Sticking to Beliefs - An Unshakable Self

「正義を守るこれ成功せしなり」
“To protect justice is to have succeeded.”
—— Uchimura Kanzo, Consolations of a Christian

【Commentary】
What is success? Is it something measured by numbers or scale? Uchimura places the standard not on the size of worldly enterprises, but on whether one has upheld justice. Visible achievements like buildings and organizations are merely the shell of the spirit. Even if a business fails, if one did not deviate from justice, that is a victory at the level of the soul. This paradoxical truth should resonate deeply with modern people tired of result-oriented thinking.

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「私たちはただ未来を信じて、現在に努力すればいいのです」
“We simply need to believe in the future and make efforts in the present.”
—— Watsuji Tetsuro, Letters from a Philosopher [VI]

【Commentary】
Are there nights when you feel crushed by anxiety about the future? Watsuji urges us to reject complaints and despair, and simply believe earnestly in the unfolding of “life.” No one knows how fate will turn out, but anyone can take root in this very moment and absorb nutrients. Rather than worrying about results, the attitude of finding value in current efforts themselves will become the power to carve out tomorrow.

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「事件の起こる前には道はない、起こった時にはただ一つの道があるのみだ」
“Before an incident occurs, there is no path; once it has occurred, there is only one path.”
—— Watsuji Tetsuro, Thoughts at the Station [III]

【Commentary】
Do you ever look back at the past and regret, thinking “if only I had done this”? However, Watsuji asserts that the past facts are unchangeable, and that it was the only inevitable path. Even if there seemed to be countless possibilities, the action actually chosen was one, and that is nothing other than the manifestation of our character and fate. By accepting this cold fact, we should be released from regret and gain the strength to love our fate.

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「われわれに邪魔のあるのはもっとも愉快なことであります」
“It is a most pleasant thing for us to face obstacles.”
—— Uchimura Kanzo, The Greatest Legacy for Future Generations

【Commentary】
When faced with adversity, do you lament it as bad luck? According to Uchimura, even deficiencies like having no money or no friends are flipped into perfect conditions for accomplishing great undertakings. The more obstacles there are, the stronger the power of the soul trying to overcome them becomes, allowing one to leave a more brilliant legacy for future generations. This bold “unyielding spirit” will surely become the strongest weapon for surviving difficult times.

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「もしどこかにこだわりがあるなら、それを踏潰すまで進まなければ駄目ですよ。」
“If you have a sticking point somewhere, you must proceed until you have crushed it underfoot.”
—— Natsume Soseki, My Individualism

【Commentary】
Are you turning a blind eye to “something” caught in the depths of your heart? Soseki preaches to young people that in order to find the path one should proceed on, one needs to worry through it thoroughly. Rather than compromising in a half-hearted mental state, digging until you hit a wall is the rite of passage to gain true confidence. Even if there is suffering like wandering in the fog, when one digs up the place where they can say “this is it” beyond that, people will likely be able to grasp lifelong peace of mind for the first time.

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「純粋な幸福は各人においてオリジナルなものである。しかし成功はそうではない。」
“Pure happiness is original to each person. However, success is not.”
—— Miki Kiyoshi, Notes on Life

【Commentary】
The competition where everyone aims for the same summit and the joy of cultivating one’s own garden are similar but different things. “Success” is a quantitative concept measured by comparison with others and social scales, and it is always accompanied by a stereotypical boredom. On the other hand, “happiness” is a qualitative fulfillment unique to that person, something original that cannot be exchanged with anyone else. In chasing worldly success too much, have you lost sight of your own form of happiness? True individuality shines not in the pursuit of success, but in the creation of happiness.

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「嫉妬の如く多忙で、しかも不生産的な情念の存在を私は知らない。」
“I know of no passion as busy, yet as unproductive, as jealousy.”
—— Miki Kiyoshi, Notes on Life

【Commentary】
Are you too busy measuring the greenness of other people’s gardens, leaving your own field to run wild? Jealousy is a wasted effort of constantly being conscious of others, comparing, and wearing down one’s heart, from which not a single new value is born. The author argues that humans gain confidence and establish individuality by “making things.” A person immersed in creation should have no time to envy others. Escaping from barren comparisons and creating something with your own hands will be the best prescription for the disease called jealousy.

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「人間は小説的動物であると定義することができるであろう。」
“Human beings can be defined as novelistic animals.”
—— Miki Kiyoshi, Notes on Life

【Commentary】
We are all the protagonists of the story called “myself,” and at the same time, its authors. Humans do not merely live as biological organisms; we interpret our lives as a story and sometimes live by staging ourselves out of vanity. However, that “vanity” or “disguise” is also the driving force that creates culture and sociality unique to humans, different from animals. Being aware of what kind of story you are trying to live may be advanced wisdom for acting out the fiction of life more virtuously.

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「ひとは自己を滅することによって却って自己を獲得する。」
“One acquires oneself, on the contrary, by extinguishing oneself.”
—— Miki Kiyoshi, Notes on Life

【Commentary】
Nothing enters a clenched fist, but the world pours into an open palm. As long as one is shut up in their own shell and clinging to selfish desires or calculations, true individuality does not shine. Rather, it is when one is immersed in something, forgets personal feelings, and becomes selfless that one’s essential power is displayed. Casting away the small “ego” and throwing oneself into a larger purpose or creative activity. Only through this paradoxical process can we likely meet the true “self” that is not borrowed.

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「要は内に省て疚しからざるにあり。」
“The point lies in reflecting inwardly and having nothing to be guilty of.”
—— Yoshida Shoin, Record of a Soul Left Behind

【Commentary】
Is the condition of a hero to adapt to the times, or to stick to one’s principles? Shoin placed the highest value on reflecting on his own inner self and finding no guilt, rather than on the success or failure of results or the evaluation of others. No matter how much one is blamed by the world, if the mirror of the heart is not clouded, a person should be able to live with their head held high. This sentence preaches the strength to live according to the voice of conscience without being misled by external noise.

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「わが身は何事をなしたるや。今は何事をなせるや。今後は何事をなすべきや」
“What has my self accomplished? What is it accomplishing now? What should it accomplish in the future?”
—— Fukuzawa Yukichi, An Encouragement of Learning

【Commentary】
Just as a navigator checks their current location, do you set aside time to read the compass of life? Yukichi urges us to conduct an “inventory of intellectual and moral business” of ourselves, likening it to a business settlement. Looking back on past actions, confirming the current standing, and determining future guidelines. If one neglects these three questions, one risks aging while just drifting along and ending one’s life in idleness. The habit of calmly inspecting what one has gained and lost in learning and work is indispensable for self-growth. Possessing the strictness to question oneself regularly without being buried in daily busyness is the first step to walking an autonomous life.

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(Editing Cooperation: Ishita Haruna, Sassa Momona)