The Significance of Rereading the Classics
The term “classic” refers to a work in a field of literature, thought, or art that is representative or well-known in that field, or a work that has been read and loved by many people over the years. Classic works continue to be read and studied by many people today because they reflect the history, culture, values, and philosophy of the field, and because they have been accepted by many people.
Classical works have their own unique styles and modes of expression that match the background of their times, cultures, and countries, and through them we can learn about the social conditions of the time and the ideas and values of the people. They may also provide answers and solutions to problems and issues faced by the people of the time, and are often useful references in modern society as well.
Furthermore, by reading classical works, one can learn about ideas and solutions to universal human questions and issues, which can be useful for self-development and improving one’s outlook on life. For this reason, classic works occupy an important place in literature, thought, and the arts.
The significance of rereading those classics can be summarized as follows.
- New discoveries: By rereading the classics, we can gain important insights and fine details that we did not notice the first time around. Re-reading them with new experiences and knowledge can also lead to new discoveries.
- Change of perspective: The passage of time and one’s own increased experience and knowledge can change one’s impressions and interpretations of the classics when reading them. Rereading them can provide new perspectives and understanding.
- Deepening of meaning: The classics often deal with complex ideas and philosophical questions. Rereading them can provide deeper understanding and insight.
- Re-acknowledging literary value: There is a reason why the classics have been loved by so many people throughout the ages. By rereading the classics, we can rediscover the literary value and beauty within them.
- Confirmation of personal growth: The classics provide answers to universal human questions. Rereading the classics can also confirm one’s personal growth and changing perspective on life.
Rereading the classics has many implications for one’s own growth and understanding. Here we present a variety of classics, including those listed below.
Various classics
The idea of exalting humility and steady effort is prominent in “Rape Root Tale,” as evidenced by the use of the word “rape root” in the title. The stories in “Rape Root Tale” depict how minor events and small acts can have a great impact later in life, thereby demonstrating the importance of humility and efforts to improve oneself, even in the most trivial of ways, as a widely held notion. Like the “Nane tan,” the “grunts” also contains many words that can be used to overcome barriers when they appear that need to be overcome.
Unlike novels, in which a single person creates his or her own worldview, haiku is content that is meant to be “read” because it originally began as renga. Depending on how the haiku is written (or created), various variations of communication can occur. This is mainly due to the use of sound and rhythm, or prosody, in haiku, and the use of “kigo,” or seasonal words that effectively suggest the circumstances, feelings, and interests of the subject of the haiku within a short number of syllables, thereby broadening the scope of haiku reading.
Waka poetry is a poetic form that occupies a very important position in classical Japanese literature, and is a work of art that symbolises the beauty of the Japanese language, captures nature and human emotions in a concise yet profound way, and makes the most of the phonology and rhythm of the Japanese language. In this article, I would like to discuss these imperial anthologies. The following are representative imperial waka poems.
One of Buson Yosa’s haiku, mentioned in “Reading Haiku from the Perspective of Haiku History and Communication”, is called Harukaze no tsumakae shitashi shunsho (Harukaze no tsumakae shitashi shunsho). In this haiku, the author almost intends to say that the spring breeze gently blew back the skirt of a woman’s kimono, but in fact the spring breeze gently blew back the edge of the booklet of Harukaze no tsumakae sho (Haru-sho).
Kitaro Nishida, active in the early 20th century, became the first Japanese philosopher to focus on ethics, philosophy of religion, and philosophy of mind. Nishida’s study of the good occupied an important place in Japanese philosophy. Nishida’s conception of the good has become an attempt to integrate Buddhist thought and Western philosophy from a more fundamental point, based on modern philosophy.
The ancient Chinese book of thought “Laozi” was written by a man named Laozi, but his career is shrouded in mystery, so much so that there are theories that question whether this man actually existed.
Chapter 21 describes the “Way” that gives birth to heaven, earth, and all things. The word “ecstasy” has two meanings: “a feeling of entranced fascination” and “vague and ambiguous. The reality of the “path,” which is the beginning of everything, is not clear, but he is saying that there is a certain “something” there.
- Free will, AI technology and Zhuangzi’s freedom
When the soft deterministic idea of free will is considered in terms of the use of artificial intelligence technology, it is possible to derive options that machines can ‘do otherwise as well’ beyond the possible human options, and among these, not simply algorithms that can also be realised by machines, but ‘causal reasoning and considerations towards the realisation of strong AI’. If problems can be solved with algorithms based on deep imagination and models based on that imagination, as described in ‘Considerations for causal reasoning and strong AI’, then humans could play a role that machines cannot play.
The Analects of Confucius is a collection of words written by Confucius, who lived in the Spring and Autumn period of China about 2,500 years ago. When reading the Analects, it is easy to understand what Confucius said by choosing a theme, such as “life,” “family,” or “society,” and rearranging them accordingly. This is because the Analects is not just a book that teaches moral principles, but it is a comprehensive “anthropology” that refers to all aspects of human life.
Zhuangzi is a book of thought that is said to have been written about 2,300 years ago, in the middle of the Warring States Period in China. The author’s name is also Zhuangzi (Zhuang Zhou), and this book and those written by him and his disciples were combined into one. Looking at thinkers who have left their mark on history, neither Confucius, Buddha, nor Socrates left their own writings. In the case of “Zhuangzi,” it is clear that Zhuangzi himself wrote the book, which is a rare style of joint work by a master and his disciples.
