Dogra Magra (9/47)

by Hisashi Yumeno

"...The Theory of the Brain..."

"That's right. It was a thesis of about 30,000 characters titled 'The Theory of the Brain,' but its content, in stark contrast to 'The Fetus's Dream' I mentioned earlier, was extremely solemn and grave. To avoid misinterpretation, it was written in two languages, German and Latin. This thesis was born from Professor Masaki's intellect and energy in just two or three weeks, on the second floor of an inn with no literature or resources whatsoever, which can only be described as extraordinary. ...Moreover, with this thesis, Professor Masaki revealed the mysterious functions of the brain, which no one had been able to explain, prove, or experiment with until then, as if looking into a mirror. And at the same time, he very concisely explained numerous strange phenomena that had been questioned in the psychiatric community. ...Therefore, due to his professional field, Professor Saitō, who first saw this thesis, was naturally astonished and studied it for about a year, forgetting to eat and sleep. But last year... at the end of February in Taishō 14, after completing a thorough review, he visited the current President Matsubara at his home early the next morning."

"...As of today, I wish to retire as a professor of psychiatry at Kyūshū University and recommend Masaki-kun as my successor. If he were to be taken by another university, I believe it would be a disgrace to this university..."

he pleaded with tears in his eyes. However, Professor Masaki subsequently disappeared again without even disclosing his lodging. In particular, the current President Matsubara, who deeply respected Professor Saitō's character, while calming the hurried Professor Saitō and hoping for his retention, decided to award Professor Masaki a degree for this thesis as a doctoral dissertation... This has been passed down as a beautiful story in academic circles. Although, it seems this matter was leaked by someone and was even published in newspapers... I, however, unfortunately missed that article..."

After Dr. Wakabayashi finished speaking, he seemed to be struck by the memory of that time, and with a moved expression, he quietly closed his eyes. I, too, filled with admiration, looked up at Dr. Saito's portrait, and perhaps because I looked at it that way, he appeared as noble as a god, and I involuntarily let out a light sigh and murmured.

"Then, it's as if Professor Saito passed away to make way for Professor Masaki, isn't it?"

Dr. Wakabayashi, upon hearing my question, seemed even more deeply moved, and the furrow between his closed eyebrows deepened further. He then let out a long sigh, as if about to cough, but eventually opened his eyes quietly, and with a meaningful gaze, he met my eyes with his pale ones, speaking with a slightly stronger tone.

"That's right. Professor Saito passed away suddenly last year, shortly after Professor Masaki received his degree... on October 19, Taisho 14. Moreover, it was an unnatural death."

"...Eh, an unnatural death..."

I uttered in an empty voice. The flow of the conversation had changed so abruptly that I alternately compared Dr. Wakabayashi's pale face with the smile of Dr. Saito in the frame. I wondered how such a person of excellent character could have met an unnatural death...

However, Dr. Wakabayashi gazed at my face quietly, as if pressing his doubts upon me. Then, he spoke again with a slightly stronger tone.

“...That’s right. Professor Saitou died an unnatural death. Last year, on October 18th of Taisho 14... that is, around 5 PM the day before his unnatural death, Professor Saitou finished his work as usual, asked his colleagues in the medical office to take care of a few errands, and left this room. After that, he never returned to his home in Hakozaki, Amiya-cho. And early the next morning, he was found floating as a drowned body on the beach behind the Hakozaki Aquarium. The discoverer was a cleaning woman from the aquarium, but as a result of the police and us rushing to the scene and investigating after being urgently notified, it was found that he had consumed a large amount of alcohol. It is presumed that on his way home, he met someone very close to him, drank too much after a long time, took a wrong turn on his way home, and fell from that stone wall. ...However, if you go there, you'll see that the area behind the university is characterized by the outskirts of town, with garbage dumps, grasslands, and fields, and it's not a place where anyone other than a severely intoxicated person would get lost. ...Therefore, we naturally thoroughly investigated the possibility of murder and his belongings, but not a single item was missing. ...Furthermore, combining the accounts of his family and friends, it is clear that Professor Saitou only drank outside when invited by someone very close and trusted within the university. The faces of all those individuals are known, and it is no exaggeration to say that he never drank alone outside of his evening drinks at home. ...Moreover, it was customary for someone to always escort him home if he got heavily intoxicated outside, so this case was considered a completely strange exception. For this reason, we imagined various possibilities and conducted extensive research, butAfter all, the area near where the teacher fell into the sea was a long breakwater extending from the Chiyo-cho direction, so we couldn't find a single footprint to indicate where or how he walked, or where he might have stumbled and fallen into the sea. Not only was the presence of a companion unknown, but even if it were a homicide, there were absolutely no clues to the perpetrator...

