“I Have Two Sets of Memories” – The Story of a Man Who Can Read the Mysterious Voynich Manuscript

[1] I wasn’t sure if I should post this on the Occult board*1, but I decided to post it here.

*1 The Occult board (Okaruto ita) refers to a category on Japanese anonymous bulletin boards, primarily dealing with topics like paranormal phenomena, urban legends, and unsolved mysteries.

• [2] Alright, let’s hear your story.
• [3] Go on, write it.

[12] >>1 Thank you for creating the thread. I considered posting on the Occult board, but I wanted to write it all at once, so I chose here. If no one’s interested, I won’t write it. If even one person wants to read it, I will. I’ve already written it all down, just in case. Well, the story is simple. It’s about how, starting from around summer vacation in 4th grade until October when I was 19, I have two sets of memories. I have clear memories of attending elementary school, and also memories of not attending. Maybe there are others like me? Since I had time, I wrote the whole thing…

[22] Which story should I start with? First, let me talk about the memory where I went to school. I attended elementary school normally, got decent grades in middle school, entered a well-known high school in the prefecture, and although I’m not particularly smart, I enrolled in a certain university. I’m currently enjoying university life. In this memory, there’s not much remarkable to mention – it was a life of studying, making friends, and even having a girlfriend. Not particularly fulfilling, nor particularly unfulfilling, just a very ordinary life. And this memory seems to be directly connected to my current life. The other memory, however, already had an ending. In that other memory, I was supposed to have died at the end.

[28] And here’s where the main topic begins. Let me tell you about the other memory. During the summer vacation of my 4th-grade year, my family went to a river. I slipped and got swept away. As I struggled, suffocating, someone saved me. It was an old man, unclothed. He seemed foreign, and I couldn’t understand a word he said. Looking around, my family and other people were nowhere to be seen. Having drifted quite a distance, I found myself in a lush, natural place surrounded by trees. The naked old man scared me, and I started crying. Perhaps bothered by my crying, the old man took my hand. I tried to pull away, crying, but he kept speaking gently to me. Once I stopped crying, I let him lead me away, hand in hand. Or rather, I followed him.

[35] The place the old man took me was deep in a forest, seemingly empty except for grass. But there were things there. Things I couldn’t have imagined existed back then. There were tables and chairs tangled with grass, rugs, something like a bed, and ornaments whose purpose I still don’t understand. He had me sit on a rug, and he sat beside me. He drew pictures for me on leaf-like paper using a root-like thing that produced green liquid. This is the memory I cherish the most; I remember it vividly. I’ll skip quite a bit from here. In the end, even when we searched for the place where I got separated from my family, we couldn’t find it anywhere. I ended up living with the naked old man, a naked old woman, and their baby, none of whom I could understand initially. They made me go naked too.

[38] They taught me how the days passed using flowers. I also met several people who seemed to be friends of this naked family, and I realized that many residents lived naked. Life with the naked residents was tough at first, but just like the baby, they taught me their language, and I gradually became proficient. Sorry, it’s hard to explain because they didn’t have concepts like months, years, or the four seasons. For them, one year was the duration until a specific type of flower withered completely. When that flower withered, it naturally turned back into seeds. Some people forgot their age, and generally, they didn’t pay much attention to age.

[41] Skipping ahead quite a bit again. After becoming fluent in reading, writing, and speaking their language, I died due to a certain incident. I felt my consciousness fading out, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up in my bed in this world. However, I also had memories of the previous day in this world. If someone asked what I did yesterday, I could answer both ‘I went to school’ and ‘I was dying.’ It felt like that. Later, when I talked to my parents about going to the river as a child, they told me that when I was swept away, my father rescued me. That’s the end.

• [48] Hmph, and then?

[59] Sorry for the rapid posts. I’m rapidly forgetting the pronunciation and the words of that other language. That part terrifies me, so I wanted to write it down before I forget. Would you like to see the language? I asked a professor, but he said it was no language found on Earth. Seriously, isn’t there anyone else who’s had a similar experience?

• [74] >>59 To be honest, I have had experiences like that. But I can’t quite recall them, like they’re just out of reach. Sometimes I get flashbacks, but the images disappear instantly.
• [61] Please record the language and upload it.

[82] Sorry, recording is impossible. I’m not confident in my voice. >>74 I see, so it is like that. I’ll try writing a little bit of the language, please take a look.

• [91] Is the professor from the other world?

[147] >>91 The professor is from this world. Besides, I don’t even know if the other world is another planet or not. >>133 I was killed, but it’s a long story. >>137 I searched for it. What is this! It really looks similar to this!

[95] Hello. For now, I wrote “Hello.” What language is this? I’m curious.

