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“Nothing is more dangerous than to go through life

assuming that we understand everything.

Rather, we should presume we do not understand at all,

and let others teach us and lead by the hand, moving forward step by step,

with humility and commitment.

Together we should feel our way carefully through life.”

From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

”Do not think regretfully about the past.

Make no complaint about the irretrievable months and days you have invested.

And if until now you have relied on others

or expected them to get you out of trouble when things got tough,

you should bravely sweep the slate clean.

What is important is that you seek your own goal.

What matters is your own attitude.

No matter what others may say, you must carry on, passionately, toward your goal.

You must demonstrate what you can do on your own.”

From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

“We should all have a dream – something that we can aspire to.

And it should be something we fervently seek to attain.

We should make it a compelling goal,

one that is as important as life itself.

Once you have given shape to your aspirations,

you are already halfway to achieving them. ”

From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

“We should all try first to accept the circumstances

in which we find ourselves,

without being confined by them and without lapsing into

either self-pity or indulging in complacence,

and then do our best within those circumstances.”

From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

“For our way to open up,

what we have to do is to keep going, to keep moving along.

We have to make up our minds and be resolute, to the best of our ability.

The journey may seem long, but by striding forth, without pause,

our path will open up, and will lead to happiness.”

From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

"THIS GOOD COUNTRY"
From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

When the flowers bloom, the sun shines bright, and the sky is a dazzling blue, colorful banners, festive sights, and the merry voices of children in the distance herald the coming of spring, the beginning of the planting season. It is the season of renewal and hope.

The seasons follow the year around – the warm months, the rainy months, the blistering dry months, the cold months – in the cycle shared since time immemorial. We embrace the land and country we know. Not just the landscape and its culture, but the countless landmarks and treasures collected over its long history. We treasure, too, the inborn character of its people, their diligence and conscientiousness.

Ours is a good country; there are not many other countries like it in the world. So we want to make it an ever-better country and live in harmony with others, in lives that are affluent both in tangible and intangible ways. When you are blessed, if you do know that you are blessed, it is as if you had nothing at all. Let us reflect again upon the good of our country, and give ourselves a new chance to take pride in it.

"THE BENEFITS OF DAMS"
From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

It rains, drenching the mountains, and the water seeps into the earth and forms rivulets, streams, and rivers, flowing out through the land, creating fertile plains before emptying into the sea. As long as the flow is used skillfully, the land prospers, but if something goes wrong, raging waters may cause flooding or lack of rainfall may devastate crops. This is the result of just letting the water run by and not using it with careful thought.

Now consider the dam. We can dam the flow to form a reservoir of water that can be used in effective ways. When we know we have plenty of water, we can let the waters flow through; when we have little, we can store it up. This is a lesson that human civilization has learned.

Just as reservoirs are useful in rivers, so are they in our daily life. Having reserves is good both materially and mentally. There is nothing intelligent in a life of uncontrolled consumption and wastefulness.

In the same way that we build big strong dams for great rivers and small reservoirs for small streams, as needed under the circumstances, so each individual can put to use the information he or she has to form various dams to regulate their lives.

The principles applies not only to individuals’ lives, but in business as well; the benefits of reserves in corporate management are highly to be recommended. Even more valuable are such reserves on the level of management of a country. They will support the genuine and stable prosperity of a nation and its people.

"RESPECT THE MASSES"
From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

The masses are ignorant, so what they think is irrelevant; what is needed is a great and wise leader, who will take the reins of government and control the country. That is the most desirable form of rule…

There was once a time when this conviction held sway in the world, and some still cling to it even today. Indeed, for a long time through history, the masses may have been unlettered and uninformed. And certainly because of that many dictatorships and tyrannies came into being, plunging already unhappy people into even greater distress.

But history has advanced, and humankind, too, has progressed. Today, the masses are well-informed and discerning, and they are also very fair. Anyone who fails to recognize that the masses are no longer ignorant not only misinterprets the meaning of democracy but is an obstruction to the nurture of democratic government – and is probably digging his or her own grave.

To repeat, the masses – the public – today are extremely sensible and fair. They should be trusted and their views made the foundation of democracy. The true mission of democratic government is above all service of the masses. The very essence of democracy, that service is the starting place for the prosperity of a nation.

“SEEK FIRST WITHIN ONESELF”
From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

“When trouble descends, all you can do is pray,” goes the saying, and human beings do have the tendency, when they are really perplexed, distressed, and at their wit’s end, of finally resorting to prayer. “Please, please, hear my prayer,” we plead to whatever our god or buddha, for deliverance from our plight or to get what we desperately need. The gods and buddhas have their work cut our for them.

Such may be human nature, but I can not help thinking that we tend to seek and to ask too much, to rely too much on others. The proper nature of prayer, I should think, is to straighten yourself before your deity – resolving to correct those things within yourself that may not be quite right by your own effort. Not to ask, not to seek, not to beg – the shape of true piety is to rectify yourself by your own power.

We would be well to cultivate the same attitude in our daily lives. Are we not asking too much of others? Are we not relying too much on others? We should strive as much as possible not to depend on others but to discipline ourselves and do the best we can. What applies to us as individuals also applies to organizations and to the state, the nation itself. Therein lies the true form of autonomy and independence for us as human beings and for our country as well.

“THE WORK OF GOVERNING”
From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

Whatever the work you do, it functions to help us all coexist and survive. One job is linked to another job and thus to many other jobs, and our world goes around as a result of all these links. So, to perform a job only according to our own whim or will could end up causing trouble for others; such a self-centered way of working is not ethical either. The job we do is work that has been assigned to us, but at the same time it is not just our own work.

Government is a form of work that is directly linked to the citizens of a country. The quality of the work can very quickly affect the fortunes of all the country’s people. One might think, therefore, that the work of politicians would be highly respected and well remunerated.

In actuality, however, politicians are often the target of jokes and caricatures. On a certain television program, when asked by the announcer, “What do you want to be when you grow up,” an elementary school child said innocently, “I can’t be a politician, I guess, because I’m not good at fighting and quarreling.”

Those who would laugh off such a remark are undermining the very source of their happiness and good fortune. No country where politicians are treated lightly, or where they are not honored and respected, can prosper.

Who is responsible for this situation? Does it lie with the people who chose those politicians for office? Or, does it lie with the politicians themselves?

“GETTING THE MESSAGES”
From the book "THE PATH" by Konosuke Matsush*ta
https://konosuke-matsush*ta.com/en/

The mechanisms of the human body are marvelously intricate and ingeniously designed. Even the most advanced communications satellite, with all its complex devices, cannot measure up to the mysterious handiwork of nature that is the human organism. It could be described, depending on how you look at it, as a recreation of the mysteries of the whole universe.

The body is a complex and vast world in itself. And yet, when pricked with a pin at the tip of one extremity, the brain gets the message immediately. The entire human frame is networked with a finely developed nervous system that reports even the slightest itch or twinge to the brain instantaneously. This is what allows us to respond quickly and appropriately to the situations we find ourselves in.

And then there are the organizations created by human society – shops, companies, associations, and federations. The largest of them are sovereign states, regional unions, and the United Nations. If one were to poke any of these at the bottom rung, would the message be quickly transmitted to its top echelons? Would it be able to respond in a flash, the way the human body does? There is much talk about streamlining and improvement of performance, but what is really needed is a mechanism capable of quickly processing messages from outlying parts and responding immediately.

We should consider this matter, in our companies and our shops, as well as in the states and larger organizations of our world.