...On the other hand, considering Professor Saito's character, as I just explained, it's almost impossible to imagine him incurring anyone's resentment. Therefore, it was ultimately concluded that it must have been an accident. Professor Saito rarely drank alcohol, but his only flaw was that he would lose his memory when drunk. We truly lost a regrettable person."

"...Has the person who drank with him not been identified yet?"

"...Well... we don't know for sure yet, but it would take someone with an extremely delicate conscience to come forward."

"...But... but... if they don't come forward, won't they have to live with a suffocating feeling their whole life?"

"According to the common sense of people nowadays, there's no need to be so conscientious. Even if they came forward, Professor Saito wouldn't rise from the grave. They would just bear an unpleasant stigma and face some kind of sanction, which would ultimately only increase the damage to society... Isn't that how they think?... Or rather, they might have completely forgotten about it by now..."

"...But isn't that cowardly..."

"...That goes without saying."

"...In the first place, can such a thing truly be forgotten..."

"...Well... I believe such a problem falls under the relationship between 'memory and conscience,' as the late Professor Masaki used to say, and is an interesting subject for research..."

"So, Professor Saito's death ended with just that meaning, then."

"That's right. It ended with just that meaning. It was truly anticlimactic, but from its outcome, it came to hold a very significant meaning. In other words, Dr. Saitō's death became the direct cause for Dr. Masaki to eventually take over the work of the Kyushu University Department of Psychiatry and sit in this chair, and furthermore, it became the indirect cause connecting you and the young lady in Room 6 to this classroom. Let's provisionally call it a 'cause' here. However, whether this cause is man-made or due to divine will, we cannot make a definitive conjecture until you regain your memories of the past..."

"Huh... even something like that, in my memories..."

"Yes. Your past memories contain important keys necessary to solve such questions."

I felt as if my entire body was being encased in a glacier of questions that surged one after another. I involuntarily closed my eyes and shook my head from side to side. However, no memories emerged from it. Yet, along with that, the cruel painting of 'Burning Lunatics,' the smiling portrait of Dr. Saitō, the pale and serious Dr. Wakabayashi, the green glowing large table, and even the ashes of the red Daruma that kept yawning on it, all seemed to have a deep connection to my past. At the same time, surrounded by such deeply fated items, I became aware of the emptiness of my mind, unable to recall anything, and a profound sadness washed over me.

I remained in a state of bewilderment for a while, just blinking my eyes, but then, as if suddenly remembering something, I asked.

"Ah. So, why did Dr. Masaki, who went missing, come to this university?"

"That's due to these circumstances."

Saying that, Dr. Wakabayashi put the watch he had been about to take out back into his pocket. He gave a weak cough and continued his story.

“Just as Professor Saitō’s funeral was taking place, Professor Masaki suddenly appeared out of nowhere to attend. He probably saw the newspaper advertisement… After the funeral, President Matsubara caught him and immediately pressed him to take over Professor Saitō’s position. This was highly unusual, but since the President himself was carrying on the will of Professor Saitō, who had such an elevated character, no one found the President’s approach strange. Rather, he was met with applause of gratitude… If you look at the newspapers from that time, the situation was reported in detail, and Professor Masaki, dressed in a worn-out crested kimono and hakama, surrounded by the applause of the professors, held his head and complained:

“Oh dear, this is troublesome. I really wanted to conduct my research independently. If I become a university professor, I won’t be able to beat my favorite mokugyo, nor sing the Chongare-bushi. First and foremost, I won’t be able to express my inherent wanderlust…”

He muttered dejectedly, but upon hearing this, President Matsubara said…

“It’s too late to complain now. This is your fault for being invited by Professor Saitō’s spirit… You can still beat your mokugyo, but please, I urge you to find enlightenment.”

Everyone forgot the solemnity of the occasion and burst into laughter.

