750
In the pool lounge friendly ornamental carp

90
00:12:12,800 --> 00:12:17,350
A continuous stream of spring water
is piped right into a basin

91
00:12:17,400 --> 00:12:20,650
so freshwater is always available

92
00:12:27,700 --> 00:12:30,650
The carp are not purely ornamental

93
00:12:30,700 --> 00:12:32,650
nor are they to be eaten

94
00:12:34,400 --> 00:12:36,950
People rinse out pots in the tanks

95
00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:39,850
and clean their freshly picked vegetables

96
00:12:41,900 --> 00:12:44,850
If they simply pour the food scraps
back in the water

97
00:12:44,900 --> 00:12:48,050
they risk polluting the whole village supply

98
00:12:50,100 --> 00:12:51,250
however

99
00:12:55,300 --> 00:13:00,350
carp can scour out even the greasy
or burnt pans

100
00:13:05,200 --> 00:13:09,550
They do the washing-up in Satoyama villages

101
00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:17,450
This traditional arrangement
is called the riverside method

102
00:13:17,500 --> 00:13:20,150
it's used all over Japan

103
00:13:23,200 --> 00:13:24,950
Cleaned up by the carp,

104
00:13:25,000 --> 00:13:28,450
the tank water eventually rejoins the channel

105
00:13:38,500 --> 00:13:45,350
For some wildlife, the manmade creek
provides an ideal place to raise young

106
00:13:53,400 --> 00:13:56,650
Like this variety of freshwater goby,

107
00:13:56,700 --> 00:14:00,350
a small fish about as long as a little finger

108
00:14:01,400 --> 00:14:05,150
The villagers call it the tiny mud crawler

109
00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:08,650
A male is busy excavating
a breeding site

110
00:14:12,500 --> 00:14:16,650
The even bottom supplies
a perfect hidey-hole

111
00:14:21,700 --> 00:14:25,850
As always, the best locations
are highly sought after

112
00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:29,850
Here comes another male

113
00:14:29,900 --> 00:14:31,950
he'd like to move in

114
00:14:34,000 --> 00:14:36,950
And he's prepared to fight for it

115
00:14:47,000 --> 00:14:50,350
both do all they can to look threatening

116
00:14:55,400 --> 00:14:59,750
Opening their mouths and erecting
their dorsal fins to look bigger

117
00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:11,750
It's a victory for the sitting tenant

118
00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:20,850
There's another goby behind him

119
00:15:25,600 --> 00:15:30,550
She is hanging upside-down
and she's laying eggs

120
00:15:36,600 --> 00:15:41,850
The victory over the den gave her
a place to spawn in safety

121
00:15:51,300 --> 00:15:54,650
The old simply life of Satoyama communities

122
00:15:54,700 --> 00:15:59,450
is attracting some young Japanese
back from the cities

123
00:16:09,500 --> 00:16:14,250
It's June, 4 months after
the hungry flames licked the air

124
00:16:14,300 --> 00:16:18,550
reeds that rose from the ashes
now reach overhead

125
00:16:21,300 --> 00:16:25,450
The marshy landscape takes on its summer look

126
00:16:32,500 --> 00:16:35,950
The dense growth is almost like a jungle

127
00:16:40,000 --> 00:16:43,450
A world filled with tiny lives

128
00:16:48,500 --> 00:16:52,950
Each single reed stem is a microcosm

129
00:16:55,000 --> 00:17:00,250
Tiny organisms called pseudoplankton
live on their surface

130
00:17:03,300 --> 00:17:08,150
Forests of tentacles reach out
to seize organic material

131
00:17:31,200 --> 00:17:36,350
Earlier in spring, young carp
hatched in the flooded fields,

132
00:17:36,400 --> 00:17:39,250
They stay there for about 3 months

133
00:17:41,300 --> 00:17:43,350
The reed beds are their nurseries

134
00:17:43,400 --> 00:17:47,750
where they have plenty to eat and
are concealed from predatory birds

