Japan's Culture of Minimalism: Embracing Smallness and Portability

Japan embraces minimalism, valuing smallness and portability due to historical natural disasters and high space premiums.

### Embracing Minimalism: Understanding Japan's Love for Smallness
* 🇯🇵 Before moving to Japan for the JET program, the author learned that Japanese culture values **smallness and simplicity**, illustrated by a vending machine selling **two sizes of the same drink at the same price**.
* 🛒 Upon arriving, the author observed this preference in everyday life, such as people buying **single mushrooms** instead of cheaper packs, and an ex-girlfriend choosing a **smaller apartment** despite larger options being available.
* 📷 The author noticed differing reactions to the Panasonic S9 camera, with Western reviewers criticizing its **size** while Japanese consumers embraced it, leading to its **success in Japan**.
* 🌍 The author speculates that Japan's frequent natural disasters, like **earthquakes and tsunamis**, contribute to this cultural preference for **smaller, more manageable possessions**.
* 🏙 Due to Japan's geography, most of the population is concentrated in flat areas, making **space a premium** and limiting options for **larger living spaces**.
* 📚 Historical literature, such as Kono CH's "The Whole Joli," reflects this mindset, arguing against **accumulating large, heavy possessions** that can be **lost in disasters**.
* 🐟 Just as animals adapt to their environments, the author suggests that Japanese culture has evolved to prioritize **minimalism and portability**, leading to a preference for **"just enough"** rather than excess.
* 🎮 Ultimately, this cultural inclination towards smallness stems from a historical context where a **surplus often equates to greater risk and loss** in the face of nature's unpredictability.

Before moving to Japan to teach English on the JET program, I took an introduction to Japanese culture class in which the teacher shared an anecdote with us. He said that Japanese people love less; they love small things. I don't know why, but they just do. And he said that this was best exemplified by this paradoxical experience he had in which he came across a vending machine in rural Japan that sold two drinks, one large, one small, same drink, same price. And when I heard that, I just thought, What? There's no way that's true because who in their right mind would pay the same for less? But when I came to Japan, I witnessed this firsthand. I'd go to my supermarket and see people buying packs of one tiny mushroom when packs of two were just as cheap. An ex-girlfriend of mine purposely chose to live in a small apartment when there were others in the area that were in the same price point but significantly larger. I said, Why don't you move into one of these larger places? Wouldn't that

be more comfortable, and her response was just, and I simply couldn't understand this. I kept going back to why pay the same for less. Wouldn't it be better to have more space just in case? But I never really got an answer that made sense to me, so I kind of just chalked it up to Japanese weirdness and more or less stopped thinking about it. But this question popped back into my mind again fairly recently with the announcement of a new camera. You see, a couple of months ago, my buddy Harris Heller, he swung by BEO to hang out, and when he did, he had a Panasonic S9 with him. It's this new Panasonic camera that they had given him to reveal, and when I saw it, I thought, Hey, that's a pretty cool camera. Let's see what all the reviewers have to say about it when the embargo lifts. Well, the reviews dropped, and something very interesting happened. The comments on the English reviews of the camera and the comments on the Japanese reviews of the camera were markedly different. The West

seemed to say that Panasonic had cut too many corners in the pursuit of making a smaller camera. Some even went as far as to say that given the current camera market, no one in their right mind would buy such a product. And the sentiment in the Japanese comments was, and two weeks later, while people in the West continued to attack Panasonic for making such a pointless device, the S9 went on to become the second best-selling camera in Japan, forcing Panasonic to issue an apology for not being able to ship units quickly enough. So why? What's with the love of less, the love of the small in Japan? In my recent video on the non-AI mega thrust earthquakes, I talked about how Japan's culture of hard work and cooperation may have evolved as a sort of survival mechanism, that the reason Japanese people do so much overtime and are so concerned about not upsetting the peace is because hard work, caution, and cooperation were necessary in an environment in which a cataclysmic earthquake or tsunami could hit at any

time the thing is I think that these natural disasters are also directly responsible for at least part of Japan's love of the small. I think that it's been the earthquakes, the tsunami, the typhoon, and the fires that have led to this culture of kawaii you see. In response to that earthquake video I recently made, there was a fair number of people that said if these tsunamis are so destructive and so common, then why don't Japanese people just move? Why don't they go to a coast that doesn't have as many earthquakes, or why don't they just move more inland? And this is because, to begin with, there aren't any safe coasts. Again, the 2011 earthquake, the most powerful earthquake in Japanese history, that didn't occur along that southern coast of Honshu where all the non-Kai Mega thrust earthquakes happen. It occurred along the country's eastern coast, and the most powerful destructive earthquake that's happened since then was earlier this year. That was the NTO earthquake that happened along the country's

