Saturday, December 31, 2005

Happy Ending & Destiny

Happy Ending & Destiny

Chinese are said to be pessimistic at their core due to long history of upheaval and conflicts. Therefore, Indians, Iranians, Iraqis, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans might be all pessimistic apart from their outward gestures. Anyway, countries north of the Alps are younger.

But, Japanese are optimistic, though not tropical way, as nowadays half of Japan is covered by snow generated high on the Sea of Japan from cold air blown from Siberia. “When having finished well, everything is well” is a proverb Japanese like to hear.

In a Swedish film for children, a traveling entertainer met a boy having escaped from an orphans’ home.

After an adventure, the middle-aged street performer, or busker, brought the boy to a rich farm family, hoping that the family would adopt him. But the boy chose to travel with the busker.

So, the busker decided to trace a path to a home of a woman he had once lived together with. And, reconciliation and reunion were made well, so that they got together again and the boy was adopted by the couple. Truly happy ending! Indeed, it is said that children are a link between husband and wife.

It may, however, look too simple. Germans would make it more reasonable. British could make it more dramatic. Americans love to make it more dynamic and funnier. And, Japanese love to see more caring and sensitive emotion.

As for me, when I encounter straightforwardness and strength beyond expectation, I cannot help but admire them, which frankly speaking seldom happened.

In 2005, we have not observed here and there enough straightforwardness and strength, a kind that is potentially promising.

However, I believe that we came through the path to this crossover point, with training, enjoyment, and appreciation, while being led by Destiny.

“Nothing You Do for the Lord’s Service is Ever Useless”

Friday, December 30, 2005

A Teaching on Bonds at a Mountain Side

A Teaching on Bonds at a Mountain Side

Following is a personal memo only for those humbly and professionally concerned:

The amount of outstanding US government bond is 7.33 trillion dollars (879 trillion yen) as of the end of FY 2004 (which is also expected to reach 11.114 trillion dollars in FY 2010).

The amount of outstanding Japanese government bond planned for FY 2006 is 1.38 trillion dollars (165 trillion yen).

Japan has US government bonds worth of 0.7 trillion dollars as of February 2005.

Q: How can we solve a catastrophe many expect to happen in future?

A: Once thousands people gathered at a mountain side to listen to Jesus Christ. At lunch time, Jesus’ disciples asked him how to do with the people. Money they had was not enough to buy the crowd enough food. But Jesus ordered the disciples to have the people sit down and give them whatever fish or bread the disciples had.

As you know, a miracle happened. The crowd of people all ate enough and got satisfied.

The answer is that the people had come there with their own food. But, they hid their own food lest others stole it. However, as Jesus’ disciples started to give their own fish and bread, everyone began to take out their lunch box from a coat pocket, a bag, or a cart.

It is a miracle in that people with much food gave some of it to others who happened to have little or none. Otherwise, not all should be satisfied.

So, by applying Jesus’ teaching to government bonds of Japan and the U.S., we could happily solve the deficit problems once and for all.

I like to call this “a teaching on bonds at a mountain side,” if the Lord wishes.

Anyhow, poor people need money when the end of the year is really near.

“VICTORY IS COMPLETE”

Thursday, December 29, 2005

Dr. Hawking and “i”

Dr. Hawking and “i”

Year 2005 was the Year of Physics. It is mainly related to Albert Einstein.

Anyhow, as the New Year’s Day is coming, we might refer to theories of the birth of the universe.

The most famous scientist in this field is Stephen William Hawking of the U.K.

According to his theory, our universe was born following the uncertainty principle. The principle tells there is a special condition on the product of energy and time. Even if the product should take a specific value, larger energy in a shorter period of time is allowed:

For a very small particle,
E x T = (6.6261 x 10^-34) / (2 x pi),
where E and T are a change of energy and time, respectively.

Following this principle, our universe was born in a very short period of time, getting over an energy barrier that had suppressed the birth of a universe.

The moment of the birth was too unusual to handle it reasonably and scientifically in its mathematical expression. So, Dr. Hawking introduced an idea of “imaginary time” into the mathematical expression, thus making smooth the flow of time back to the birth of the universe and beyond and, at the same time, that quantum leap possible.

