In a street speech on June 26, 2022, the opposition politician Tsujimoto Kiyomi said that Prime Minister Kishida Fumio’s nickname was kentōshi, the envoy of consideration. The name plays on his repeated answer kentō shimasu, we will consider it, and on the kentōshi, the envoys Japan once sent to Tang China.
The Surrender Rescript
The imperial rescript ending the war, dated August 14, 1945, explained the decision in these words: “Despite the best efforts of all, the war situation has developed not necessarily to our advantage, and the general trends of the world are also not in our favor.”
A Study of the Air
In 1977, the critic Yamamoto Shichihei published “Kūki” no kenkyū (A Study of “Air”). The book examines the strong pressure to conform among members of a group, which Japanese call kūki, the air.
Listening Responses
Aizuchi are the short responses a Japanese listener gives while another person speaks. Japanese linguists describe one type as used “without expressing a judgment of yes or no, simply to mean ‘I am listening’ or ‘I understand.'”
A study published at Ochanomizu University sums up the basic function of aizuchi as “a sign that one is listening.”
From Mind to Mind
Ishin denshin (以心伝心): from mind to mind. In Zen Buddhism, passing on the deepest teaching from the heart of the master to the heart of the disciple, without words or writing. In everyday use, understanding each other without words.
Polite Ways to Say No
Muzukashii desu ne (難しいですね): that is difficult. A common way to refuse a request politely without saying no.
Maemuki ni kentō shimasu (前向きに検討します): we will consider it positively. Sometimes used to avoid an immediate answer or to decline gently. It is not a promise.
Kekkō desu (結構です): that is fine. It can mean acceptance or refusal, depending on the situation.
Please Refrain
Go-enryo kudasai means “please refrain.” A Japanese dictionary, cited in a university study, notes that it is used to express a prohibition indirectly, as in otabako wa go-enryo kudasai, please refrain from smoking.
The Textile Promise
A study at Hitotsubashi University describes a meeting between Prime Minister Satō Eisaku and President Richard Nixon. Shaking hands, Satō clearly promised Nixon that Japan would restrain its textile exports to the United States by the end of the year. Satō later said that there was no paper, and that he had never promised anything concrete, even orally.
A popular version of the story says that Satō answered zensho shimasu (I will deal with it appropriately), and that Nixon took this as a commitment. No source for that wording was found.
The Vocabulary of Indirection
Iwanu ga hana (言わぬが花): not saying it is the flower. Leaving something unsaid has more charm than saying it.
Kūki o yomu (空気を読む): to read the air. To sense the mood of a situation and act to suit it.
Hito o tateru (人を立てる): to put a person in between. In a negotiation, to let an agent or go-between step in between oneself and the other side. It also means stepping back so that another person keeps face.
Tea Over Rice in Kyoto
A popular belief holds that when a Kyoto host asks a guest, Bubuzuke demo dō dosu? (How about some rice with tea?), the real message is “Please go home.” The rakugo story Kyō no chazuke plays on the offer. An Osaka merchant is always offered rice with tea by a Kyoto customer’s wife but never served it. One day he arrives at lunchtime, determined to eat it.
The writer Nakamura Kiyoshi calls the “go home” custom an invention.