Regarding religion, I don't have the same level of devoutness as many Christians who attend weekly services or Muslims who kneel on the floor every day facing God. Also, with all due respect, I haven't studied the beliefs of other Hindu or Jewish people.
As I mentioned in my self-introduction, I spent my childhood in the UK from age 7 to 14, growing up among people from diverse national and cultural backgrounds. There were many Hindu and Jewish people around me, and I certainly made friends with them.
What is K's religion?
And I am not what you would call an atheist.
I feel that gods reside in countless things, I feel a sense of awe in the mountains, a sense of depth in the sea (though this is not often seen in Japan or in cities), and I squint my eyes at the horizon.
If I had to define my own position, I would say I belong to Buddhism.
However, I do find the idea that everything is suffering a bit difficult to accept, and having visited many Christian churches, I have experienced their solemnity firsthand. Also, the piety I witnessed among Muslims in Israel (more than 35 years ago) made me realize that they are truly devoted to their religion and that it is a strong foundation in their lives.
Does K like philosophy?
In my twenties, I struggled with many aspects of life, and I read several books on philosophy and similar topics that weren't too difficult, as well as books that taught me the essence of Buddhism in a simple way.
During my university days, I was deeply impressed by the jurisprudence classes I took from Professor Tatsuo Inoue, a legal philosopher. "The Etiquette of Coexistence: Justice as Conversation" is an extremely difficult book (it might have been the first edition when I was a university student).
However, while I couldn't fully understand the truly crafted and insightful sentences in my twenties, now at fifty, I'm slowly reading them, gradually realizing, "This author is truly amazing."
If you're interested, please do pick it up (I think it's probably best to browse it at a bookstore before buying).
In conclusion
I haven't even finished reading Professor Tatsuo Inoue's books yet.
I don't think I can possibly understand all of the professor's profound writing, but I would like to presumptuously share my thoughts below as what I am feeling at the moment.
For now, I believe the world shouldn't be a mere relative place where people are simply swept along by the currents of society, and I hope it will operate based on certain fundamental values.
In that sense, I don't think it's absolute pacifism either. Having values presupposes that there will always be people with different values, and I feel that a world without conflict, without even trials, which would be an absolute pacifist society, would negate the very existence of values.
In Japan, August 15th, the anniversary of the end of the war, is fast approaching.
I hope that we can have dialogue with people of all religions and beliefs, and that we can live in a world without wars involving bullets and missiles.
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