Database: Legendary Wise Macaques

An ink painting of three wise and mysterious macaques, posing with hands obscuring their eyes, ears, and mouth.

When the maxim "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" arrived in Japan, it was translated as mizaru (見ざる), kikazaru (聞かざる), iwazaru (言わざる). Since the sound "zaru" is a modified pronunciation of the word saru (猿), or monkey, the phrase blossomed into a pun in Japan, and the image of monkeys covering their eyes, ears, and mouths became a visual representation of the concept.