 Japanese Bush-warbler's droppings contain an enzyme that has been used for a long time as a skin whitening agent and to remove fine wrinkles. It is sometimes sold as "uguisu powder". The droppings are also used to remove stains from kimono.
Uguisu is the name of the Japanese nightingale. Apart from being known for its beautiful song, its natural droppings are also used in Japan as a traditional application for silky white skin.
Usually the powdered is a fine almost odourless powder that is mixed to form a paste and applied as a face pack. It is mildly lightening on the skin while smoothing the complexion and leaves the skin feeling soft and nourished. These bird's droppings powder are ultra violet light treated and therfore completely free of bacteria. They have been used for Kabuki actor and Geisha's make-up cleansing for centuries in Japan and contain a natural enzyme (guanine, an amino acid with ammonic bleaching qualities) which has a natural lightening action.
The uguisu powder is safely sold and hygienically collected for cosmetic skin purposes. Some uguisu powder contains certain ammonic properties that appear to gently bleach the skin while smoothing and toning the complexion. For use as a natural face pack treatment for blemishes or smoothing the complexion. Non-fragranced and 100% natural product. It is believe that these enzyme powder helps to remove all traces of dirt and gently exfoliates dead skin cells. Leaves skin soft, smooth and brighter.
The price of a 15 grams bottle of uguisu powder usually cost around USD10.
Usage: mix with 1/2 teaspoon of uguisu powder and a few drops of warm water in your palm. Apply to moist face and neck in small, circular motions (avoid eye area). Rinse well with water. Store in cool, dry place.
Japanese Bush Warbler
The Japanese Bush Warbler (Uguisu), Cettia diphone, is a passerine bird more often heard than seen. Its distinctive breeding call can be heard throughout much of Japan from the start of spring. Along with the return of the barn swallow the bush warbler's call is viewed by Japanese as a herald of springtime.
Some other Japanese names are haru-dori ("spring bird"), haru-tsuge-dori ("spring-announcing bird") and hanami-dori ("hanami bird" or "spring-flower-viewing bird"). Its place in Japanese poetry (see below) has given the name uta-yomi-dori ("poem-reading bird") and kyo-yomi-dori ("sutra-reading bird"), this latter name owing to the fact that its call is traditionally transcribed in Japanese as "Hō-hoke-kyo", which is a phrase from the lotus sutra.
It is one of the favorite motifs of Japanese poetry, featured in many poems including those in Man'yōshū or Kokin Wakashū. In haiku and renga, uguisu is one of the kigo which signify the early spring. In poetry the bird is associated with the ume blossom, and appears with ume on hanafuda playing cards. There is also a popular Japanese sweet named Uguisu-boru (Uguisu Balls) which consists of brown and white balls meant to resemble ume flower buds. However the distinctive song is not usually heard until later in spring, well after the ume blossoms have faded.
The beauty of its song led to the English name Japanese Nightingale, though the Japanese Bush Warbler does not sing at night. This name is no longer commonly used.
The bird is drab-coloured and secretive. It is normally only seen in spring before there is foliage in the trees. In winter the call is a low chirping, in haiku the bird with this song is known as sasako, and the song is called sasanaki.
An uguisu-jō (jō is woman) is a female announcer at Japanese baseball games, or a woman employed to advertise products and sales with a microphone outside retail stores. These women are employed because of their beautiful 'warbling' voices. They are also employed to make public announcements for politicians in the lead-up to elections.
In Japanese architecture there is a type of floor known as "uguisubari", which is generally translated into English as "nightingale floor". These floors have squeaking floorboards that resemble the Japanese bush warbler's low chirping, and are meant to be so designed to warn sleepers of the approach of ninja. Examples can be seen at Eikan-dō temple, Nijō Castle and Chion-in temple in Kyoto.
Uguisu-dani is a station on the north part of the Yamanote Line in Tokyo.
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