135
00:17:50,800 --> 00:17:54,450
An infant fish meets a sudden end

136
00:17:55,500 --> 00:17:56,750
It's been grabbed

137
00:18:02,600 --> 00:18:07,650
The attacker is the larva
of Japan's largest dragonfly

138
00:18:14,300 --> 00:18:18,750
This aggressive ambusher hides
in sand or gravel

139
00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:36,450
Only its head protrudes,
as it lies in wait for its prey

140
00:18:44,100 --> 00:18:48,750
Its correct name is the golden-ringed dragonfly

141
00:18:49,800 --> 00:18:52,850
But to the Japanese and to Sangoro,

142
00:18:52,900 --> 00:18:57,550
in its adult form
it's the king of dragonflies

143
00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:05,050
Chicks accompany a parent coot

144
00:19:06,100 --> 00:19:09,250
Now is the best time to find food

145
00:19:13,300 --> 00:19:16,050
An adult calls in warning

146
00:19:23,100 --> 00:19:26,750
the cause, the coot's number one enemy, a weasel

147
00:19:26,800 --> 00:19:29,750
egg-thief and baby coot-snatcher

148
00:19:33,400 --> 00:19:35,050
a narrow escape

149
00:19:35,100 --> 00:19:39,550
Waterfowl have to guard
against foxes and snakes too

150
00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:48,050
For safety, grebes make floating fortresses
anchored to firmly rooted plants

151
00:19:52,100 --> 00:19:57,550
An adult bird is particularly alert
when the eggs are hatching

152
00:20:01,600 --> 00:20:03,850
Each grebe has its own territory

153
00:20:03,900 --> 00:20:08,050
and each nests at the same place every year

154
00:20:14,100 --> 00:20:16,050
Here comes Sangoro

155
00:20:16,100 --> 00:20:18,150
the birds know him already

156
00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:20,550
This is his regular route

157
00:20:30,600 --> 00:20:36,450
He spends 2 hours checking
all the traps he set yesterday

158
00:20:40,500 --> 00:20:45,650
His work done, Sangoro returns
to the landing stage

159
00:20:51,700 --> 00:20:54,550
You should see the ones that got away

160
00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:11,250
Turning muddy banks
into reed beds has paid dividends

161
00:21:11,300 --> 00:21:15,850
He has nearly 50 fish in all
of 8 different types

162
00:21:25,900 --> 00:21:28,750
Sangoro won't eat the smallest fish

163
00:21:28,800 --> 00:21:31,750
he puts them aside

164
00:21:37,800 --> 00:21:40,750
He will share his good fortune

165
00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:47,650
The grey heron knows
what will happen next

166
00:21:50,500 --> 00:21:53,450
Sangoro finishes cleaning out his boat

167
00:21:53,500 --> 00:21:58,050
and another pair of eyes
watches his every move

168
00:22:00,100 --> 00:22:04,550
Each fishing season this kite
pays Sangoro a visit

169
00:22:08,600 --> 00:22:12,850
When Sangoro leaves, the grey heron
doesn't wait any longer

170
00:22:14,500 --> 00:22:17,950
It's happy to clear up

171
00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:24,750
Sangoro left the tiddlers for the birds

172
00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:28,650
It's his way of sharing nature's riches
with those around him

173
00:22:37,400 --> 00:22:41,050
And they are only too pleased to take part

174
00:23:05,100 --> 00:23:08,650
The kite will take the fish
back to hungry chicks

175
00:23:18,500 --> 00:23:22,150
Where the village houses crowd
most closely together

176
00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:25,750
above a garden, a lone pine towers

177
00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:29,050
on a branch is a large nest

178
00:23:50,100 --> 00:23:52,250
There are two chicks there

179
00:23:52,300 --> 00:23:57,150
They are developing steadily under
the watchful eyes of the villagers

180
00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:16,050
Sangoro's gift is a token of the
village's close ties with wildlife

