Preface

    To my way of thinking, the extinction of flora and fauna in the outer world corresponds to the extinction of many unique forms within ourselves. The time has come for us to reconsider our relationship with nature. It may be too late, but in order to move from a jealous co-existence to a true co- living, we need to enrich the ecosystem within ourselves, which is also in danger.
    All sorts of creatures riding the hazy border between life and death, heedless of our human time, coming back and forth leisurely across the border of fantasy and reality -- they have been at the heart of the struggle between people and nature all along. I have chosen as my subjects these creatures abused and neglected by the dream of progress. Each is like a discarded aspect of humanity, for we are a part of the natural world. By rediscovering these missing faces from nature, we rediscover the lost or dimmed sides of ourselves.
-- Sudo Hisao