午夜剧场

I serve as the chief priest of Ryutai-ji Temple of the Soto Zen school in Seki City, Gifu Prefecture. Within the temple grounds is Akatsuki Kindergarten, where I also serve as the principal. As a hobby, I am also involved in powerlifting.

When I first became the principal, I frequently preached to the children about the importance of having dreams. However, when a child asked me, "Do dreams really come true?" I found myself unable to answer with confidence. At that moment, I realized I was facing the children with "borrowed words." To speak words that are truly my own and full of life, I realized I had to have a dream myself and make the effort to achieve it. That is how I started powerlifting.

I started around 2009. While telling the children my dream was to become the strongest person in the world, I practiced steadily every day and eventually became number one in Asia. The reason I continue to strive for the world title today is because I want the children to feel that working hard toward a dream looks like fun.

As a Zen monk, looking at it from a Zen perspective, the idea that the mind is harmonized by approaching everything with earnestness is the same whether it is play, work, or Zen training.

In Zen, we value not only zazen (seated meditation) but also concentrating on the tasks right in front of us, such as eating, cleaning, and daily chores. Whether it is something you like or dislike, by approaching it earnestly, your mind feels refreshed once you have seen it through.

Of course, it is easier to be earnest about things you like than things you dislike. Therefore, I want both adults and children to first try challenging themselves with things they feel they "want to do!" This is because living honestly according to the feelings that well up from within yourself is the very essence of self-affirmation.

That being said, there will be times when things don't go well despite your best efforts. But that's okay. When things aren't working out, you can rely on those around you, or you can try a new dream. What matters is the act of earnestly working toward a dream itself. In that moment, we are shining, and we should be finding that time enjoyable.

Let us adults be the first to earnestly engage in the things we want to do and the things we must do, and enjoy them to the fullest. Showing that to our children is, I believe, the greatest form of education.