• [107] >>1 I’ve seen these characters somewhere before.

[121] Maybe someone tricked me and implanted these memories. But I’m certain I was the same person with two sets of memories. It’s like having one head and two bodies. >>107 Really?!

• [133] Why did you die? What was it like when you died?

[135] I wrote a word meaning something like ‘It came!’ or ‘They’re here!’. Sorry, I took a clearer picture! I only remember that the words are structured in two rows, and I’m forgetting…

• [145] >>135 Can I ask just one thing? Why are you writing with a brush? I didn’t say take a clearer picture, I said write the characters clearly. Don’t you understand Japanese? Please write it clearly with a mechanical pencil or ballpoint pen.
• [150] >>145 (OP) said they used to write with a root, so maybe they can only express it with a writing tool that bleeds ink like a brush.
• [137] I remember now. It resembles the Voynich Manuscript. Voynich Manuscript – ※ Site where you can see the full Voynich Manuscript http://www.voynich.com/folios/ Voynich Manuscript http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voynich_manuscript

• [141] Is there something equivalent to the Japanese ‘aiueo’ syllabary? Also, if you can’t record it, please write down the pronunciation in Japanese. Hurry up.

[144] >>141 There’s no syllabary like that. Sorry. As for the pronunciation, the first character is “Veru,” and the later characters are “Ryesaera.”

• [151] Also, please don’t upload in bmp format. Remove the .html too.
• [152] Didn’t you say you had written it all down! Isn’t the part that’s ‘a long story’ usually the important part?

[165] Sorry. >>152, I thought I didn’t need to talk about that part, sorry. >>151, sorry. It’s my first time, so it’s difficult. I’m looking into this Voynich Manuscript thing, so it’s taking time. Sorry.

• [169] Oh, the Voynich Manuscript is nonsense. It’s meaningless stuff written so that people from other countries wouldn’t know the location. However, they forced children to memorize it to use them as shields against foreign invasions (so they wouldn’t leak information if caught), so maybe >>1 remembers it?
• [175] >>169 So, what does that mean?
• [191] >>175 It means >>1’s past life might have been one of those children who memorized the Voynich language. But the adults of that era didn’t know it, and only a few children did, so it’s a language you can’t use even if you remember it.
• [205] >>191 Thank you. >>1, so is it the Voynich Manuscript after all?

[210] >>205 I don’t know. But there are parts here and there that I can read. It seems certain that there were other humans who had the same experience as me. >>204 Sorry. It seems like it’s just me.

• [218] >>210 So, does that mean if you look at images of the Voynich Manuscript, there are parts you can read?
• [220] >>210 Give us the translation of the parts you can read.

[171] Sorry for the wait! I wrote it!

• [173] >>171 Is this how bad Chunibyo* gets…

*173 Chunibyo (中二病), literally “middle school second-year syndrome” or “eighth-grader syndrome,” is a Japanese colloquial term used to describe teenagers who have delusions of grandeur, harbor unrealistic fantasies, or try to act cool in ways perceived as embarrassing.

• [209] >>171 Looks like 418Hcxkg.
• [172] Please pass on* already, I beg you.

*172 “Pass on” (成仏して, Joubutsu shite) originally a Buddhist term meaning for a soul to attain Buddhahood after death. As internet slang, it’s often used sarcastically towards someone who is off-topic, excessively fixated on a subject, or making cringeworthy posts, essentially telling them to “give it a rest” or “disappear” from the conversation.

• [174] Go to the Occult board.

[187] I’m sorry. I should have gone to the Occult board. I didn’t expect this much criticism. I’m sorry. Sorry for dragging you into my Chunibyo-like story.

• [195] >>187 Criticism is normal on the VIP board*, don’t worry about it. I’m interested. Please continue.

*195 The VIP board (VIP ita) is a category on Japanese anonymous bulletin boards. Originally intended for specific users, it’s now primarily for general chat and is known for its unique atmosphere, jargon, and culture. Criticism and banter are common.

• [189] >>1 What did you eat over there? Also, tell us about a typical day’s routine.

[203] >>189 Grass. In this world, we mainly use things like iron and copper, but in my other memory, we primarily used grass. When I woke up in the morning, I would study about grass. Once you learned how to use grass, you could do various things. There were even animal-like grasses.

• [213] >>203 Please tell us more details about the ‘various things.’ Also, do you have any particularly memorable episodes from over there?

