The Japanese proverb, “You can't eat ripe persimmons unless you climb higher into a dangerous place,” conveys the idea that avoiding risks may hinder one from achieving satisfactory results or significant profits. It emphasizes the importance of courage in facing challenges.

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Growth And Humility

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  The knowledge and experiences we gain in life are truly mysterious, unfolding their value in unpredictable ways. While the timing may vary, there inevitably comes a moment when these learnings can benefit others. However, as people acquire more knowledge and experience, some risk becoming arrogant. This highlights the importance of nurturing their humanity alongside their intellectual and professional growth. For working adults, the span of approximately 40 years between starting a career and retiring presents a significant opportunity for development. The gap in ability between those who continue learning and those who stop is vast. Continuous learning not only enhances skills but also fuels personal satisfaction, as people enjoy witnessing their growth and achievements. In this light, it’s essential to recognize that latent potential exists within everyone until the very end of their lives. By persevering and making consistent efforts to develop this potential, individuals can ...
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Navigating the Positive and Negative Impacts of Technological Advancements

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In human history, every story has two sides, the positive and the negative. For example, the invention of the printing press greatly facilitated the dissemination of knowledge and expertise, and the invention of the motor vehicle dramatically transformed human mobility. However, the former also led to a decline in human memory function, and the latter contributed to a sedentary lifestyle and physical fitness issues. Similarly, the Internet and AI provide us with a wealth of information that we often rely on, but it can also diminish our ability to rely on our own insights and intuition, which our ancestors cultivated through their interactions with nature over the course of human history. Even today, by simply taking a walk and engaging in a conscious dialogue with trees and plants, we can restore our innate insight and intuition. This, in turn, can enhance our imaginative abilities and provide emotional healing. It may be hard to believe, but why not give it a try?
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Mindfulness and the Alchemy of Happiness: Insights from Archbishop Ryokan Ara

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  The Archbishop of Tendai Buddhism, Ryokan Ara (1928-2019), once shared a perspective on the mind: “All things in this world arise from the mind, and the mind can change them. Both within this house and within this world, through this mind, they can become either hell or paradise.” All people live their lives with more or less pain and worry. This is what Buddhism calls “earthly desires”. Suffering and worries bring about a variety of painful emotions such as sadness, anger, envy, and anxiety, and instill “bad habits in the mind.” Therefore, since it is difficult for people to give up earthly desires as long as they are alive, Ryokan Ara proposed to reduce earthly desires by practicing “habits of a calm mind” that are good for the mind and soul. It emphasizes that nothing in this world is fixed forever and that things are always changing, so it is important to understand the truth by looking at things in a big-picture way. What is needed here is the mindset of not being particular...
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