Self-development- to master the essence of things-

This time, Mr. Inamori is talking about “to master the essence of things.” Also, many people are now interested in self-development. I think that this “mastering the essence of things” is also a hint of self-development. So, I would like to think about “mastering the essence of things” here.

I think the next steps are important to “master the essence of things”.

1 Strive to capture the truth.

2 Think about enlightenment (why do you do Zen meditation?)

3 Dedicating to work elevates our virtue

4 Ingenuity to like our daily works

Let me elaborate each one of the above.

Mr. Inamori said as follows. The words in “” are Mr. Inamori’s words.

1 Strive to capture the truth

“We can only master the truth and the essence of things by mastering a work that you have been dealing with. Mastering is to devote ourselves to one thing and grasp something at its core. If you master one thing, you would be able to apply the same philosophy or interpretation in dealing with other works. No matter how boring your work may look, you should take it as a vocation and devote yourself to it. If you keep improving, you will surely get enlightened with the truth. “

→ Our main business is real estate.

I have been involved in real estate for 34 years.

Only recently have I realized that analyzing and understanding peoples’ mindset are important to complete our work.

I think it is up to the human mind to enhance or demolish the value of real estate. Real estate can help your life greatly and cause tragedy in your life as well.

However, I don’t think I can explain everything clearly and easily to even children. I think I should learn the truth and digest it in my mind.

2 Think about enlightenment (why do you do Zen meditation?)

“I talked about” sticking to perfectionism “,” devoting myself to work seriously “, and” making sober efforts “. Actually, I’m doing these three things all the time. If you do, you will be able to master the essence of things. In Zen Buddhism, monks not only make meditation every day, but they also cook, clean, prepare baths, and do farm work to make their own food. There, all work is practiced like Zen meditation. In other words, “dedicated to one job” is the training. For example, when it comes to making meals, you get rid of the delusions and just focus on making meals. That will eventually lead you to enlightenment. For you to get enlightened, you don’t have to keep the meditation like a Buddhist monk from morning till night all year round. “

→ I thought each single action or assignment in my daily work can be interpreted as self-discipline or meditation. I sometimes get worried, consider, act, check the results, make a reflection, then worry again, consider and conduct a revised plan. Through these struggles, I think we human beings may be able to get aware of the love filling in the universe.

3 Dedicating to work elevates our virtue

“There is a word” excellent in one art “.” Mastering the work of a carpenter “does not just mean that you can make a wonderful building, but also make your own humanity value. In other words, I felt that a person who excels in one art and who has mastered the essence of things will be able to understand everything. I must achieve that kind of mental state.

However, personality is not fixed and does change over time. For example, those who were diligent and respectable, once they have become leaders, they gradually become arrogant as they have powers and eventually lose their virtue. On the other hand, outsiders who caused troubles in their youth, eventually regretted what they did in the past and turned into better persons, started striving themselves in their work and responsibilities. Depending on the environment, personality usually changes. “

Mr. Inamori talked about Sontoku Ninomiya envisaged in Kanzo Uchimura’s “Representative Japanese”.

” Sontoku, a peasant who was born and raised poorly and has no education, was called to the castle and discussed eloquently with other samurai warriors. He looked noble, gracious, and majestic. In other words, personality is something that you acquire by devoting yourself to your work, not by any education. I ended that speech with the phrase ‘ In every organization, a leader should be the one who has devoted himself to one thing and to be the man of virtue. By doing this, your organization never gets in trouble. ”

→ I feel we should not be arrogant once we’ve achieved such depth: capturing the truth. We should remain humbler as the rice years and strive harder. I would like to keep this word in mind.

4 Ingenuity to like our daily works

“I am a guy who has enjoyed sober ceramic work for 44 years in the city of Kyoto. What I learned from my career attracts businesspersons in Washington D.C, the center of the United States. I think that if you master one thing, you will be able to understand everything. Also, in Japan, I have not studied the economy at all. However, leaders in the Japanese economy are interested in listening to my speech. This is not due to either my position or power, but due to my words implying a sort of truth, as I have devoted myself to one thing for a long time.”

→ Ordinary people get tired of repeating the same thing for a long time. Over the routine, some people deviate laws and regulations and cause fraud. I think it is very important for us to make efforts to like our work. In addition, we should think about how our work does not only help us but others. Such altruistic spirits may encourage us to keep endeavor to improve the quality of outputs of our works. This would allow us to enjoy our daily work.