181
00:24:30,100 --> 00:24:35,850
It's 5 days since the gobies first
laid eggs in the village channel

182
00:24:51,900 --> 00:24:54,650
The male is still around

183
00:24:58,700 --> 00:25:00,350
He's very protective,

184
00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:05,650
keeping predators away and
taking great care of his offspring

185
00:25:09,700 --> 00:25:13,450
Golden eyes peer out of the egg capsules

186
00:25:14,500 --> 00:25:16,750
They are ready to break out

187
00:25:31,800 --> 00:25:36,350
The anxious father fans them,
keeping them oxygenated

188
00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:56,750
The newly-hatched young are
barely the size of a match head

189
00:25:56,800 --> 00:26:01,750
Tiny as they are, they are
about to embark on a journey

190
00:26:08,800 --> 00:26:13,250
They will ride the current,
the 2km to Lake Biwa

191
00:26:13,300 --> 00:26:17,050
There, they will feed
on the abundant plankton

192
00:26:22,100 --> 00:26:28,850
At the same time, another new life
is about to undergo a striking change

193
00:26:35,900 --> 00:26:40,050
The larva of a golden-ringed dragonfly

194
00:26:43,100 --> 00:26:45,850
In the dark, hidden from predators

195
00:26:45,900 --> 00:26:49,850
it quietly begins its metamorphosis

196
00:27:29,900 --> 00:27:34,150
The larva is now a fully-winged dragonfly

197
00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:37,250
In ten days, it will be sexually mature

198
00:27:37,300 --> 00:27:41,750
and ready to trigger the next generation

199
00:28:32,800 --> 00:28:36,750
In the sticky heat of mid-July,
villagers gather

200
00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:55,150
Overgrown banks block the stream,
time to clear the water plants

201
00:28:56,200 --> 00:29:00,950
20 families bond together
for their part of the channel

202
00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:07,550
For the villagers, it's a welcome task their
ancestors carried out for hundreds of years

203
00:29:09,600 --> 00:29:12,850
For the fish in the creek,
it's a huge nuisance

204
00:29:12,900 --> 00:29:18,250
Flushed out of the shade of vegetation,
they seek refuge elsewhere

205
00:29:26,300 --> 00:29:29,950
It's the children's big moment

206
00:30:06,000 --> 00:30:12,450
With wild creatures so close,
children experience nature directly

207
00:30:15,500 --> 00:30:20,650
Fish and birds are an everyday
part of their lives

208
00:30:33,700 --> 00:30:37,350
3 months have elapsed at Sangoro's house

209
00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:42,250
Sangoro's wife, Chikano
washes the fish salted in spring

210
00:30:48,300 --> 00:30:51,450
Next, she will bury them in rice

211
00:30:57,500 --> 00:31:01,950
Sangoro's job is the back-breaking bit

212
00:31:10,000 --> 00:31:13,150
First, they lay out the fish evenly

213
00:31:13,200 --> 00:31:15,050
then, they cover them

214
00:31:15,100 --> 00:31:18,150
They build up several layers

215
00:31:28,200 --> 00:31:33,250
The rice-starch feeds microorganisms
that cause fermentation

216
00:31:48,300 --> 00:31:52,850
With nature's blessing, the funazushi
will be good again this year

217
00:32:04,400 --> 00:32:08,350
After the clean-up,
the channel runs smooth and clear

218
00:32:08,400 --> 00:32:12,350
Small fry are encouraged to return

219
00:32:18,400 --> 00:32:21,250
The young gobies are now
the size of a fingernail

220
00:32:21,300 --> 00:32:24,150
ten times as big as they were

221
00:32:34,200 --> 00:32:40,750
The hatchlings from the village have spent
2 months feeding on Lake Biwa's planktons

222
00:32:49,800 --> 00:32:53,450
They press on upstream,
no obstacle deters them

