The Geisha

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The Geisha in Japanese culture has been around for many hundreds of years although the practice of being a geisha has changed down through the years. The word gheisa means "art"(gei)and (sha) meaning "doer". Most geisha go into training at an early age, some even bonded in the early years as children. Typically they begin their training at 18, some as early as 15. In the early years they started out in training at age six. They live with their mentor and are called Maiko or "Woman of Dance" while an apprentice which goes on for about one year. Then they have another five years or so of completing their training and paying back the mentor for her instruction, the kimonos, food and board, etc. The training is very expensive. After that they can live else where and be independent. Although the traditions have changed the geisha used to have to adhere to what their paying customers wants and had a reputation of being glorified prostitutes. They are actually paid by the hour, hired to entertain at gatherings and parties. They do traditional dances and play traditional instruments like shamisen, shakuhachi and drums. They also sing, read poetry and do the famous tea ceremony. They now have the right to enter into a sexual relationship if they wish to but that is not always the case. The geisha are some of the most successful businesswomen in Japan. Occasionally men take more conditional positions such as dressers, hairstylists, but men have a limited role in the geisha world. There used to be as many as 80,000 geisha, but now only about 1000 still exist in Japan. Picture courtesy Flickr.com