Prayer for Love and Mercy

 What does the relationship between humans and rice look like from the rice's perspective? Rice seems like a poor, unfortunate existence, existing only to be eaten by humans, but is that really true? For plants, expanding their habitat and increasing their species is their primary objective. So, compared to the wild species before human cultivation, has rice increased or decreased? It has expanded its habitat to the absolute maximum, beyond what it could possibly be. Through human selective breeding, it has reached even Hokkaido in the north, where it couldn't survive in the wild. It's originally a tropical species. Furthermore, rice has been planted everywhere possible—even on mountain slopes, creating terraced fields—and even reclaiming land from the sea and lakes, planting it wherever possible, spreading throughout Japan and the world. It could be said that rice has successfully used humans to expand its habitat to the maximum. A winner? In the plant world? Wheat is the ...

 Last time, we considered altruistic behavior in the human world. Since humans are social creatures, even the most egoistic person must work to earn a living, and work means contributing to the benefit of others, thus inevitably leading to altruistic behavior. Furthermore, acts that seek only one's own benefit without altruism are often defined as crimes and subject to social sanctions. So, what about animals and plants other than humans? First, let's look at the relationship between plants and animals. Plants bloom flowers and bear fruit. Insects suck nectar from flowers, and animals eat the fruit. At first glance, it seems that plants are unilaterally used by animals, but when insects suck nectar, pollen attaches to their bodies, and those insects then go to other flowers to pollinate them. When animals eat the fruit, seeds are excreted in their feces, but sprouts grow from those seeds, so the plant, though unable to move, expands its habitat. In other words, even though each...

 Listening to the teachings of Ninomiya Kinjiro made me reflect on altruistic human behavior. His teachings are based on three pillars: 1. Diligence (working hard) 2. Moderation (keeping one's standard of living within one's means) 3. Sharing (giving away surplus wealth generated through point 2) However, the altruistic behavior consciously perceived within this framework is point 3, sharing, where surplus wealth is used for the benefit of society. Regarding point 1, diligence, in Edo-period rural areas, self-sufficiency was a major factor, so the self-interest of securing one's own food was strongly emphasized. However, in today's highly specialized society, work means contributing to the benefit of others, that is, providing goods and services that others need. In other words, altruism is already inherent in point 1, diligence. And in return, one receives compensation. Work is a perfect balance of altruism and self-interest. This is truly how the world should be. To l...

 I was reading the newspaper the other day and came across an article that said, "Ninomiya Kinjiro was a super financial planner," which piqued my interest, so I borrowed several books about Ninomiya Kinjiro from the library and have been reading them. They're incredibly interesting... I'm still in the middle of reading them, but they're so fascinating that I just had to write about them here. Ninomiya Kinjiro is known for his statues of him reading a book while carrying firewood on his back, which are erected in elementary schools all over Japan. Apparently, he was the second most famous person in pre-war Japan after the Emperor. Well, he's a symbol of a diligent boy, just like the statues depict, but what did he actually do? It turns out he was actually a highly skilled financial planner! Wow!! Apparently, he was skilled at increasing wealth, and he had a reputation at his workplaces for being someone who would always bring back more money if you entrusted i...

 In Islam, a man may marry up to four wives, but he must love them all equally. So, what about Muhammad? It seems he had more than four wives, but even then, the hadith describes how he meticulously rotated his visits, ensuring there was no imbalance in the number of days he spent with each wife. However, there was a moment, when one of his wives, the most modest and reserved, perhaps out of consideration for his beloved Aisha, said to Muhammad: "You can skip me from now on," This scene is described in the hadith. This is quite ambiguous, isn't it? How should Muhammad have responded to such a statement? Should he have been happy or sad? What expression should he have made? I've forgotten exactly how Muhammad reacted at that moment. I am currently sealed away from the scriptures, so for details, please consult the hadith yourself. However, my impression after reading it is: "Loving multiple wives equally is an extremely difficult task." Even a God's apost...

 Ultimately, I think what's written here is about "what happens when someone who falls in love easily falls in love with religions." Apparently, I'm the type who falls in love easily; I quickly fall for women. And then, I find myself saying things like, "I want to marry you many times over!" Of course, it doesn't work out that well, and I always get rejected, but my tendency to fall in love easily doesn't go away, and I keep doing it without learning my lesson. Eventually, some foolish woman will fall for it... What a fool to fall for such a worthless man! Well, is this divine punishment for living such a foolish life? I immediately fall in love when I meet a beautiful Bodhisattva, immediately fall in love when I meet a beautiful Buddha, immediately fall in love when I meet a beautiful Son of God (Christ), immediately fall in love when I meet the great God (Allah), and by the time I reach Ramakrishna, I don't know what's what anymore. Whether...