[226] >>213 I don’t know which world is real, but I’ll speak assuming this world I’m in now is the real one. Anyway, I found wearing clothes bothersome. Both humans (including me) and grasses had various powers, and humans also had the ability to utilize the power of grass. The humans there weren’t the same race as me; they resembled what we call Caucasians in this world. I was surprised at first and wondered if such a place existed in a region inhabited by white people, but then I also thought maybe Caucasians are people who came from that other world. Speaking of which, I found something in this world that resembles a grass from the other world. I don’t have knowledge about the grasses of this world, though.

• [204] Is >>1 crazy, or is everyone else?
• [221] >>1 I’m reading. I’m interested, so please continue. I looked up the Voynich Manuscript, and it involves grass and has drawings of naked people! There were images and stuff, could you read the text?

[248] >>221 It seems like a child wrote this book. Not an adult. But there’s no doubt someone from this world wrote it. From the top, it reads: “These Varna (grasses) had (some characteristic) proportional to the number of Reus (roots). It’s not that thicker Reus meant stronger; knowing these things was (some meaning), and (continues)…” There are many parts I can’t read.

• [258] >>248 Well… that’s interesting. So it’s a page explaining roots. I want you to read more.
• [227] When did you come here?
• [232] >>227 Let me rephrase the question. After returning from the other side, is your memory the same as the other memory’s continuation?

[251] >>232 Currently, (the continuation of the two memories) has become one, but I have both “memories of being here” and “memories of being there.” I don’t know which one is real, and it’s not like I “returned” either.

• [235] Just a hypothesis about >>1 and the Voynich Manuscript. Let’s call this world A and the other world >>1 was in B. Maybe >>1’s consciousness from A and B merged for some reason? Perhaps A and B were originally separate, but their lived time and genetic structure were too similar. That would explain why no one else besides >>1 understands. Having the exact same genetic structure is normally impossible, let alone living the same time span. And maybe the person who wrote the Voynich Manuscript was in the same situation as >>1, with their B-world consciousness merging with their A-world self. They might have left the Voynich Manuscript behind for the same reason as >>1, wanting to ‘preserve this memory.’ And the reason >>1 can’t understand all of the Voynich Manuscript is because a long time has passed since it was written. Languages change over time, after all.
• [241] Even if it’s a made-up story, it’s interesting. So please respond (post) faster.
• [257] Time-traveling old man*

*257 “Time-traveling old man” (時空おっさん, Jikuu Ossan) is an internet meme referring to anonymous posters on Japanese forums who claim to have traveled to different eras or worlds. It’s often used, sometimes skeptically, for posters sharing unbelievable or mysterious experiences.

• [259] Is this the thread where one of the world’s mysteries is about to be solved? Tell us more of >>1’s story.

[262] Ah, sorry. I figured it out while looking into the Voynich Manuscript. I understand everything now. I apologize to those who wanted to hear the rest of the story. Please remember that some things are better left unknown. There’s a kind of hierarchy in this world, right? It seems there’s a similar relationship involving us (our world). I have things I need to do, so I’ll do my best. Lastly, Adam and Eve and Voynich (all weird names, no idea who named them) are events from the same world. That’s all.

• [266] >>262 Hey, what kind of “To be continued in our next installment” ending is that? Explain it properly to the end.

• [268] >>262 Huh? Huh?
• [271] >>262 Write it down! Don’t you realize how amazing it is that you can read the Voynich Manuscript? Decipher more of that language yourself and tell us.

[309] >>271 Sorry. It’s not some world mystery at all. The Voynich Manuscript (though calling it that feels weird) is just like scribbles. It’s not an illustrated encyclopedia or anything. It’s like summer homework. >>270 Then, this world is… like that… >>276 God is just an imaginary being. There are no apples. There’s a very similar fruit, though. I guess I’ll talk a little. That very similar fruit, in my memory, was abundant until recently. Probably still is abundant now. But it’s poisonous. Poisonous snakes are scary. That’s it. >>280 That’s not it. I’m just not writing it because you’d be shocked if you knew.

• [549] >>262 seems to imply >>1 thinks Voynich is a person’s name from the other world, like Adam and Eve. But Wikipedia says ‘The manuscript is named after Wilfrid Voynich, the Polish-American antiquarian book dealer who acquired it’. What’s the deal with that?
• [263] Interesting.
• [264] No way!
• [265] Huh, is this a declaration that it was all made up?
• [267] Whaaaaaaaaaat!
• [269] I’d be more surprised if it was made up.
• [305] The question is when you started perceiving the second memory. Did the memories accumulate parallel to the flow of real time after the river incident, or did you only recently perceive the other memory? Which is it?

[314] >>305 You have memories of yesterday and the day before, right? It might be hard to understand, but it’s like feeling both simultaneously. For example, it’s like there’s a ‘me who slept last night’ and also a ‘me who stayed awake from last night until morning.’ Does it make sense if I say those separate memories merged one day?

