Living in a fast-paced world
Welcome to the first edition of Mindfully, Tokyo. I’m starting this written series as a creative outlet and to explore how to live more mindfully in our modern digital era, especially in a city like Tokyo. This week, I’ve been reflecting on time, the fast pace of our lives, and what we can do to slow down.
Time
Time is the progression of events from the past into the future, always moving in one direction. We often find ourselves caught up in a ‘race against time,’ speeding forward toward the future. But why do we need to move so quickly and at what cost?
Recently, I found a beautiful book at a homeware store in Hanoi during a trip to Vietnam. It's called “The Lost Soul” by Olga Tokarczuk, with illustrations by Joanna Concejo and translated by Antonia Lloyd-Jones. Tokarczuk, a Nobel Prize in Literature laureate in 2018, tells the story of a man who forgets his name, overwhelmed by living life at a pace his soul cannot match.
The Lost Soul by Olga Tokarczuk
In the book, a wise doctor observes, “If someone could look down on us from above, they’d see that the world is full of people running about in a hurry, sweating and very tired, and their lost souls, always left behind, unable to keep up with their owners.” When the man, whose name is John, asks why this happens, the doctor answers, “It happens because souls move at a much slower speed than bodies. They were born at the dawn of time, just after the Big Bang, when the cosmos wasn’t yet in such a rush, so it could still see itself in the mirror.”
So what happens to the man named John? Diagnosed by the doctor, he is advised to wait patiently for his soul to catch up. He retreats to a countryside cottage and waits for days and months. Eventually, his soul arrives, by which time gardens have grown, covering his watch and suitcase beneath the grass. The illustrations beautifully depict the slowing of time.
This resonates deeply in a city like Tokyo, where our nervous systems are overwhelmed daily by stimuli on the way to work in a manin densha (満員電車) or full train and certainly walking through neon-drenched Shibuya. I imagine our warm little souls floating at station platforms, inside our rooms, or in the mountains or rivers, while our bodies are shuttled at bullet train speeds, bombarded by hundreds of signals each day. Perhaps then, it is ever more important to slow down and to reconnect with ourselves.
How do we slow down?
Here’s a poem that I wrote in July last year, when I was feeling that perhaps my soul had not been keeping up with my body.
the world keeps moving
faster and faster
is it ironic
that the work that we
have created for ourselves
often comes about because
of what we have done
cause and effect
creation and consumption
destruction and corruption
and yet
we can’t stop now
because we’re all moving
faster and faster
maybe
it’ll take those who know
how to live slowly
to bring us back to a pace
that’s sustainable
the people with the most wisdom
those with deep respect for
culture land spirit and community
who have protected our souls
for millennia
before we destroy any further
and assume we know
more than we do
let’s listen
to the organs of the earth
and the tendrils of our society
she is breathing in anxiety
as we do
let her breathe slowly again
Quote of the Week
“The only reason for time is so that not everything happens at once” - often attributed to Albert Einstein.
A Japanese proverb on time
「水急不流月」みずせわしくしてつきをながさず
(Mizu sewashikushite tsuki wo nagasazu)
This is a Buddhist proverb from the book ‘zengo 禅語’ by Yukari Ishii. It translates roughly to “Let water move quickly without letting the moon flow by”. While water moves in a river, the moon’s reflection on the water does not move with it. The reflection remains still. The river is a metaphor for time, since time continually flows in one direction and everything that flows with it; youth, money, relationships, is eventually washed away. What then, is the moon’s reflection? In Buddhist teachings, it is thought to be the elements of life which tie us to the present, such as virtue and love.
Mindful Moment
Recently, I’ve found myself spending longer than intended getting ready in the morning. “Oh shoot, how is it already 8:30am?” So I bought a timer from Muji and set it in the bathroom to track how long I’m getting ready and see if I can save even ten minutes in the morning. The timer reminds me that I’m not completely operating on my own time and it gives me a little motivational push. What’s your mindful moment for this week?
Here’s to the things that hold us to the present moment; our moon’s reflection within the constant flowing river and passage of time.
Be Well,
Emma
Mindfully, Tokyo is a written series on mindfulness, purposeful living, and creativity, to help you navigate work and life in Tokyo. In times when the world moves faster by the minute, it takes courage to slow down, to appreciate the little things, and to be in tune with ourselves and our surroundings. Let’s explore living mindfully in our digital era, learn about the Japanese way of living, and embrace the tides together.