223
00:32:53,500 --> 00:32:56,750
not even vertical walls

224
00:33:09,800 --> 00:33:12,650
Inland, the channel narrows

225
00:33:12,700 --> 00:33:17,950
And ahead lies something
only too keen to greet them

226
00:33:38,000 --> 00:33:41,050
It's a Japanese keelback

227
00:33:43,100 --> 00:33:49,050
It feeds on fish which is unusual
for terrestrial snakes

228
00:34:09,100 --> 00:34:13,350
The quick brown keelback
catches the lazy goby

229
00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:36,150
Those who escape continue
their travels upstream

230
00:34:36,200 --> 00:34:40,650
They must avoid herons
and carnivorous fish, too

231
00:34:43,700 --> 00:34:48,850
The little gobies must find
somewhere safe from ambushers

232
00:34:53,900 --> 00:34:57,150
They bump into a row of fence posts

233
00:34:57,200 --> 00:35:01,550
inside are carp which won't attack them

234
00:35:06,600 --> 00:35:10,950
It's the channel that carries away
the household's used water

235
00:36:08,900 --> 00:36:13,050
Sangoro's pool offers the young goby sanctuary

236
00:36:13,100 --> 00:36:16,650
even if he will have to do the dishes

237
00:36:23,700 --> 00:36:29,650
The villagers endure the humid days of
late summer with their natural neighbors

238
00:37:41,700 --> 00:37:44,650
It's a drowsy afternoon

239
00:37:44,700 --> 00:37:48,750
the moist air drains everyone's energy

240
00:38:19,800 --> 00:38:26,150
The temperature of the spring water in the
house pools remains a constant pleasure

241
00:38:57,200 --> 00:39:01,850
Autumn brings welcome fresh breezes

242
00:39:01,900 --> 00:39:07,350
It's time to gather rice,
the staple food of the Japanese

243
00:39:11,400 --> 00:39:13,850
As the rice dries in the autumn sun

244
00:39:13,900 --> 00:39:17,350
the smell of hay spreads across the fields

245
00:39:27,400 --> 00:39:32,050
With the harvest in,
the time has come to give thanks

246
00:39:32,100 --> 00:39:37,150
Sangoro picks two live fish
from the house pool

247
00:39:47,200 --> 00:39:49,150
They will survive

248
00:39:49,200 --> 00:39:54,750
but, tomorrow is the day the god of the
rice paddy goes back to the mountains

249
00:39:55,800 --> 00:39:59,150
He won't depart without
being given offerings:

250
00:39:59,200 --> 00:40:04,350
rice cakes, sake, white radishes
and the fresh fish

251
00:40:12,400 --> 00:40:17,450
Sangoro believes that the god of
his rice paddy will eat before leaving

252
00:40:17,500 --> 00:40:22,550
The god will return next spring
when rice is sown again

253
00:40:32,600 --> 00:40:35,850
Each element in nature has its own god

254
00:40:35,900 --> 00:40:42,950
Every tree, rock and stream,
8 million gods of nature in all

255
00:40:45,000 --> 00:40:49,250
Prayer and ritual express Sangoro's gratitude

256
00:40:50,300 --> 00:40:55,350
He's almost totally self-sufficient,
thanks to the gifts of nature

257
00:41:01,400 --> 00:41:05,950
It's December, winter's harshness looms

258
00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:15,050
Bitter winds start to gust from the lake

259
00:41:15,100 --> 00:41:18,750
sturdy green gives way to brittle gold

260
00:41:21,800 --> 00:41:27,150
Nine months have passed since
the scorched earth sent out shoots

261
00:41:34,200 --> 00:41:37,250
Now the reeds soar above

262
00:41:37,300 --> 00:41:41,250
The slim stems will make screens and thatch

263
00:42:04,300 --> 00:42:06,150
The farmers cut carefully

264
00:42:06,200 --> 00:42:09,650
they don't snap or bend the long stalks

265
00:42:19,700 --> 00:42:22,650
Practice has made them perfect

266
00:42:46,700 --> 00:42:52,650
They heap the bundles into a
tent-like shape called a round stand

