Prayer for Love and Mercy

 Ah, I’ve finally reached the end of *Hagakure*—a truly enjoyable read. "The way of the samurai is found in death." How aptly put! It seems the samurai of Japan were absolutely desperate to die in battle. Even the prospect of a peaceful, natural end—surrounded by one’s children and grandchildren—was met with deep dissatisfaction: "If one must die, it should be by charging into the enemy’s ranks and being run through. To grow old and wither away in one’s bed—what a truly regrettable end!" (*Hagakure*) Now *that* is a true samurai. A bitter fate—to die peacefully on a tatami mat. A samurai must be this way. Above all else, a samurai’s life is defined solely by death. His only true task is to die—to die every single day, every single morning. "Surely that’s impossible!" you might say. But no—it is possible. It must be done. And it’s perfectly manageable; *Hagakure* explains exactly how: "1. One should contemplate death each and every day. Every morning, ...

 These words regarding compassion are truly profound, aren’t they? In the *Hagakure*, it is written: "Lord Tsunetomo emphasized that one should deeply contemplate the fact that compassion is an inexhaustible wellspring—no matter how much you draw from it, it never runs dry." "Courage and wisdom that arise from a heart of compassion are the genuine article." (*Hagakure*) "Because one acts from a heart of compassion, one’s actions are infinitely strong and righteous." (*Hagakure*) No matter how many times I hear these words, they remain deeply meaningful. Why is it that when something stems from compassion, it becomes inexhaustible, authentic, powerful, and right? Mercy is, in essence, the Buddha himself; when compassion is at work, it is the Buddha acting through that person. In other words, the workings of mercy are the workings of the Buddha—which is why they are genuine, infinitely strong, and righteous. Moreover, they are inexhaustible—that is to say, i...

 I never imagined I would find a glimmer of compassion in *Hagakure*. *Hagakure*—yes, that very book, the quintessential text on the spirit of *Bushido* (the Way of the Warrior). It is absolutely fascinating—truly, it’s gripping. And it’s not just interesting; to my complete surprise, it even contains a glimmer of mercy. To be honest, I haven’t even finished half of it yet. I decided, quite by chance, to work my way through a series of classic Japanese texts. I spent some time reading works by Confucian scholars—Arai Hakuseki, Ogyū Sorai—and now, I’ve arrived at *Hagakure*. The book records the words of Yamamoto Tsunetomo. "The Way of the Warrior (*Bushido*) is found in death." Here, one encounters that famous phrase which encapsulates the very essence of *Bushido*. A warrior must be prepared to die for his lord. Every single day, he thinks of nothing but how he might die for his master. Merely achieving a feat of arms—like taking an enemy’s head—is not considered a truly gre...

 Let’s take a look at the true nature of "quotas" by examining some concrete examples. First, there are "sales quotas"—the requirement to sell a certain amount by a specific deadline. If you fail to meet these, you’re often left with two grim choices: either engage in "self-inflicted sales" (buying the products yourself out of your own pocket) or resort to "forced selling" (pressuring others to buy things they don’t even need). In the latter case, salespeople might barge into a customer’s home and refuse to leave until a purchase is made, invent a fictitious "original price" to make a product look like a "half-price bargain," or falsely claim that "only a few items are left!"—even when there is still a massive surplus in stock—all to pressure the customer into buying. Those who do this feel no pangs of conscience; their moral sense has become completely paralyzed. They have ceased to be human. If one cannot make a li...

 Previously, I posited that the imposition of unreasonable quotas stems from the arrogant belief that humans can control future outcomes—a mindset that effectively places the individual in the position of God. What happens when a human, lacking the capacity for such a role, presumes to occupy the place of God? Arrogance and ruthlessness come to the fore. When unreasonable quotas are forced upon others, the resulting pressure often leads to dishonesty—superficial adjustments made merely to hit the numbers—which causes internal distortions to accumulate. Meanwhile, the broader society suffers mounting damage. Then, at the very pinnacle of triumph—just as those in charge are intoxicated by the "victory" of having met their goals—these accumulated distortions reach a breaking point, and the collapse begins. The moment of ruin has arrived. This bears a striking resemblance to something I wrote previously- Evil is not worth it , and The reason why God lifts up the evil one in orde...

 Unreasonable quotas breed misconduct; when that misconduct is exposed, the organization loses public trust and collapses. It is a pattern of ruin that has played out time and time again. Where exactly did this root of all evil—the "quota"—come from? Humans never seem to learn their lesson; this destructive cycle repeats endlessly, forcing me to ponder the issue. I’m not sure if I can successfully unravel the origins of the quota system, but I’ll give it a shot. I suppose I’ll think it through as I write. To start, let’s imagine working part-time at a cake shop. You are told to sell a certain cake throughout the day. Your shift is eight hours long. You work as a shop assistant. Up to this point, we wouldn't call it a "quota," even though you are working an eight-hour shift. You could argue it *is* a quota of sorts, but certainly not an unreasonable one. But what if you were told, "You absolutely must sell 100 of these today"? That is where the quota co...