The environment: some thoughts

For our October submission we Bloggers have been requested to write a piece about the Environment. So much press about that timely topic is concerned with correcting human-caused disasters. That is crucially important, of course, but I have decided to focus on the topic from a different angle: the Environment and how it affects our soul. Since I live in Japan, I will write about how things manifest here.

Visually Japan is famous for its exquisite gardens, gracious teahouses, stunning ikebana, and delicate, refined ladies. These traditions are still revered here, of course, but unfortunately they are being wedged into a small corner as shopping malls, parking lots, unneeded roads, and housing developments devour this land. Yet even so, touches of beauty are found everywhere. In public places, for example, it is not unusual to see arrangements of live flowers. And parks change their floral décor by the season.

In fact, Japanese are masters at creating small, harmonious spaces, like miniature worlds of beauty that seem to defy ugly, noisy, and offensive surroundings. The most astonishing example I saw of this was the home and garden of a student. His family dwelling had once been surrounded by life-giving paddies. Sadly those havens of physical and spiritual nourishment had been abolished, resulting in a huge, intrusive pachinko parlor complex and a vast parking lot. My student’s home was still there as a teeny walled dot of harmony amidst the confusion, noise, and insult of human greed.

As soon as I slipped passed the high walls that delineated his environment, I completely forgot the black top and neon signs barely a thread away. He had a perfect Japanese garden with a small teahouse. His home was tastefully arranged and a caged bird was filling the air with song. I went the day of a tea ceremony, so ladies were there in kimonos and a man was playing the koto. It was a magical globe that lifted my spirits and seemed to obliterate, albeit briefly, the harsh surroundings just outside the gate. I left feeling very much rejuvenated.

Parks are another form of environmental beauty here. Happily they are found everywhere and are usually safe. So, they are used and appreciated a great deal. Near my home is a wooded wonder, right in the center of the city. It has hiking trails, a stream, a large pond with ducks and fish, and benches throughout. It is used by old and young from dawn to dusk, making it an alive and refreshing place for all. Also being a vast tree-filled expanse of land, it serves as a lung for this city, which, of course, helps to filter the air and add coolness in the summer.

Despite Japanese renowned technological advances, everyday life can be quite basic here. For example, many homes do not have central heating or air conditioning. People heat rooms separately and only as needed. They usually sleep with no heat at all. And winters here are very cold indeed. Instead of turning up the heat when they are cold, people wear long johns and thick socks, layers of sweaters and scarves, even hats and half gloves inside the house!

In summer people use hand fans and open windows to allow a breeze to cool things down. Everyone sweats profusely, but soldiers on. Last summer was so oppressively hot that many people simply went to the park to read or sleep under the trees. Houses were simply too hot to stay in and survive.

For me the most beautiful way the Japanese enhance the Environment is through their attitude towards the inner environment: the soul. They know life is stressful and demanding, so they cherish small places and moments of beauty. That is why manners and formality are so important here, and why a smile and delicate behavior mean so much.

Likewise, the Japanese constantly try to protect the soul from life’s harsh realities. A very subtle, yet profound, example of this occurred just after 9/11. The news, of course, was horrific; and the entire world was stunned, shocked, uncertain and afraid. Yet, as the news blared out the unsettling events, in public places the sound systems were adjusted to sooth the heart. Soft, classical music was piped into subways, shopping malls, and train stations. The purpose was not to deny the facts, but rather to face them with serene, balanced composure.

Such touches of sensitivity occur constantly here. Any conversation dealing with negativity is balanced with a search for something positive.

“Mr. Suzuki is such a toad, but the other day he actually held the door open for me!”

“I’ve never met anyone as selfish as Keiko, but she does have such a lovely smile.”

“I am sorry to hear that you just lost your mother. Let’s go for a walk by the sea next Saturday. I am sure the waves and fresh air will do your heart good.”

As everywhere these days, Japan is moving in many unchartered directions simultaneously. But gratefully a part of her has not lost touch with the sensitive beauty that makes for a harmonious, health-filled environment. And that is her soul’s deepest heritage and home.