A Morning with the Sacred Deer of Nara: A Reflection

As I passed the National Museum of Art, a flicker of movement caught my eye—a lone deer. Then another. And another. Within moments, I was surrounded. Twenty, perhaps more. Males with majestic antlers, delicate does, and young ones just learning the rhythm of the world. It was quiet, peaceful, profound.

And then, as if choreographed by something greater, one deer stepped toward me, stopping a few metres away. It bowed.

And so, naturally, I bowed back.