The Geisha also goes through significant pain during the hairdressing process. It is therefore in everyone's interest to keep the hair in immaculate condition. For this reason, a Geisha sleeps with her neck on a small wooden support or takamakura.
The white material that the geisha slept on was rice flour. Having a geisha's hair done was a long and arduous process, so they were taught to sleep on a raised pillow, and rice flour was placed around their head to remind them not to fall off the pillow.
Hair and Makeup
In the past, the Geisha would sleep with their necks on little supports so as to keep their hair perfect, but in modern days Geiko wear wigs and Maiko style their natural hair.
Maiko, unlike Geiko, use their own hair and not wigs so they have to go to the Nihongami hairdresser once a week, and sleep on a Takamakura (high wooden pillow) in order to maintain it.
Do Geisha Sleep with their Clients? No, as prostitution is illegal in Japan and the geishas are cultural performers who are deeply respected. Geisha never sleep with their clients as it goes against the rules of the organizations they belong to.
Geiko (geisha) receive a full compensation for their job engagements, however, the monthly income depends on the amount of hours they work. Just like theater performers, there is a huge variation in the income of the geisha based on the skills and popularity.
Hiki-iwai: The hiki-iwai ceremony marks a geisha's retirement. She no longer entertains at parties, and she may discontinue her studies. At this point, a former geisha might become the head of an okiya or teahouse, or she may leave the geisha life entirely.
Some geisha would sleep with their customers, whereas others would not, leading to distinctions such as kuruwa geisha – a geisha who slept with customers as well as entertaining them through performing arts – yujō ("prostitute") and jorō ("whore") geisha, whose only entertainment for male customers was sex, and machi ...
To inflame a doctor's lust for Sayuri (for the impending bidding war for her virginity), Mameha intentionally cuts Sayuri's leg high on her thigh (off camera). Mameha tells the doctor the cut came from a scissors accident; he stares longingly at her leg before stitching it up.
She also has to sleep on an omaku, a wooden box with a small pillow. This keeps her hair style intact. She only washes her hair once each week. This is the most elaborate style.
The main role of Geisha is to entertain and serve the guests, so they use the thick white make up to hide their feelings in order to keep the guests happy, entertained, and not offended. Although electricity was not exist in ancient times, Geisha culture; including the costumes, have existed since ancient times.
Unlike Western make-up, the Beni is used for multiple areas of the face, which is more akin to a paste than a lipstick. It's dabbed onto the eyes for a soft effect but painted undiluted onto the lips to make them a bright red.
A man is needed to help dress the maiko because of how heavy the kimonos are. Their obi, the sash around their torso, is 23 feet long and tied in the back so the ends drape down. The obi also acts as a sort of back support.
Also unlike humans, geishas do not get fat/obese problems, so there are no fat geishas in real life, so all geishas of every geisha subspecies are skinny and somewhat muscular in build, and they are slightly stronger than the common human.
Chiyo is taken to the Nitta okiya (geisha boarding house) in Gion, but her sister is taken to a brothel within Kyoto's pleasure district.
Nowadays, there are just 1,000 geisha left in Japan, most of whom live and work predominantly in Tokyo and Kyoto. These modern geisha tend to remain within their district, where they're treated with the utmost respect by Japanese locals, and not approached for photos or conversation.
Their role is often misunderstood by those not of Japanese descent. Geisha are not prostitutes, in the past, the right to take the virginity of a Geisha (mizuage) was sold by the Geisha house. In reality, it was more a sponsorship for the Maiko's training, which was really expensive.
At its worst, the geisha tradition involves force, fraud, and deception, and the horrifying practice of selling one's own children into slavery for purposes of sexual exploitation.
Historically, geisha are entertainers who perform various arts like classical music, dancing and games. But in fact the original geisha were men. They were male advisors and entertainers to their daimyo (feudal lords), dating back to the 1200s. They were also tea connoisseurs, artists and gifted storytellers.
Now Sayuki, she is the only white woman to ever become a full-fledged geisha in Japan. Sayuki says it took her three years to perfect the art of geisha.
Taikomochi or Houkan, the Male Counterpart to the Geisha (Original source of this entry)
No, it is not based on a true story. However, a real geisha, named Mineko Iwasaki, sued the author of the book because of defamation. Surprisingly, not the plot, but some characters in the book resembled some of the real characters in Mineko Iwasaki's life that she shared with the author in a private conversation.
In Japan, geisha are very highly respected because they spend years training to learn the traditional instruments and dances of Japan. Although some western media portray geisha as prostitutes, that's just a myth.
Part of the geisha's daily routine includes studying how to host traditional Japanese wedding ceremonies and also learning to dance, sing and play musical instruments like shamisen (a three-stringed instrument), koto (Japanese harp) and taiko (Japanese drums).
There is no specific retirement age for geisha, so if they don't want to marry, they can continue being a geisha throughout their lives. Conversely, despite being unable to marry, it's still acceptable for geishas to have children – and it's relatively common.