Great Construction

The Indifferent Japanese

     No ethnic group exists as indifferent as the Japanese is a statement that will presumably startle my reader. But that is unavoidable as it is an outstanding fact. It is a fact that most have not perceived. Let me explain.
     To give a specific example, today’s Japanese do not think much of trust. They blithely lie about something that will eventually be exposed or that everyone knows about. In the worst cases they lie about that which is immediately and shamefully uncovered. More common are the many cases where an appointment for a certain time is made with no intention of keeping it. This is an excellent example of telling a lie, and making charades about trifling matters is thought to be natural. Other examples are in sales where seller and buyer tell each other lies. If sellers were to be honest, they would not make anything on their product so to a certain extent even if such lying might be permissible, the lies are still awful. Not only is trust lost, the loss of time and the tangled proceedings are unbearable. The seller inflates the price and the potential buyer haggles. Because the buyer haggles, the seller inflates the price, so the proceeding is a vicious circle. As the scale of transactions increase,  discussions and arguments will be repeated and continued for a half or even a full day. There are even cases of such bandying about taking several days, a fortnight, or even months. In these circumstances, the futility and waste is tremendous.
     I am a bit shamefaced to introduce my own example, but when making purchases, it is my policy to haggle as little as possible. Only when the price is too high and it is obvious that I am being taken advantage of that I do unavoidably haggle, but those cases are very rare. When I do so, however, it is a given that at our next transaction, the other party will inflate the price. And then haggling again, another instance of a vicious cycle that only ends up in a lot of trouble and unpleasantness. The examples above concern trade, but the same is true for government officials and company employees. Because these people desire worldly success as quickly as possible, they want to show their own achievements, publicize themselves, and make others owe them favors. They do so because they think they are clever, but as their superiors have higher standards, they are not taken in by these machinations. Such persons in a hurry are not thought to be loyal and they lose the trust of others.
     Those such as entrepreneurs make a point of pretending to have money when they do not, of affecting to have a wider background than actually they have, and of advertising that their enterprises are more lucrative than they actually are, but such ruses continue only temporarily and do not succeed.
     Then again, there are what is known in Japanese society as “go-betweens,” who help to introduce marriage partners and for whom accolades and such would be natural, but these go-betweens are actually in a rush to increase the number of their successes and thus start marriages which turn out to end either before or right after the actual marriage ceremony, causing everyone a lot of trouble. Due to the mediation that results, go-betweens lose trust. In another instance, as a result of the rapid pace of advertisements for over the counter drugs and cosmetics, a substantial quantity is sold at first, but we often see that sales drop because their effects do not amount to what was claimed in the advertisements.
     There is no end to the examples that could be listed, but the point is that trust is paramount. Without trust, it is the end. No matter how well matters may proceed, without trust, there will be nothing. It is like pouring water into a basket. But surprisingly few people actually perceive this. No matter how much one may try, how much a plan is carried out, without trust indeed it will be wasted effort, great pains taken in vain. Such individuals are truly indifferent. Thus if you conduct yourself honestly without lying, you will become a person whose word is good, who can be trusted. Accordingly, it is only natural that money can be made; success achieved; and respect, received. This is the truly concerned individual, with a deep greed, hunger, in the good sense. Thus I always teach, each person should have a true hunger, not a temporary but an eternal hunger.

Eikō, Issue 76, page 1, November 1, 1950
translated by cynndd

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“Nihonjin wa Yoku ga Nai,” first published on the front page of the newspaper Eikō, Issue 76, November 1, 1950, reprinted, while Meishu-sama still alive, in the essays anthology for ministers Goshinsho: Shūkyō Hen (Divine Writings: Volume on Religion), page 448, March 25, 1954, and shortly after Meishu-sama’s Ascension in the essays anthology for ministers Sekai Meshiya Kyō Seiten: Geijutsu Hen, Shakai Hen (Sacred Texts of Church of World Messianity: Volume on Art, Volume on Society), page 233, September 1, 1955, has appeared previously in translation. Citation is given below for reference.

“Many Japanese Are Not Trustworthy,” Foundation of Paradise, 1984, page 431.