Hanamichi

Posted on January 19, 2010 by JoshuaKaimikaua

Recently I was talking with my grandfather and he explained to me about the concept of “Hanamichi”. Literally this phrase means “Path of Flowers” and it means to allow someone that you have defeated or is defeated to have a graceful exit. Instead of bashing or embarrassing an opponent, you allow them to acknowledge defeat and bow out gracefully. This term is relevant in current events because recently the Japanese Government had backed out of agreement with the US Government to relocate a military base in Okinawa. Because this agreement took 13 years to negotiate, the US were a little upset. But instead of accusing the Japanese Government of being wrong and going back on their word, the US has allowed more time to negotiate, and thus the concept of “Hanamichi”. I think this is a practice that more people should adopt.

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2 Responses to Hanamichi

  1. YokoKelley's avatar YokoKelley says:
    January 19, 2010 at 2:42 pm

    Do you think if having a president who was born and educated in Hawaii has anything to do with it? He often surprises people in Washinton with how he does, what he does. Many such actions are unheard of to them, but easily understandable to me (I was born in Japan and lived in Hawaii). This is just my guess, but I think that Mr. Obama is very much influenced by the culture he grew up with in Hawaii.

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  2. JoshuaKaimikaua's avatar JoshuaKaimikaua says:
    January 22, 2010 at 3:11 pm

    It’s funny because I never thought of it that way but now that I think about it, that could very well be the reason. The Japanese culture has had a huge influence on society in Hawaii and it’s not surprising that President Obama was probably also influenced when he lived here.

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