Japan Discovery Zen words is the best word “一志不退 Isshi Futai”
Zen is hard. And Zen words? Even harder.
So I go ahead and make up my own meanings—and I like them just fine.I like to think that Master Huineng, Dōgen, Ikkyū, and Ryōkan would nod gently and say, “That’s fine. That’s fine. Let it be, my friend.”
Today’s Zen word is “Isshi Futai" It means “If you have the ambition and just ask for it, the road will open"
If you have the ambition and just ask for it, the road will open.
The teaching of Dogen Zenji, the founder of the Soto sect, is “Shikantaza" He tells me to do zazen all the time.Dogen Zenji said,"If you remain steadfast in your determination(issi hutai), after three years you will begin to understand something"
His words carried the weight of a thousand thoughts. He once said, “The practice of Zen is just sitting.”
Nothing fancy. No tricks. Just sit. Breathe. Be still.
In today’s world of hustle and life hacks, that sounds almost ridiculous. But Dōgen went on: “If you make a vow and never turn back, the path will naturally reveal itself—often in just three years.”
Three years. It’s not long, but it’s not short either. Most people who’ve truly made something of themselves have spent at least that long—waiting, working, wondering.
Take, for example, a young man named Saku Yanagawa. He left Japan alone and set out to become a stand-up comedian in America. Telling jokes in a foreign language is no easy task. But he kept showing up. He kept standing up. And slowly, laughter followed.
Or consider Mr. Miyade, a man growing coffee on Tokunoshima, a remote island in Japan. He’s been at it for thirteen years. Still, he says he hasn’t produced the coffee he dreams of. And yet, he continues—planting, tending, believing.
Then there’s the curious case of Tonikaku Akarui Yasumura—a Japanese comedian famous in the UK for doing, well… underwear-based performance art. It sounds ridiculous. It is ridiculous. But when someone commits fully to something—even the absurd—it transforms. It becomes something real. Something brilliant.
These people have something in common: they don’t back down.
They pick a path, and they walk it—no matter how winding or strange.
In the world of art, cuisine, and sports, you’ll find many like them.
People who live out the old saying: “What you love, you do well.”
So maybe, for us too, the secret is not in doing everything right, but in simply continuing.
Sit.
Stay.
Don’t turn away.
And one day, without even realizing it, you might find that you’ve arrived.
Act first, continue for three years
Some people seem born with talent—artists, athletes, chefs, comedians.
They move through the world like they’ve been handed a secret map.
But me?
I’m ordinary.
No special gifts. No obvious calling.
And so, I watch others do great things and tell myself, “Well, I could never do that.”
And maybe you’ve felt that too.
We come up with reasons before we even start.
We overthink, hesitate, get tangled in “what ifs” and “I’m not good enough.”
We spend so much time planning not to fail… that we forget to begin.
So the days pass.
Nothing starts.
And later—quietly—we regret it.
It happens over and over.
But here’s a thought:
What if we did it anyway?
Not because we’re ready.
Not because we’re sure.
But simply because we want to try.
What if, instead of finding reasons why we can’t…
we just started?
Dōgen, that quiet old Zen monk, once said: “If you stay committed and don’t retreat, after three years, the path will reveal itself.”
Three years sounds long.
So try one.
Or even three months.
Do it with no expectations. No judgment.
Just show up. Every day. Like watering a plant you’re not even sure will bloom.
That’s the quiet magic of it.
Keep going, and something will shift. Not overnight. But steadily, invisibly, inevitably.
You don’t need to be a genius to begin.
You just need a small want. A flicker of interest.
Everyone has something like that—big or small.
So pick it up. Make a vow. And don’t think too much.
Just do it. Keep doing it.
That’s what it means to be Isshi Futtai—to have a single, unshakable intent.
And when you feel like giving up, whisper those words to yourself:
Isshi Futtai.
I won’t retreat.
Not today.
禅語は最高 「一志不退」ひたすら求め続ける
禅は難しい。禅語も難しい。だから勝手に解釈して使っている。それで良いと思っている。案外、慧能禅師も道元禅師も、一休さんも良寛さんも「それで良い、それで良いんじゃよ、Let it be じゃ」と言ってくれそうだ。
今日は「一志不退」である。
ひたすら求めれば道は開ける
道元禅師は曹洞宗を開いた高僧である。彼は「禅の修行は只管打坐に尽きる」と言った。悟りを開きたければひたすらに座禅をするしかないのだ。「誓願の一志不退ならば、わずかに三歳をふるに弁道現成するなり」とも言った。「悟りを開く」と誓いを立て、ひたすら修行を続ければ三年が過ぎる頃におのずから修行の方法が分かってくる。誓いを立てたらけっして退かない気持ちが大切なのだ。
Saku Yanagawaという日本人青年がいる。単身、米国に渡りスタンダップコメディアンになった。彼にとって英語は外国語である。それを使っての漫談はさぞかし難しかっただろう。徳之島に宮出さんという人がいる。彼は１３年間、島でコーヒーを栽培をしている。まだ満足できるコーヒーはできていない。彼はそれでも諦めず栽培を続けている。
イギリスで有名になった「とにかく明るい安村さん」も諦めない人だ。英語では「とにかく」と略される。彼はパンツの芸を突きつめている。どうみても馬鹿な芸だが極めると本当の芸になった。
彼らは一志不退の人たちだ。やりたいことを始めたら決して退かない。一志不退の人たちは芸術や料理やスポーツの世界に多くいる。「好きこそものの上手なれ」の諺とおり自分の好きなことにひたすら取り組む。
まず行動し三年続ける
残念ながら私には芸術や料理やスポーツの才能はない。私は何の才能もない凡人だ。とても彼らのようにできない。大抵の人は何かを始める前から諦めてしまう。できない理由を探して悩んで、考えるだけで始めない。結局何もしないままに終わってしまう。そして後で後悔する、そんなことの繰り返しだ。
後から後悔するくらいなら、できない理由を考える前に、とにかく始めてみればどうだろう。それを三年の間は続けてみる。三年が長いなら一年でも良い。無心でひたすら頑張って続ける。そうすれば何かが見えてくる、と道元禅師はそう言っている。
誰でも、大きいか小さいかは別としてやりたいことがあるはずだ。まずそれを始める。達成の誓いを立て余計なことを考えない。やり続ける。それが一志不退の人である。「一志不退」くじけそうになったらこの言葉を思い出そう。