Taiwan Thousand Mile Diary - Paperback - Japanese Edition

The Beginning of a Micro Pilgrimage In the winter of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic made it impossible to visit Taiwan, a place I had traveled to for over a decade. My routine, which largely revolved around travel between Taiwan and Japan, came to a halt, and I began to lose myself. Amidst these days, I recalled the "Mazu Pilgrimage," a religious parade in Taiwan I had once participated in. Then, an idea struck me: a journey to walk across my hometown, Fukui Prefecture. Inspired by the "walking" approach used in pilgrimages and spiritual practices known as "Ohenro" in Japan and "Rao Jing" in Taiwan, I named this journey "Micro Pilgrimage." The concept of the journey is "Burden, Value." In an era that prioritizes convenience and efficiency, I chose to "walk" deliberately to foster deeper connections with people and places. I infused this concept with the belief that this very burden becomes true added value. The rules of the journey are simple: 1. Never use any form of transportation, not even for a second. 2. Do not bring a sleeping bag; find lodging independently or rely on the kindness of others. 3. Prioritize the number of detours and the time spent on them over the speed of walking. This journey, akin to a mental experiment using all five senses, serves as an antithesis to a world obsessed with efficiency. In recent years, we frequently hear terms like "cost performance" (C/P) and "time performance" (T/P). It seems only a matter of time before "body performance" (B/P) becomes a metric, as we increasingly delegate tasks to the internet and AI without engaging our bodies. Following money and time, our very bodies appear to be on the verge of being swept away by the tide of efficiency. I feel a sense of unease about this. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The journey began in the winter of 2020. Due to the pandemic, I could no longer travel freely to Taiwan as I had for the past decade. My life, centered around the back-and-forth between the two places, came to an abrupt halt, and I felt I was losing myself. Stuck in this rut, I remembered the "Mazu Pilgrimage," a religious event in Taiwan I had once joined. Suddenly, an idea surfaced: a plan to traverse my hometown, Fukui Prefecture, on foot. In Taiwan, there's the "Rao Jing" for religious events, and in Japan, the "Ohenro" for personal spiritual cultivation. I named my walking journey "Micro Pilgrimage," with the concept of "Burden Value." In an era prioritizing convenience and efficiency, I deliberately chose to "walk" to deeply connect with people and the land. I believe this "burden" is the true source of value, and I poured this conviction into the term. The rules of the journey are simple: 1. Do not ride any vehicle, not even for a second. 2. Do not bring a sleeping bag; find accommodation on your own or rely on others. 3. Rather than how far I walked, I hoped to take more detours to create more opportunities. This is a journey undertaken with my own feet, eyes, and body, like a mind-body experiment. It's a reflection on this world that prioritizes efficiency above all else. In recent years, we've often heard terms like C/P (cost performance) and T/P (time performance, a term popular among young Japanese). Perhaps soon, even B/P (body performance) will be scrutinized. After money and time, our "bodies" seem poised to be engulfed by the wave of efficiency. I feel this sense of unease.