...Soon after, Professor Masaki was appointed to this university, and he actually began an experiment called "Liberation Therapy for the Insane," which he had previously sung about in the "Chong-ga-re Prayer for the Madman's Hell." This once again caused an unusual stir in general society. At the same time, the start of that experiment became the catalyst for the recent fateful connection between Professor Masaki himself, you, and the young lady in Room 6. This, too, can be called divine will... In any case, it is undoubtedly due to the virtuous legacy of the late Professor Saito that we were able to welcome the great Professor Masaki to this university and allow him to work to his heart's content. I believe Professor Masaki also hung this portrait here for that reason..."

I sighed deeply again and couldn't help but look up at Dr. Saito's portrait. I couldn't help but ponder the mystery of the threads of fate that connected Dr. Saito, such a person of character, Dr. Masaki, such a great man, Dr. Wakabayashi before me, the beautiful girl in Room 6, and myself, who was almost an imbecile.

A deeply impressive silence flowed through the room for a while. However, it was soon broken by a question I asked without thinking.

"...Ah... October 19th, Taisho 15... The date on the calendar hanging below Dr. Saito's picture is exactly one year after Dr. Saito passed away, isn't it?"

The moment I turned around, Dr. Wakabayashi's expression changed terrifyingly. It was only for an instant, but his large, pale lips were tightly sealed, his jaw jutted out, and his pale eyes stared fixedly at me. I felt as if I had inadvertently made a similar expression at his sudden change. However, Dr. Wakabayashi gradually regained his composure, and this time, he nodded repeatedly, his forehead glowing with satisfaction.

“...I am impressed you noticed that. Your past memories are finally awakening with increasing clarity. It seems you are just a hair’s breadth away from full recovery... In fact, the moment that question was asked, I was worried your past memories might all come rushing back at once. To tell you the truth, that calendar shows a date from about a month ago. Today is November 20th, Taisho 15...”

“Then... why has it been left like that?”

Dr. Wakabayashi nodded solemnly again. He straightened his bent chest and clasped his hands firmly together, in the same prayer-like posture he had shown earlier in front of the girl in Room 6.

“That question is one of the keys to unlocking the great mystery surrounding your past. In other words, after tearing that calendar to that point, Professor Masaki stopped tearing it any further.”

“...Why was that...?”

“Professor Masaki passed away the very next day... Moreover, he took his own life in the exact same spot where Professor Saito drowned exactly one year ago, behind the Hakozaki Aquarium.”

It was a moment perfectly described as a bolt from the blue. I was struck by an indescribably strange surprise, and felt as if I had involuntarily cried out. And I believe I was moving my mouth when I finally calmed myself down.

“...Professor Masaki... committed suicide...”

When that voice reached my ears, I doubted my own hearing again. Could it really be possible for a great master like Professor Masaki to commit suicide?

Not only that. I stared at Dr. Wakabayashi’s pale face, astonished, bewildered, and dumbfounded, wondering if such a terrifying coincidence could truly exist—that both chief professors of this psychiatric department would die unnatural deaths in the same place, exactly one year apart.

Then, Dr. Wakabayashi, more than ever before, straightened his posture and looked back at me. And he said in a devout voice, as if praying to God:

"...I repeat. Dr. Masaki committed suicide. As I told you, Dr. Masaki, who had spent twenty long years preparing for an unprecedented grand experiment in liberation therapy, finally broke his sword and exhausted his arrows. He was driven into a situation where he had no choice but to commit suicide. ...You probably still don't understand, so to explain it a bit more concretely, Dr. Masaki's original psychiatric experiment was supposed to be completed when you and the young lady in Room 6 each recovered your past memories and left this hospital to enter a happy married life. However, due to an unexpected tragic event, it became deadlocked midway. ...Moreover, no one knew whether that tragedy was Dr. Masaki's fault. ...However, since that day coincidentally fell on the first anniversary of Dr. Saitō's death, his actual death day, he may have felt a kind of 'impermanence.' Dr. Masaki left the human world to fulfill his responsibility. He entrusted everything to me: you and the young lady in Room 6, who were the central materials of that experiment, and all the related documents and administrative matters..."

"...Then..."

I choked on my words. My whole body felt as if it had turned pale from an indescribable excitement, and I barely managed to move my lips.

"...Then... could it be that I... cursed Dr. Masaki's life...?"

