I was deeply moved by the beauty of the greenery along the mountain road descending from Mount Hiei to Kyoto.
My soul trembled at the sight of the trees at the Kyoto Imperial Palace (Gosho), their fresh green leaves swaying in the wind, as I made my way to “Komaya,” located to the south of the Gosho on Marutamachi Street.
It is the “Legendary Café of Koguryo,” which is held only once a month, or once every two months―and for just two hours.
Today, people from Kansai Television suddenly came to visit, which surprised me. They also seemed surprised. As it happened so unexpectedly, I spoke with them without even realizing that it would be broadcast on television. It was a very joyful time.
In addition, a Korean person living in the United States was drawn to my calligraphy displayed at “Komaya” and came inside. He purchased the Korean-language edition of my poetry collection “Encounter” and also attended Master Idaki Shin’s concert in the evening.
Komaya is a place where many mysterious encounters occur. Once again today, I felt that these meetings are guided by a soul.
Master Idaki Shin’s piano concert at ROHM Theatre Kyoto carried the message of “koi,” something he has been teaching us continuously. Although it is something essential to being human, it is truly embarrassing that one’s words and one’s state of being do not align. Even so, I am sincerely grateful and happy to have been able to experience it again today.
All that is constructed will eventually collapse, while what is true continues to exist. During the performance, I experienced this directly, and it gave me hope to realize that living in the real world is the way forward.
In this secular world, where one must live as a constructed self, or as one shaped by others, life itself can become false―this has been my anguish since childhood.
Now, through experiencing “koi” in the concert message, what is unnecessary within me broke down and was peeled away, and my true self appeared as it is. My true self, as it is, is light.
There was also a message that in “koi,” a false self appears before the other. Yet through Master Idaki Shin’s performance, everything―both what is constructed and what is real―was revealed, and I was able to encounter the truth. My heart overflows with gratitude. Something like this cannot be experienced anywhere else in the world.
Today again, I encountered my true self as it is, and I embraced great hope that from now on we can live as our true selves, and that a world in which true human beings can live can be created.
I am sincerely grateful for this irreplaceable concert, held in Kyoto during this beautiful season.