This time, Inamori* spoke about the above motto in Kyocera philosophy.
What Inamori said is quoted with “”.
“ First of all, you must work much harder than anyone else. Furthermore, you must do so with a pure heart. If you work hard with the selfish thought, even though you find yourself to be successful to some extent, downfall is sure to await you….Your desire must come from the purified soul, a sort of compassionate and beautiful mind, which seeks truth, goodness, and beauty. “
I find myself to be materialized and ordinary person however, I feel that I need to do the following to have a pure heart.
1. Expose yourself to other people’s actions come from pure hearts
2. Let go of the obsession with having a pure heart
3. Purify yourself (misogu/reflect on yourself)
Let me explain them one by one.
1. Expose yourself to other people’s actions come from pure hearts
” As I was walking through the park in a Buddhism monk outfit, with a rice bag full of rice, an old lady who was raking up fallen leaves came running up to me and, without saying a word, gave me 100 yen. At that moment, an indescribable emotion ran through my whole body. I was touched by the old lady’s beautiful heart and was filled with an indescribable sense of fulfillment. I think it’s fair to say that my whole body was enveloped in “love.” Quoted from here. “
(https://mainichi.jp/premier/business/articles/20231012/biz/00m/020/003000c)”
→ This is a story about when Inamori was ordained after turning 65 and was begging for alms. I think it depicts the beauty of the spirit of giving and sharing.
The monk Matsubara Taido mentioned in his book about a blind masseuse. She told Matsubara that she was happy that the alley in front of her house had lights on. Matsubara asked her, “Since you are blind, doesn’t it matter to you whether it’s bright or dark?” to which she replied, “I’m delighted to know that people who pass by my house will no longer have to feel inconvenienced.” Matsubara was surprised and felt ashamed of the shortcomings of his own thinking. When we come into contact with a beautiful heart, we naturally get fulfilled and find the value of being alive.
2. Let go of the obsession with having a pure heart
“ Our CEO knows me. The other day, I had a drink with that CEO, and he got angry at me. He slapped me on the knee and said, ‘What an idiot you are !!…
In your case, you spontaneously read my book… and you keep improving but even if you tell them directly, they won’t do that. That’s the ability of that person (employee). In other words, it’s not about having the ability, but about the desire to change themselves. Namely, it’s about the capacity of that person. So, sorry to tell you that you cannot force your staff to change as you have done. “
→ It is important to seek a pure heart. However, I don’t think it should become an obsession. If it becomes an obsession, you may end up just becoming a nasty whistle blower. If you think you must be pure, you put your own feelings aside and focus on other people’s hearts.
It’s good to look at your own heart honestly, but if you’re the only one who’s different from others, you draw a line
between yourself and others. I’m going to tell myself that a pure heart is the result of my daily actions and keep doing good to others.
3. Purify yourself (misogu/reflect on yourself)
“ Then I immediately and simply say to myself, “I’m sorry, God,” and feel sorry and reflect on my actions. “
→ Inamori always talks about living each day with reflection. In the same way as reflection, when you feel that you are selfish or that your heart is not refined, I think it’s a good idea to create a rule of “purification-repentance-” such as working twice as much as usual, or giving something in charity, or taking on hard and tough work.
First of all, I think it’s important to repeatedly reflect on yourself, and when you do something wrong, to look back on yourself, work hard and take difficult tasks.
So, to sum up, it is quite difficult to have a pure heart, but I would like to continue to let go of my attachments, interact with people with pure hearts, reflect a little every day, and conduct my own “purification.”
* Mr. Kazuo Inamori, the founder of Kyocera, KDDI (one of the top tele communication companies in Japan) and the top of revitalization project of JAL. As a well-known Japanese entrepreneur, he has been sharing his experiences and management know-how with managements of small to middle companies in Japan.
Further queries or doubts, please email to ytomizuka@abrilsjp.com
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