(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Buddha attained enlightenment — called satori in Japanese — after long and rigorous training. Many people have tried to explain what satori is. Koshu Itabashi, a Japanese Zen monk, wrote that satori is to live a normal life and be content with it. He … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Do you know the saying, “Eighty percent of success is showing up”? Woody Allen, a writer and film director, said this. I really like this saying, and I’ve repeated it to myself many times. For example, I don’t like attending company parties. … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I watched a scientific TV program about the sixth sense. The program reported the results of some experiments. In one experiment, there were two people: one sat while the other stood behind them. The person sitting could correctly guess whether or not … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Isao Harimoto holds the record for the most career hits in Japanese baseball, and Sadaharu Oh holds the record for the most career home runs in Japanese baseball. Contrary to what you might think, both of them were actually very cautious and … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) In 2016, I attended a public conversation in Nagoya, Japan, between Shinya Yamanaka and Isamu Akasaki, both Nobel Prize laureates. Shinya Yamanaka is an entertaining speaker, and I laughed a lot during his talk. He said that it is important to find … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I like seeing children. I am struck by their purity and innocence, which remind me of my happy childhood. When I commute on foot, I always see elementary school students walking in a line. Since they are so cute, I cannot help … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Among Confucius’s sayings, my favorite is the following:“They who know the truth are not equal to those who love it, and they who love it are not equal to those who delight in it.” I used to be unable to understand the … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) In 2015, in Osaka, Japan, I attended a lecture by Shuji Nakamura, a 2014 Nobel Prize laureate in Physics. He spoke very frankly, and it was enjoyable to listen to him. He insisted that Japanese students should learn from American students, noting … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) My favorite writer is Kenji Miyazawa, who was born in Iwate, Japan, about 130 years ago. He wrote stories about human beings coexisting with the natural world. In Kenji’s stories, there are many kinds of living creatures, such as wildcats, crabs, fish, owls, … Read more