The geisha house is the temple of this ancient art. For centuries, the geisha have witnessed the love affairs, betrayals and deceptions of Japan’s most powerful men.

A geisha is a woman who’s available for hire to keep a man company during the evening, usually in fact it’s a group of men company during the evening. And to the surprise of most westerners that rarely involves sex. It simply doesn’t exist in other cultures because we socialize together, the Japanese don’t. This is where geisha come in.

They guarantee their clients’ total privacy under a code of silence.

A man who goes to a geisha house, during the evening goes there, on the assumption that nothing that’s said or done would be taken outside those walls. This is a particular compartment. It’s watertight and this is what allows the geisha to choose to exist really, and this is why there’s a kind of code of silence. A geisha mustn’t talk about what has happened.

The geisha business is the only business in Japan run exclusively by women for a man. At the top is the geisha mother. She provides all her girls with board and lodging and a precious kimonos, a considerable outlay of cash. In return, apart from a modest wage, the geisha give her all the money they earned from their clients. At one time, a geisha mother virtually owned her girls that lived constantly in her debt. The geisha mother would begin recouping her investment by selling a girl’s virginity to the highest bidder. This discreet auction relied on her best knowledge of the private lives and desires of her local clients.

It’s true that this stereotypical image of the women who run these houses, these geisha houses, is of a sort of cruel event like character who cares only about one thing and that’s money. But I think the stereotype proved vive because there’s a considerable amount of truth in it. These are, these districts, the striking thing about them is that they are the one area in Japan where women absolutely rule.

Today it is in the best interest of a Geisha Mother to treat her girls well. It costs her no less than 500,000 dollars to train a Geisha. And if a Geisha subset quits, the Geisha Mother loses a fortune. Apprentice Geisha go through 5 years of training. By the end even their gestures are distinctive. Every aspect of their appearance has acquired a symbolic meaning and an erotic power.

Yuriko is an apprentice Geisha, halfway through her 5-year training. The most valuable person in her life is her older Geisha sister, Mamika. All trainee Geisha have an elder sister to teach them the centuries-old skills they need to succeed.

Mamika, Yuriko’s older Geisha sister, lives the life of a super model. She can afford the very best including a million-dollar membership to a country club and private coaching lessons.

Thanks to this job, I get to meet many people, eat good food, wear nice kimono, and travel to places where ordinary people can’t go. You know what? I get through many enjoyable things in life.

Mamika sets a high standard. To follow her example, Yuriko has to dedicate her life to the art. The word Geisha means artist. As well as being professional companions, a Geisha must excel in dance, music and literature. Every graceful movement is carefully choreographed. The dances often tell stories about Geisha who must sacrifice love for their art. A Geisha requires the same dedication that a prima ballerina needs in the West.

The training is never ending. My instructor is still training after thirty to forty years. Compared with her, I’m just nobody. There is no such word as perfection.

Geisha do not marry. Cut off from family bond, they live together as if in a sisterhood. They form close friendships which bind them for lifetime.

New Words and Phrases

betrayals n. 背叛，暴露
deception n. 骗局，诡计，欺诈
socialize vt. 使 … 社会化，使 … 社会主义化，使适应社会需要 vi. 交际
code n. 码，密码，法规，准则 vt. 把 … 编码，制成法典
assumption n. 假定，设想，担任(职责等), 假装
compartment n. 间隔，个别室，卧车包房 vt. 把 … 分隔成几个包间
watertight adj. 不漏水的，无懈可击的
board and lodging 出租供膳,膳宿
lodging n. 寄宿处
kimono n. 和服
outlay n. 费用，经费，支出 v. 花费
recoup v. 重获，补偿 vt. 重获(尤指钱), 失而复得，赔偿，扣除
discreet adj. 谨慎的
stereotypical n. 铅版，陈腔滥调，老一套 vt. 使用铅版，套用老套
vive int. 万岁 adj. 鲜丽，活泼