Sadako’s Cranes: A Message of Peace

The story of Sadako Sasaki has made the origami crane a Peace Crane, an international symbol of peace. Sadako was born in 1943 in Hiroshima. She was just two years old when the atom bomb was dropped on 6th August 1945.

The story of Sadako Sasaki has made the origami crane a Peace Crane, an international symbol of peace. Sadako was born in 1943 in Hiroshima. She was just two years old when the atom bomb was dropped on 6th August 1945.

Sadako grew; to all appearances she was a healthy, happy girl. She liked to run. In the 6th grade she was one of the fastest runners in her school and her dream was to become a physical education teacher.

Then towards the end of November 1954, Sadako caught a cold. She had lumps on her neck and behind her ears, and her face swelled as if she had the mumps. Sadako was diagnosed with leukemia, which people in Japan called "the atom bomb" disease.

By February she was in the Hiroshima Red Cross Hospital. In August, while in hospital, she heard about the story of an old Japanese legend: anyone who folds a thousand paper cranes would be granted a wish. She was shown colourful paper cranes to illustrate the story.

Sadako was filled with hope; maybe folding paper cranes would make her well again. She began making the cranes. She also began to think of what peace meant. The girl’s wish for health, peace, and the origami cranes she was making day after day came together. Each bird she made had a special urgent message for the world: “I will write peace on your wings and you will fly all over the world.”

Sadako made more than a thousand cranes before she died on October 25, 1955. She was all of twelve years old.

Her friends in school wanted to remember Sadako’s story, and the story of all the children killed by the atom bomb. Young people all over Japan helped her friends to collect money for a statue of Sadako in the Hiroshima Peace Park.

This statue of Sadako holds a golden crane. Her friends’ wish – the wish of all children in the world – are inscribed below: “This is our cry, This is our prayer, Peace in the world."

Since then people all over the world fold paper cranes and send them to the Sadako's monument in Hiroshima, in memory of Sadako and all children killed through wars.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are the author's personal views, and do not necessarily represent the views of Newsclick

Adapted from Story of the Peace Crane, Danuse Murty, Buddhist Council of NSW