When the COVID plague broke out just a few years ago, it was 14th century Europe that was often compared with its similarity.
Pest plague epidemic swept across Europe, killing more than 30% of the population back then.
With absolute helpless state in the face of the raging plague, word powerless wouldn’t do the justice, nothing but pitch black of fear, it must have been.
“The Dance of Death” is an art form that expressed the view of life and death at that time.
It is said that people became half-crazy faced with fear of death and the story goes they continued to dance until they collapsed.
Artworks of this era are full of personified ‘death’ taking people to graves, dancing.
Just a little over two years ago, relentless vigilantes, self-appointed enforcer of stay-at-home requests, so called pandemic police were at large in Japan.
Shouting at the top of their lungs without much regard to others were everywhere both online and offline.
This incident showed example of death-dancing is still very much active, when we are faced with an unknown and uncontrollable situation.
We are so easily scared and lured to ball room of death dance.
We cannot stop the half-mad dancing until one day things calm down or more the case we collapse.
Having been born abroad and spent 20 years living in foreign countries, I am well familiar with the teachings of the Bible.
In the case of Christianity, the first thing students learn must be Matthew’s Gospel.
According to the Lord Jesus Christ, the two most important commandments of all the laws bound us are:
‘Love your God.’
‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’
When I first came into contact with this teaching, I was reminded of the phrase 敬天愛人 (‘Keiten Aijin’).
My family on my father’s side is from Kagoshima Prefecture, the westernmost point of Japan, where produced founding fathers of moder Japan.
So, *Takamori Saigo, in the family’s teaching, was hence always the greatest person in the history.
Quick note to explain Takamori Saigo: (Wikipedia)
– a Japanese samurai and nobleman. He was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history and one of the three great nobles who led the Meiji Restoration. Often introduced as “the quintessential hero of modern Japanese history”.
Saigo’s guiding principle in life was the spirit of ‘Keiten Aijin’ (respect the heavens and love people).
Respect the heavens and love people.
What a coincidence, I thought.
Connecting one of the most prominent Samurais of all time with Christianity’s basic teaching…?
When I did a little digging, I found out it was a Christian educator named Masanao Nakamura who first proposed the term ‘Keiten Aijin’ in Japan.
So this is where it all began.
The idea of respecting the heavens, which existed in Confucianism, was incorporated into the Christian teaching to love one’s neighbour, and became ‘Keiten Aijin’.
There is much to learn from this teaching.
Sometimes in life, there are situations that are beyond our control.
At such times, you have to be prepared and leave everything to the heavens.
We ought to try to suppress the urge to dance half-crazy because we are afraid.
And be kind to those around you.
Even if that love is just a little bit, it will be connected.
To this day, we can learn so much from teachings of Great Saigo.