"...No. That's not it. It's the exact opposite."

Dr. Wakabayashi stated firmly. Still gazing at me, he slowly shook his head from side to side.

"On the contrary. Dr. Masaki, of course, undertook this research with the resolve to accept his own fate from you. ...No, to go a step further, Dr. Masaki had been prepared for such an outcome for twenty years and had systematically proceeded with his work. He devised a plan to perfectly align the experiment of the ancient theory he discovered with your destiny, and he had been advancing that research."

That explanation gave me even more fear and dread. Unconsciously, I felt suffocated, and I asked, as if spitting out the words,

"...What kind of procedure...?"

"You'll understand if you look at the documents here."

Dr. Wakabayashi, who had been holding the file of documents in his hand while speaking, closed it with a snap and respectfully presented it to me.

I sensed that it was a collection of important documents and received it just as carefully. I then casually flipped through it to check the contents. It was a canvas-covered cardboard folder, with something like a red-covered pamphlet on top, along with a file of felt paper onto which large Western ruled paper and newspaper clippings were pasted. Nothing was written on the cover. However, it was quite heavy, so I closed the cover again with a thud and placed it back on the table.

From across the table, Dr. Wakabayashi's pale eyes met mine steadily.

“...Those are valuable documents that could be called Professor Masaki’s posthumous manuscripts. Among Professor Masaki’s research on psychical science that I mentioned earlier, they include four particularly important manuscripts: psycho-anatomy, psycho-physiology, psycho-pathology, and psycho-genetics. These, along with the main text of ‘On the Brain’ which I had on hand previously, were burned just before his suicide, so now those are the only remaining documents to understand Professor Masaki’s research. Professor Masaki stacked them in that exact order just before his suicide, so they are not in the chronological order of their publication, but by reading them in that order, Professor Masaki’s research content can be easily and interestingly understood in the order he conducted his research.

...First, the red-covered pamphlet bound at the beginning is a song of Aho-dara-kyo called ‘Kichigai Jigoku Gedō Saimon’ (Madman’s Hell Heretic Litany), which Professor Masaki distributed to crowds gathered on main streets during his travels across Japan. It sings of the motive that led him to begin research into mental illness, seeking salvation after witnessing the reality of the abuse of mental patients in modern times.

...Next, pasted onto a felt paper backing are clippings of Professor Masaki’s talks published in local newspapers, which he preserved himself. Among them, the first, titled ‘The Earth’s Surface is a Grand Liberation Treatment Center for the Insane,’ explains Professor Masaki’s initial stance to a newspaper reporter with sharp humor, detailing his motivation to begin research into mental illness out of a desire to save the insane. The fundamental principle of psychopathology, ‘Among humans living on this Earth, there is no one who is not mentally abnormal,’ is demonstrated with extreme exhilaration and frankness.

...Furthermore, in the next section, titled ‘The Brain is Not Where Things are Thought,’ Professor Masaki humorously explains to a newspaper reporter the contents of his great treatise ‘On the Brain,’ which revealed the true function of the ‘brain,’ previously considered impossible to research, and successively solved mental illnesses and other psychic phenomena that conventional science could not resolve.

……Written in brush on the Japanese ruled paper below it is the thesis "The Dream of the Fetus," which can be considered the inverse theorem of "The Theory of the Brain." This thesis clearly elucidates the content of "psychological heredity," explaining how the psychological lives of the parents who gave birth to oneself, as well as the accumulation of various ancestral customs and psychologies, are transmitted to the fetus itself. This thesis caused a great sensation during the review of the first graduation theses at this university. ……At the same time, it can be said that the distant cause of Professor Masaki's eventual suicide, despite possessing such immense talent, is also hidden within this single work.

The hurried notes on the large Western ruled paper that follow are Professor Masaki's will, which can also be regarded as "A Report on the Results of Liberation Therapy Experiments," left behind to provide his final conclusions on these studies. ……Therefore, if you read these documents in that order, you will easily and systematically understand the exhilarating achievements of Professor Masaki, who dedicated his life to research in order to pioneer the field of mental science. At the same time, the ancient flows and rotations of university principles that have secretly governed your own career and led to your current destiny are now, one by one, emitting a great light, rotating before your eyes as splendidly as a kaleidoscope…”