(with "i" = (-1)^(1/2), i second, 2i seconds, and so on, instead of 1 second, 2 seconds,..; however, this method is common in quantum physics.)

As the meaning of quantum theory as well as Einstein’s theory is still controversial, his solution based on both the theories looks still so.

I believe mankind is yet to understand the truth of the birth of our universe.

But, this theory gives mankind a great courage. Even for a very short period of time, we are allowed to exercise great ability, though it might not create another universe.

As for “imaginary time,” apart from its use as mathematical agency, if God is real, everything should be real to the limit we are allowed to understand about our universe, including its birth and its state before the birth.

Beyond the limit, we are no longer human beings in any way.

“STOP YOUR DOUBTING AND BELIEVE”

Monday, December 26, 2005

Next Year is 2666 for Emperor

Next Year is 2666 for Emperor

In 91 B.C., the first official history book of China, the Shiji (called Shi-ki in Japanese), was established. The author is Sima Qian (called Shiba Sen in Japanese). It was the age of Earlier Han Dynasty.

And, remarkably, Chinese people have been traditionally called “Han people” up to this day in a little formal manner in Japan. The Chinese letter “Han” is pronounced as “Kan” by Japanese. And “Chinese character” is called “Kan-ji” in Japanese, likewise.

Japanese written language consists of Kan-ji and Kanas. Kanas were created by Japanese about 1000 years ago based on simplified Kan-ji to simply express sounds of spoken language. Kan-ji is ideogram, but Kanas are akin to alphabetic characters.

Therefore, if you do not know a meaning of Kan-ji a sound of which is expressed in English, you cannot fully recognize the meaning of the corresponding Chinese expression. In this sense, non-Chinese are meaning-blind to Chinese names. But, the only exception is Japanese (and some Koreans), since Japanese can understand meaning of most of Chinese Kan-ji characters which are nowadays a little different from the Japanese Kan-ji system.

In the seventh century, the Yamato regime (ancient Central Government of Japan) started to compile an official history which was completed in the eighth century. The history book was called Nihon-Shoki. The book was written in the Chinese language of that age. A similar example is found in that the Bible was first written in Greek in the early days of Christianity. Anyway then Chinese dynasty knew that Japan was not an uncivilized country without an official history book.

In China, when a dynasty was vanished, the succeeding dynasty established an official history about the precedent dynasty. Therefore the whole Chinese history consists of a number of independent official history books, each representing a single dynasty.

But, Japan has the only one official history book, Nihon-shoki, since the dynasty of Japan has never changed, which had been called the Yamato regime until Emperor moved to Tokyo from Kyoto in late 19th century.

When Emperor moved to Tokyo, the Shogun Government system ended. The Shogun is the head of warriors or samurais, but the title, Shogun, was officially endowed the samurai leader with by Emperor. Nonetheless, under the Shogun Government, Emperor had no power for collecting taxes and controlling military forces. In most cases, a Shogun decided allowance for an emperor. But, no Shoguns in Japanese history dared to abolish an emperor or take himself the position of Emperor.

It is because Emperor is holly existence, playing an indispensable role of Japanese traditional religion, Shinto.

Therefore, the first and last official history book of the Yamato Regime, namely classical Empire of Japan, includes myths.

According to Nihon-shoki, the first emperor in Japan was inaugurated 660 B.C. which became the starting point of years of Emperor.

When a world-leading fighter plane was officially adopted in 2600 in the year of Emperor, it was named Zero, since lower digits of the year were zeroes. It was indeed 1940 A.D.

So, the next year 2006 AD is 2666 in the year of Emperor of Japan.

(However there is another year system officially and widely used in Japan linked with the present emperor. According to it, the next year is "Heisei 18.")

Though Japan is the only country in the world now that has a person officially called Emperor in English, it is extremely rare that the year of Emperor is used in Japan except in Shinto religious practices.

When the end of the year gets near, you might like to refer to history; if so, I have served this way for you.

“THE MOON WILL BE AS BRIGHT AS THE SUN”