• [270] It was just getting interesting… Even if you were going to end it like this, you should have drawn the readers in more before gradually wrapping it up. What a letdown.
• [272] What is this, it’s scary.
• [274] Even if it’s fake, at least wrap it up better…
• [275] Eh, what’s with this thread? What business is more important than deciphering a world mystery?
• [276]> Lastly, Adam and Eve and Voynich (all weird names, no idea who named them) are events from the same world. This is also interesting. If that’s true, does ‘the first humans’ mean people who were in that other world but got exiled? Huh? Then is ‘God’ in that other world, and ‘apple’ isn’t metaphorical? But were there ‘snakes’?
• [278] I don’t care if it’s fake or not, just write it! I won’t be able to sleep because I’m too curious. The world is full of things I want to know.
• [279] Came here because I heard >>1 deciphered the Voynich Manuscript.
• [280] So, does that mean our world is inferior and not allowed to know… or something?
• [281] This thread has become something amazing.
• [282] Was >>1 a child in that world…? The mystery deepens.
• [283] It’s so mysterious I have to laugh, but if it’s something we’re better off not knowing, maybe that’s for the best. It could be a prophecy of Earth’s destruction or something.
• [294] >>283 No matter what it is, we have no way of verifying if it’s true, so I wish they’d just say it. Believing it or not is up to each individual.
• [285] I might have witnessed an amazing moment.
• [287] This is a legendary thread.
• [299] So this isn’t a Chunibyo thread?
• [315] What a romantic thread.
• [322] I want to know. Even if I’m shocked, I still want to know. Humans have this thing called intellectual curiosity.
• [325] ‘You’d be shocked if I told you’ implies that it is possible to tell.

[342] It’s hard to reply to specific comments (anchors), so I’ll writeまとめて. There’s no conclusion like, “When I was in 4th grade, I went fishing with my family at the river…” Uh, well, there are no prophecies about nuclear power or earthquakes. I don’t know the future, but what I do understand is the meaning of the universe and the world, in a sense, the meaning of life. I can’t say any more than this. It’s great to nurture curiosity and want to know various things. Please desire to know more. Find it yourself. Take action. The day will surely come when you understand, but it’s not for me to say.

• [348] >>342 I don’t get it.
• [349] >>342 Sorry. I don’t understand at all.

[389] shiko, hanten hidari kaiten

• [391] >>389 Eh, what’s that?

[412] Sorry. It was a made-up story. What I was seeing was just a dream, it seems. Please forget this memory. >>389, I tried testing if anyone understood those words, and it’s interesting that someone did. I feel like trying other ways to end a made-up story now. I thought about trying the “went fishing at the river” ending too. See ya.

• [416] Hey, wait a minute. Would someone normally make up a story using the Voynich Manuscript? I only noticed because I like codes, but seriously?
• [433] >>416 This >>1 didn’t start out making up a story with the Voynich Manuscript. Someone pointed out the resemblance midway, they deciphered a bit, and then suddenly declared it was fake. So, maybe that’s what happened.
• [440] >>433 Even if it’s fake, wouldn’t you mimic the actual script? But the characters >>1 is writing, while similar in shape, don’t actually match (the Voynich script). (Even the most distinctive character, like an ‘H’ drawn in one stroke, has the top right connected and is vertically long in the manuscript, but the one >>1 wrote has the top right detached and isn’t vertically long. Only the ‘8’ and ‘c’ like characters match perfectly.) It just looks like two different people writing original characters, which makes it even creepier.
• [446] >>440 No, no, I’m not concluding it’s fake. I thought maybe after deciphering the manuscript, they learned something they shouldn’t have, decided it shouldn’t be spread online, and forcibly declared it fake. That’s the flow I imagined. I’m not doubting them, really. The fact they could read and write similar characters, and had memories matching the content of the Voynich Manuscript which they supposedly didn’t know, is incredibly interesting.
• [450] >>446 It certainly feels unnatural, doesn’t it? And the ‘Adam and Eve’ reference is fascinating because of the many parallels.
• [417] Was it really made up? Oh well. Good work.
• [422] But maybe >>1 thought it was dangerous and ended it by calling it fake… (Quote) > Sorry. It was a made-up story. > What I was seeing was just a dream, it seems. > Please forget this memory. (End Quote) What is this unsatisfying feeling? Was it just Chunibyo? If it was fake, shouldn’t there be a Q&A time?!
• [426] I really stumbled upon an amazing thread.
• [432] It’s not ‘Please forget this memory.’ If it was fake, you should write something like ‘Suckers!’
• [435] This >>1 is scary.
• [436] Did this >>1 really decipher it…? Declaring it fake has made it even creepier.