The Book of Life

pages of wisdom On the surface, this constitution appeared to mean Japan’s permanent national death. But Japan’s leaders wisely accepted it completely. They realized that while the constitution blocked the path of military and political action, it left fully open the path of science and industry. The Japanese nation withdrew from the battlefield of war and politics and began to use the remaining opportunities in knowledge and industry. Within just forty years, historians were writing these words about Japan: Defeated in World War II (1945), Japan emerged from the ruins of war as one of the major economic powers in the world (Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. 5, p. 519). Accepting the present opens the way to the future. Those who refuse to accept the present deprive themselves of the greater possibilities of the future as well. THE SECRET OF SUCCESS A Western thinker said: That which does not kill me makes me stronger. When a person faces a serious difficulty and does not lose heart but instead thinks deeply to find a solution, he awakens a new strength within himself. He develops the ability to face unfavourable conditions and to keep moving forward despite obstacles. Hardship destroys the foolish