northern coast, and to answer the other question: why don't Japanese people just move more inland? This is because that land simply doesn't exist. Take a look at this topographic map of Japan. Now, I would wager that even people who aren't familiar with Japanese geography can accurately guess, based on this map, where all of the major cities are. That's right: here, here, and here. It's no coincidence that the majority of Japan's population has gathered in a few select places. They're the only places flat enough to actually build cities with both robust transportation infrastructure and a sea port to facilitate trade. All the people are in the flat areas because that's where the productive farmland is. That's where you can build the big factories and the car plants, etc., etc. You want to move the 60, 70, 80 million people from the few flat areas up into the mountains? Yeah, it might be possible, but it's not practical. It's going to bring the country's productivity to zero. This is one of the reasons they keep building

reclaimed Islands here why ult almost speculated in Akida that Neo Tokyo would be built on top of Tokyo bay because all the good land has already been used up so despite how crazy it may seem in many instances it's actually easier and far more convenient to expand Into The Ocean than it is to build up into the mountains right but what does this have to do with Japan's love of the small everything one because as we've just demonstrated the premium for space in Japan is so much higher than it is in a place like the United States and two because even if you're lucky enough to live in one of the nicer areas historically speaking owning more and bigger and heavier things has always meant getting hit harder when disaster inevitably Struck it may seem like I'm connecting unrelated Dots here but this is actually taught through literature and historical essays in Japanese schools there's a famous author Kono CH whose book the whole joli is actually required reading in the public Japanese

school curriculum and the whole joli is essentially the author's account of packing up and abandoning a privileged life to live in a 10t by 10t empty portable home after experiencing in a bunch of earthquakes, fires, and typhoons. CH basically came to the conclusion, what's the point of spending all this money on these big expensive things that will only weigh me down and could disappear at a moment's notice in the next natural disaster. He writes, all human Endeavors are foolish, but spending one's fortune and troubling one's mind to build a house in such a dangerous capital is particularly vain. You know, it's funny, we often talk about how interesting it is that certain animals will grow to match the size of their environments. Goldfish, for example, if you keep them in a small tank, they'll stay small, but if you put them in a big lake, they can become enormous. But I actually think that humans are the same. If you look at House tours for famous people that live in the United States

for example, you often see that they have three or four, maybe sometimes five or six extra rooms, extra bedrooms or bathrooms, that will likely never use, but they get them because they have the luxury of being able to flex. Again, this is why I think that Japan loves the small, the portable, the Kawaii, the Walkman, the Game Boy, the PSP. I think that generations and generations of people living through unimaginable earthquakes and catastrophic tsunamis and fires and typhoons in a place where there's such a high premium on space has led to this culture that asks, What can I throw away? How can I get rid of some more dead weight? What features can I take out to make this a little bit smaller, a little bit lighter? A culture that says, A bigger apartment? Yeah, bits night, and would rather have a Nintendo Switch than a gaming PC, and a small camera that eventually overheats over a big one that can shoot forever. A culture that says, Just enough is better than a cumbersome surplus, because in Japan, a cumbersome surplus has always meant more.

Why Japan Loves Small Things

Dogen

Japanese culture values smallness, as exemplified by a vending machine in rural Japan offering the same drink in different sizes for the same price.

This preference is reflected in everyday choices, such as buying a single mushroom or living in a smaller apartment.

The speaker, initially confused by this mindset, noticed a similar pattern in the contrasting comments on English and Japanese reviews of a new camera.

Japan's Love for Small: A Cultural Response to Natural Disasters

Panasonic faced criticism for its small camera, yet it became the second best-selling camera in Japan, leading to an apology for slow shipping.

Japan's culture of hard work and cooperation, driven by the threat of natural disasters, may have contributed to the country's appreciation for smallness.

The frequent and destructive earthquakes, tsunamis, and other disasters have created a unique cultural response, making it difficult for people to find safe coasts or move inland.

Japan's Population Distribution and Love for Small Spaces

Japan's population is concentrated in a few flat areas, which are the only places suitable for building cities and infrastructure.

The country's topography makes it impractical to move people inland, leading to the development of reclaimed islands and expansion into the ocean.

The high premium for space and the historical impact of disasters have contributed to Japan's cultural preference for smaller possessions.

The author recounts abandoning a privileged life for a 10x10 portable home after experiencing multiple natural disasters.

This shift in perspective leads to the realization that accumulating expensive possessions is futile in the face of life's unpredictability.

The author's observations on human behavior and Japan's culture highlight a preference for small, portable, and minimalistic living, driven by the need to reduce excess and dead weight.

Losing is a natural part of life that can occur in various contexts, such as relationships, competitions, or personal goals.

It often leads to feelings of disappointment, sadness, or frustration.

However, losing can also provide valuable lessons and opportunities for growth and resilience.