World War II from a Japanese View
The Middle Way, a Spiritual Journey to Pure Land Light
by
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I start the prologue of “Pure Land Light” in the Sierras California The mirror-like lake reflects Kie’s emotions that Mimi had never seen before but heard from her mother, Kie. Mimi tells her husband Walter about Kie’s wartime stories showing why and how the Pacific War broke out in Japan through the Japanese’s mindset linked with the mythological figure, the Sun Goddess in Shinto religion, and Yamato Damashi (the Japanese spirit). Along with their loyal, brave samurai spirits, all the citizens followed Emperor Hirohito as their god and battled for the country. Mimi’s narrative begins her mother Kie’s young adult life and continues her married life in chronological order from 1937 to 1967. In Kie’s father’s Pure Land Light Temple, Kie, her sister Mirika, and Korean orphan Yuriko live together like their scarlet goldfish pets in a bowl. All of them wed at age twenty. Yuriko married a wealthy lawyer for his money; Mirika, a skillful dentist for his stability; Kie, a high school gymnastic teacher and swimming coach for love. The stories illustrate Yang and Yin energies with the powerful contrast—West and East, Men and Women, Wealth and Poverty, Purification and Underworld, and Shintoism and Buddhism. 2. The characters also have the opposite personalities. Kie is an idealist seeking peace and true love; however, her approach conflicts not only to the jingoistic society but to her super patriotic husband Hiroshi and materialistic Yuriko. After the war, Hiroshi feels guilty to ingrain his high school students and his soldiers to the state-centered ideas to fight until the last drop of their blood. His soul was already dead with his lost comrades in the Japanese territorial island, Saipan. Drinking sake after sake until being unconscious, he washes his muddling mind and goes far away from the war. He is a good, honest man but prideful. Kie’s high-pitched voice irritates his nerves. As an opportunist, Yuriko remarries Black Market King, who got a vast fortune in the turmoil society of post-war. The hint of his success is the balance between his busy corporate life and his daily ritual of Shinto purification. He says to Yuriko, “A slight trace of thought kills a swordman in a battle, so does a businessman. If you want to win anything, take out your emotions and unwanted thoughts to flow.” King and Yuriko are alike; they have been climbing up the money-oriented world from their meager childhoods. 3. On the contrary, Kie faces bottomless poverty when Hiroshi has PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). Yuriko’s marriage is also declining because she is holding her past scar. Yuriko reveals her secret to Kie. In the postwar society, they must reverse their dispositions: Kie must change from a pacifist to a fighter; Hiroshi, from a warrior to Buddha; Yuriko, from materialistic to spiritual. All their passions and emotions connect with the Japanese mythological gods and goddesses, possessing positive and negative energies as if human beings mirror their powerful natures. From the hell of the war, Japan is reborn as a peaceful country; so, the people, from the dark underworld, they must come out to live. Interweaved the Japanese mythology, Yin and Yang theory, Buddhist Enlightenment, and Shinto Purification— that deeply impact in the Japanese culture and mentality—the book “Pure Land Light” points up peace and the harmony between two contrary forces. The end of this story is chapter 27, Land of Death. Kie tells her children, Mimi and Kazu, about her husband’s desperate experiences during the Second World War. Hiroshi was an officer in the Japanese 4. Imperial Army defending against American armed forces invading Saipan's strategic island. This piece tells how his nature was changed by that battle—from a warrior to Buddha. I finish the epilogue in the Sierras in 1988—Mimi’s rest of her mother’s stories to Walter and their pilgrims to Pure Land Light, carrying Kie’s ashes to scatter over Blue Lake and Mimi’s last words: Looking over the rhythmically shinning lights over the still water, I recalled my mother’s words: If your mind is clear, the boundless lights shower upon you. “Walter lifts my busy mind to set it down in a calm mountain lake and encircle my senses with his wise fingers. Under the bright sun, my mind is cleared like the crystal California sky. “Compared to my parents—most of their youths were spent in the wars—how peaceful we are now. But even in this quiet time, without our clear minds, life would turn into another battle, not only for us but also for nations. War is a reflection of our minds.”
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About the Book
The book is about the massive conflicts in Japanese families during and after the Second World War. Mimi’s narrative brings her mother Kie’s stories to readers. Kie’s unique stories illustrate the Japanese culture and mentalities with the symbols, the mythology, and the religions such as the peaceful goldfish and the brave samurai carps; the Sun Goddess and the Storm God; and Shinto Purification and Buddhist Enlightenment. All the characters are in contrast to each other, but the Second World War reverses their lives, pushing their natures to the opposite ways: Kie must change from a pacifist to a fighter; Hiroshi, from a warrior to Buddha; Yuriko, from materialistic to spiritual. Through the transaction between war and peace, each individual must learn how to get balance of life and peace in mind just as still water under the turbulent waves on the Pacific Ocean.
About the Author
Mimi Sun graduated from the Kansai University of Foreign Studies in Japan, majoring in American literature. While teaching English to junior high students, she attended the English Conversation School called the YMCA and passed the Standardized English Test in Japan. She won an essay contest in her English Language School called COSMOS, and the prize was a free trip to America, including airfare, an intensive English course at the University of California, Berkeley, and a California bus tour. Her essay title was “I Will Be a Bridge Between Nations.” It was her first trip overseas, which turned her life 180 degrees. While working as an English school secretary, she corresponded with an “American Prince Charming,” who became her husband and soulmate. Walter tamed the reckless monkey into a peaceful donkey. In contrast to her life in Japan, which had been filled with hustle and bustle, she immersed herself in the quiet country life. The lyrical scene made her feel at home, as did the people; their kindness bloomed in her heart. Heaven became closer, like the blue sky touching the green foothills in Nevada County. Her stories were supported by her husband, Walter; her tutors, Nancy and Peter; her writing teacher at Sierra College’s campus in Nevada City; and a writer’s group of seven members, Bill, Barbara, Pauline, Dick, Bill 2, and Donna in Lake Wildwood. Their precious feedback flourished in stories. The following are her published stories: • In 1989, Unborn, a series of stories, was published by Nichi Bei, a daily newspaper in San Francisco. • In 2006, her memoir, Maneki Neko, won first prize in a writing contest sponsored by the Sacramento Library. The story is about how a mystical ornamental cat and a real Siamese cat intertwine with a mother and her daughter, reflecting the miraculous power of love. • In 2007, “A Heavenly Find” was published in an anthology by Friends of the Nevada County Libraries. • In 2013, the anthology book “Coffee, Tea, and Sake” was published by American, British, and Japanese writers. In the state’s warm climate, her stories grew like flowers. “World War Two from a Japanese View” is about the massive conflicts in Japanese families during and after the Second World War. Mimi’s narrative brings her mother Kie’s stories to readers. Kie’s unique stories illustrate Japanese culture and mentality through symbols, mythology, and religions. The prominent examples include the Great Sun Goddess and the Great Sun Buddha, from Shinto purification and Buddhist enlightenment. All the characters are in contrast to each other. And the Second World War turned their lives upside down. For their transformations, pushing themselves into the opposite. Kie changes from a pacifist to a fighter, Hiroshi from a warrior to a Buddha, and Yuriko from a materialist to a spiritualist. They learn how to balance life like still water under the turbulent waves of the Pacific Ocean.