The “Zhuangzi” uses many allegories to explain the idea that true freedom exists when one accepts everything as it is. This idea had a great influence on the later formation of Chinese Buddhism, or Zen.
This blog discusses various problem-solving methods in “Problem Solving Methods, Thinking and Design of Experiments. In this blog, we discuss the quantification methods for problem solving in “KPI KGI OKRs” and the use of abstraction steps as described in “Concrete and Abstract – Semantics and Description in Natural Language”. The problem-solving approach is in fact a problem-solving technique that is now being used to identify the essential problem.
Such an approach to problem solving was actually compiled by a man called Sun Tzu about 2,500 years ago. In this article, I would like to explain what Sun Tzu is based on “NHK 100 Minutes de Meitaku Lao Tzu x Sun Tzu”. The military code “Sun Tzu” was born about 2,500 years ago in China during the Spring and Autumn period.
Sun Tzu’s ideas can be considered the root of many modern approaches to problem solving. Although the subject matter is war, if we replace it with problem solving, we find that “the objective is important, not the means (war),” “before conducting problem solving (war), quantification and examination should be conducted from various perspectives,” “the goal of problem solving (war) should be clearly defined and when to stop should be made clear,” “the goal of problem solving (war) should not be done for the time being, but 80% should be done at the pre-planning stage,” and “the goal should not be done for the time being, but 80% should be done at the end of the war. The current consultants’ ideas such as, “We must not just do it for now, but must be in such a state that we are 80% ready at the pre-planning stage, and we must not fight without a plan or without a chance of victory,” are scattered throughout the book. The following is a specific description of the contents of Sun Tzu’s book.
- Rational Thought in Ancient China – Guanzi
The Guanzi is a book written by a dharma master, a Taoist, or a miscellaneous scholar, and is said to have been authored by Guanzhong, although the author is said to have been multiple, with different ideas and phrases in each chapter. It is said to have been written by Guanzhong, but the author is said to have been more than one. Guanzhong’s thought is rich and seemingly chaotic, and it is thought to have been gradually completed during the long period between the Warring States and Han dynasties. Ryotaro Shiba, while reading the Guanzi, noted that it is a product of a time when the Chinese people’s ability to think shone as if they were the representatives of mankind, and that it is a work that focuses on rationalistic economic policies, and that the rationalism of Chinese civilization, both in thought and in the question of ego, is in a strange inversion, with the Warring States period in BC closer to the “modern” era. The rationalism of Chinese civilization, he says, has taken a strange inverted form, with the Warring States period of B.C. being closer to “modernity” in both ideology and ego.
The world is changing, and the types and orders applied to the world should not be operated without thinking, but should be changed in accordance with the changes in the world. In order to do so, it is necessary to consider the meaning of order and type in the first place, and furthermore, in considering the meaning, it is important to consider the purpose, as described in “Life as Information – Purpose and Meaning”. Order to organize a chaotic world and freedom to change it are both important elements.
Ryotaro Shiba’s “Kaido yuku Taiwan Kikki” (Travels in Taipei) describes the bumpy sidewalks in Taipei as the result of the “private” nature of each store behind the sidewalks prevailing over the public nature of the sidewalks, with the stores raising or leaving the sidewalks in front of their stores for their own convenience, making the streets bumpy.
Marcus Aurelius was an ancient Roman philosopher and emperor and one of the last great masters of Stoic philosophy, best known for his book Self-Reflections. His philosophy focused on self-discipline, ethics, introspection, self-control, and moral self-improvement, and he argued that the practice of philosophy was an important means of finding meaning in life. His philosophy has been particularly influential in the field of spirituality and is often cited in the fields of self-help and mindfulness.
‘Alain’ is the pen name of the French philosopher Emile-Auguste Chartier (1868 – 1951), whose book The Theory of Happiness will be known as a collection of essays offering insights and advice on human happiness. In the words of Alan in this Theory of Happiness, “Pessimism belongs to the mood, optimism to the will”. A happy way of life can also be seen as a Zen world.
The Hojoki is a Japanese essay written in the Kamakura period (1185-1333) by a Zen priest, Kamo Chōmei. The work depicts a person’s life coexisting with nature and includes Zen Buddhist teachings and ideas. Here, we will discuss the Hojoki based on NHK’s 100 Minutes de Meisaku “Hojoki.
A Little History of Literature for Young Readers at Yale University, written by British author and literary scholar John Sutherland, is aimed at young readers and literary novices who are beginning to take an interest in literature. The book provides a clear introduction to the history of literature, its major authors and their works. In this issue, I would like to discuss some of the topics picked up from the book.
- The Analects and the Arithmetic
- The Study of Goodness
- The Theory of Happiness
Christianity arose out of the Jewish tradition and the culture of the Roman Empire, beginning in the first century A.D., and became a religion with its religious beliefs and teachings centered on Jesus Christ. The central belief of Christianity is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and Savior of mankind, and Christians believe that they obtain salvation from sin through His death and resurrection.
This section includes the Old Testament, the New Testament, Augustine’s Confessions, and other older books, as well as Christian books published in recent years.
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