Japan's X (formerly Twitter) is currently buzzing over a hilarious mishap shared by a monk known as "Rokushaku Hoshi." He recounted an unforgettable incident that occurred during a Tsūya (wake), where an unexpected slip of the tongue by the emcee turned a solemn occasion into a riot of suppressed laughter. The story has resonated widely, sparking a flood of comments and shares.
Rokushaku Hoshi, who often finds himself in situations where "you absolutely cannot laugh," described a particular wake where a young female emcee, speaking in a slightly suggestive, low tone, declared: "Honjitsu no Tsūya no gi wa... kojin-sama... kochira no sekai de no... saigo no... yoru no... itonami..." (Tonight's wake ceremony is... for the deceased... their final... night's... activity... in this world...).
The phrase "yoru no itonami" (night's activity) is a common euphemism for sexual intercourse between a couple, and its sudden utterance in such a setting was so shocking that the monk confessed he immediately struggled to hold back his laughter.
But the real kicker came after the ceremony, when the deceased's wife, with impeccable comedic timing, quipped: "Who was it with?!" The atmosphere instantly shifted from mournful to a "no-laughing challenge" hell. The monk admitted, "I completely lost it."
The post quickly went viral, drawing countless retweets and responses. Netizens chimed in with comments like, "There's no way you wouldn't laugh at that," and "Was that a meticulously planned trap?" Others jokingly dubbed it a "No-Laughing Wake Special" and praised the deceased's wife for her incredible humor in defusing such an awkward moment.
Many pointed out that funeral emcees often rely on standardized scripts, but a misstep in tone or a grammatical error can easily become the ultimate source of suppressed giggles. One user analyzed that the emcee likely intended to say "the last night spent in this world" but a faulty sentence connection led to the hilarious misunderstanding.
Plenty of others shared their own experiences of holding back laughter in similar situations. One netizen recalled attending the wedding of the late comedian Toshio Sakata's sister, where the speaker meant to say "my clumsy sister" (futatsukana imouto) but instead blurted out "my promiscuous sister" (fushidarana imouto), getting an earful after the ceremony. Other anecdotes included a cockroach interrupting a funeral chanting session or elementary schoolers nodding along to the rhythm of prayers for the deceased. These "shouldn't laugh but totally broke down" scenarios left everyone in stitches.
It just goes to show that in such solemn settings, an unexpected slip of the tongue and a quick-witted comeback can even make seasoned monks, who face these situations regularly, burst into laughter. Perhaps it's just the immense pressure getting to them!
via： togetter