267
00:42:52,700 --> 00:42:56,850
The stands will be left
to dry all through the winter

268
00:43:15,900 --> 00:43:19,650
The stands are visible reminders
of the close connection

269
00:43:19,700 --> 00:43:24,350
between the farmers and the environment
they have created

270
00:43:36,400 --> 00:43:40,550
Winter grips the north of Lake Biwa

271
00:43:41,600 --> 00:43:47,850
But even snow can't totally
erase the traces of spring

272
00:43:48,900 --> 00:43:53,950
In Sangoro's house,
the local delicacy is finally ready

273
00:43:59,000 --> 00:44:02,450
He caught the carp in his trap in spring

274
00:44:02,500 --> 00:44:04,350
He and his wife salted them

275
00:44:04,400 --> 00:44:08,450
and when summer came covered them
in rice to ferment

276
00:44:08,500 --> 00:44:12,750
Now a further 6 months have passed

277
00:44:17,800 --> 00:44:20,750
They will eat both fish and rice

278
00:44:21,800 --> 00:44:26,650
Inside is more evidence of nature's bounty

279
00:44:27,700 --> 00:44:29,750
The orange eggs

280
00:44:37,800 --> 00:44:42,850
Sangoro invites his neighbors
to share the funazushi

281
00:44:47,900 --> 00:44:50,250
After half a year of maturing,

282
00:44:50,300 --> 00:44:53,250
the fish has the sour taste of cheese

283
00:44:56,300 --> 00:45:00,550
Slow food that is endlessly satisfying

284
00:45:01,600 --> 00:45:06,150
Preparation, preservation and finally appreciation,

285
00:45:06,200 --> 00:45:09,650
the precious pleasures of people
living close to nature

286
00:45:14,500 --> 00:45:18,850
Right next to their dining room,
there is the basin full to the brim

287
00:45:18,900 --> 00:45:22,950
It's cool in summer, warm in winter

288
00:45:32,000 --> 00:45:35,150
The Japanese describe tight-knit relationships

289
00:45:35,200 --> 00:45:38,950
as being as close as water and fish

290
00:45:39,000 --> 00:45:41,850
intimate and inseparable

291
00:45:42,700 --> 00:45:46,950
Like the pool and this little refuge

292
00:45:51,000 --> 00:45:56,150
The goby sits in a quiet corner
waiting for spring

293
00:46:14,200 --> 00:46:17,950
March finally comes round again

294
00:46:20,000 --> 00:46:23,050
The reed beds have slept
throughout the winter

295
00:46:23,100 --> 00:46:27,350
Now the first rays of sun coax warmth into them

296
00:46:37,400 --> 00:46:43,250
Once more, the silence yields to sounds of life

297
00:46:50,300 --> 00:46:52,450
As the rhythm of the year picks up,

298
00:46:52,500 --> 00:46:56,450
so do lives, human and animal

299
00:47:02,500 --> 00:47:05,050
The Japanese have another saying:

300
00:47:05,100 --> 00:47:08,050
Water comes, the fish live

301
00:47:08,100 --> 00:47:13,850
They mean that when the right time comes,
everything will be fine

302
00:47:20,900 --> 00:47:27,050
Sangoro knows that in the way of
Satoyama, everything has its season

303
00:47:38,100 --> 00:47:45,550
Together, Satoyama people and nature
weave life into a seamless fabric

304
00:47:45,600 --> 00:47:51,650
blessed by water circling
on its journey without end

305
00:47:56,700 --> 00:48:01,250
A new season, a new year, a new cycle

306
00:48:01,300 --> 00:48:06,350
all begin in Japan's Secret Watergarden

307
00:48:07,400 --> 00:48:28,350
Subtitles by Andrew and Hattie
www.mvgroup.org