日本流行离婚典礼 砸扁婚戒庆获新生

With divorce on the rise in Japan, some couples are choosing to celebrate the end of an unhappy marriage by saying "I do" for a final time at a divorce ceremony before friends and family.

Divorce ceremonies were pioneered about a year ago by a former salesman, Hiroki Terai, who set up a "divorce mansion" in a small undercover space in Tokyo.

Since then about 25 couples have each paid 55,000 yen ($600) to hold a ceremony with all the pomp and grandeur of a wedding that publicly ends their relationship before they officially file for divorce. Terai said he had received more than 900 inquiries.

The latest couple, who called themselves Mr and Mrs Fujii, met near Sensoji Temple in Tokyo's traditional Asakusa area on Sunday and rode in separate rickshaws to the divorce mansion.

"By putting an end to our marriage, we wanted to give ourselves fresh starts and give our lives a sense of renewal," said Mr Fujii, a 33-year-old businessman.

He said he felt responsible for the failure of his marriage as he spent too much time away from home and too much money on his various interests including cars - despite numerous warnings from his wife.

Friends and family of the Fujii couple followed closely behind the rickshaws on foot, arriving at the divorce mansion for a ceremony where the Fujiis smashed their wedding ring with a gavel, a gesture signifying the end of their partnership.

The gavel has a frog's head as frogs symbolize change in Japanese culture.

"When we smashed the ring together, I felt like 'Oh, this is the end of it, really' and my heart and soul felt renewed. Now I feel I can have a new life and start all over again," said Mr Fujii.

His wife of eight years also expressed relief.

"The moment I saw the smashed ring, I said to myself, 'Yes! That feels so good'," Mrs Fujii said.

Terai, who is believed to be Japan's first "divorce ceremony planner," came up with the idea to help couples celebrate their decision to separate after one of his friends went through a bitter divorce.

Divorce is on the rise in Japan, where it was once taboo, with about 251,000 divorces taking place in 2008, partly blamed on the poor economy taking its toll on romance.

随着日本离婚率的不断上升，该国的一些夫妇选择举办一种离婚典礼来与不幸的婚姻说再见，他们在家人和朋友的共同见证下最后说一次“我愿意”，庆祝不幸婚姻的结束。

离婚典礼服务大约于一年前在日本兴起，当时一个曾做过销售员的名叫寺井广木的男子在东京一个隐蔽的小场所创立了一个“离婚公馆”。

此后，寺井共为约25对夫妇举办了隆重程度堪比结婚典礼的离婚典礼，让他们在正式申请离婚前公开结束婚姻关系。离婚典礼的收费为每对夫妇5.5万日元（600美元）。据寺井介绍，至今他已收到900多人的询问。

最近的一次离婚典礼于上周日举行，当天一对自称藤井的夫妇在东京老城区浅草区的浅草寺附近会合，之后各乘一辆人力车前往离婚公馆。

33岁的藤井先生是一名商人，他说：“通过结束婚姻，我们想给自己一个新的开始，迎接新的生活。”

他说自己应为婚姻失败负责，他不顾妻子的多次警告，经常不在家，为了满足自己买汽车等各种兴趣，花钱大手大脚。

藤井夫妇的家人和朋友紧跟着两人乘坐的人力车步行前往离婚公馆参加典礼。在典礼上，藤井夫妇用一个木槌将结婚戒指砸毁，宣告两人关系的结束。

这把木槌上有一个青蛙头雕饰，因为在日本文化中青蛙象征着改变。

藤井先生说：“当我们一起砸扁戒指时，我想‘哦，这下真的结束了’，那一刻我感觉自己的心灵和灵魂都获得了新生。现在我觉得自己可以开始新的生活，一切可以重新开始了。”

与他结婚八年的藤井太太也表达了同样的心情。

她说：“当我看到砸扁的戒指时，我对自己说，‘好！这感觉太好了’”。

寺井据说是日本离婚典礼服务的开创者，他从一个朋友的痛苦离婚经历中得到启发，萌生为离婚人士提供庆典服务的创意。

离婚曾是日本社会的一大禁忌，而如今日本的离婚率却不断上升，2008年日本约有25.1万对夫妇离婚，其中一部分原因是经济不景气对婚姻造成了影响。

Vocabulary:

undercover: working or done secretly in order to find out information for the police, a government, etc. 秘密工作的；暗中做的；私下进行的

pomp: the impressive clothes, decorations, music, etc. and traditional customs that are part of an official occasion or ceremony 排场；气派；盛况

grandeur: the quality of being great and impressive in appearance 宏伟；壮丽；堂皇

rickshaw: a small light vehicle with two wheels used in some Asian countries to carry passengers. The rickshaw is pulled by somebody walking or riding a bicycle. 人力车；黄包车

gavel: a small hammer used by a person in charge of a meeting or an auction, or by a judge in a court of law, in order to get people's attention （会议主席、拍卖商或法官用的）小槌

take its toll (on sb./sth.): to have a bad effect on somebody/something; to cause a lot of damage, etc. 产生恶果；造成重大损失