05/06/2024
I recently came across a BBC article on the best films of 2024 (so far). One of the listed films was Perfect Days, a Japanese language film. I read the synopsis and instantly liked the story. It was about a janitor, named Hirayama. The film shows how he enjoys life, even though his job is cleaning public toilets in Tokyo. The secret to his happiness is that Hirayama does his job with pride, and also pursues many other interests. He raises plants; reads novels, listens to American rock music and takes photos of trees, all with the same zeal.
The idea is fascinating: You can lead a happy, fulfilling life no matter what you do for a living! Nevertheless, the promotional lines of the film seem revolve around “imperfect” philosophies like “mindfulness” and “living in the present”. The official trailer shows the janitor mentoring a young girl with the philosophy of “Ima wa ima” (Meaning, “Now is now”). And the teen faithfully repeats “Ima wa ima” as if she was under spell.
I may watch the film soon and may find the janitor's life enjoyable. But I am not sure whether I can appreciate philosophical or mystical undercurrents - say, how the hero sweeps the floor "mindfully" or listens to American rock music "while fully in the present".
First of all, perfect days are born of organising ideas. That is, we should know how to spend our time on a given day. It is science or management. For instance, there are a few areas in life that none of us can afford to neglect. They include: health, relations, education, and career. We only have to decide the action items that contribute to these areas and also try to make time for them.
When I prepare my to-do list, I seek inspiration from the following twelve action categories:
Work
1) Who wakes up thinking about me (I think of customers who expect some deliverables from me for that day.)
2) Plan ahead / work backwards (Usually, customer projects)
3) Followup / Keep them posted
4) Jobs I can't outsource (Mostly, household chores)
Life
5) Rejuvenating rituals (Mine is reading newspaper, playing badminton, having a cup of tea twice a day)
6) Life goals / pet projects (Writing this Newsletter is one among them - though I don’t mind accepting subscriptions!)
7) Say Hi (Getting in touch with friends, relatives)
8) Recollect and reflect (Journaling or sharing the experiences of my day with someone)
Leadership
9) Go to school (Reading a book or watching a Coursera video)
10) Volunteer
11) Groom (especially, my kids. It sometimes involves reading a book section)
12) Pray / Thank people who make your day
However, these are just nudges. Not stable items. Somedays, I consider just one or two categories from the list; or pick up something that is not there in the list; or simply drop any idea of organising the day. I can still consider it to be a perfect day. For, the perfect days are made of both: yin and yang; chaos and order; striving and going with the flow, mindfulness and wavering mind; living in the present and living in the future, happiness and sorrow.
We need to stay clear of any philosophical myths that make us believe that cultivating certain mindset or mental practices can guarantee us round-the-clock happiness. For, the so-called spiritual practices - such as being grateful, mindful or experiencing a meditative state, deal with our mind. And mind is not under our control. Therefore, it is not wise spending time struggling with our own mind.
We can sweep the floor meditatively. Or do our work as if it is worship - even if it is about taking care of public toilets. But at best, these ideas can serve as nudges. It is impossible to incorporate them out of your own will. Not all the time. And that is not our failure.
Our job is only in the outer world: sweeping the floor and not sweeping the mind. For some reason, all we feel is frustration instead of gratefulness, it is still only natural. Similarly, if we feel distracted, while we really want to be focused, it is perfectly okay. Any state of mind is a perfect state of mind. In other words, we should not mind the mind. As far as the mind is concerned, sweeping is done on its own. We only have to let it happen, without interfering with it.
Cheers!
