Neutrality and Circulation
The idea that everything follows certain laws is easy to imagine in today’s world, where science lies at the center of our understanding. In this book, I’ve discussed the role of “luck,” but it’s also true that not everything can be neatly explained by such laws — and that, too, is something we can grasp. Still, there’s a reason things are the way they are — or rather, they have to be this way, or the world wouldn’t function. This can be explained by how the system of the world itself is structured.
Let’s start with an easy example: the daily weather forecast. Have you ever asked yourself whether the weather is determined by science or by luck? Probably not. Everyone knows that science can predict the weather to a certain extent, but whether things actually turn out that way is another story. That simple idea is at the heart of what I want to convey in this chapter.
Rain falls, flows into rivers, returns to the sea, forms clouds, and rains again. This is a well-known cycle. But no one can predict exactly when, where, how, or how intensely that cycle will manifest. That unpredictability is luck. It might seem like I’m stating the obvious, but the entire world operates under the same core principles. Whether it’s something as mundane and familiar as the weather, or something so far removed from our experience that we can’t even imagine it — everything follows the same framework of thinking.
Let’s dig a little deeper into the weather. First, there’s the concept of “circulation,” which I mentioned earlier. Just as water circulates through the planet, everything in this world functions through cycles. Lifeforms are a clear example. All living things are born and die in a repeating cycle. The human body, too, is built on circulation — blood flow, cellular regeneration, and so on. For something to exist, it must be part of some cycle. If that cycle were ever broken, extinction would follow.
The second core principle is “neutrality.” To sustain a cycle, everything must return to a neutral state, and from that state, movement must once again begin. If we think about the weather, the ocean is likely the neutral state. But if water remained in the ocean indefinitely, circulation would stop, and Earth as we know it would collapse. That’s why clouds form, rain falls, water nourishes the land, and eventually returns to the sea. It’s the same for living beings. To be born means you came from a neutral state — non-existence. As part of the cycle, when your role ends, you die and return to that neutral state. If that didn’t happen — if people stopped dying — then the population would grow beyond what Earth’s resources could support, ecosystems would collapse, and humanity itself would eventually become extinct.
It’s easy to accept these principles when we’re talking about weather or biological systems. But the same concepts of circulation and neutrality also apply to modern human society.
Humans live by forming societies — but have you ever stopped to consider why? It’s because we need to divide responsibilities in order to survive. In today’s world, with services becoming excessively convenient and complex, this may be hard to see clearly. But if you consider the evolution of humanity, the reason becomes easier to understand. Long before modern civilization, humans were already dividing roles: men went hunting to provide for the group, women raised and protected the children. As time went on, the division of roles expanded — there were those who handled food, clothing, shelter, those who organized everything — and gradually, societies formed. Our modern world is simply the extension of that process. Although capitalism has now driven society into an overheated game of money and competition, where people often end up taking from each other rather than supporting one another, it’s still a form of circulation.
From the moment you’re born, you become part of that cycle. In fact, even from the moment you’re conceived. Once pregnancy is discovered, parents begin preparations. They visit hospitals, gather supplies. This involves hospital staff, people who produce baby goods, transportation workers, logistics personnel — and those people have families who then spend money, which affects yet more people down the line. Just from that one pregnancy, an unimaginable number of people are affected. Over the course of a lifetime, the number grows beyond what anyone could count. In other words, as long as you exist in modern society, you are part of a vast cycle. There are no exceptions. Even those who pass away before birth or at an early age due to illness or accident are still part of the cycle — both in a societal and human sense. You eat a meal. You go to the bathroom. You wear clothes. You ride in a car. Whatever you do, you are participating in social circulation. The very fact that you existed even once means you impacted someone, and if that person acted based on that influence, you’ve become a part of the cycle. People often say, “Good deeds come back to you,” and that’s not just a saying — it’s a natural phenomenon rooted in fundamental principles.
Human relationships are also cyclical. If you do something for someone, you’ve joined the cycle of people who live for others. This isn’t superstition or idealism — it’s principle. Of course, we must not forget the role of “luck.” Even within the absolute law of water circulation, the timing and scale are random. Still, being part of the cycle is essential for living a better life.
To circulate correctly, everything must return to a neutral state. But when it comes to money, Japanese society has failed to do this. Without proper circulation, everyone suffers — just like we’re seeing now in Japan. This is because the system deviates from the principles of circulation and neutrality. Whether at the level of the universe, the Earth, society, or human relationships, the same laws apply.
So far, we’ve been talking on a fairly large scale. Now, let’s bring the conversation down to the individual level. I can’t remember where I heard this — perhaps from a doctor or a scholar — but someone once explained how drug addiction works. When people use drugs, they quickly become desensitized to the pleasure they bring, but the withdrawal symptoms when returning to neutral never become easier to bear. What that means is: what once brought a pleasure level of 10 becomes dull with time, so users must raise the dose to feel the same effect — 10, then 20, then 30. However, when the effects wear off, the crash back to neutral always feels just as painful — 10 for 10, 20 for 20, 30 for 30. That’s how addiction forms.
On the flip side, this same principle can work in your favor — like with weight training or aerobic exercise. The discomfort of going from neutral to effort becomes easier to handle over time, while the satisfaction of returning from discomfort to neutral remains just as sweet — and can even feel better and better.
In other words, if you understand where your own “neutral” lies and whether what you’re doing feels pleasurable or uncomfortable in relation to that, you’ll find it easier to manage your mental state. Living in a fortunate country like Japan, many people are drawn to what’s better than what they currently have, believing that acquiring more is the key to happiness. And in most cases, they view that idea of “more” as something absolute. Let’s explore this with a simple, relatable example.
The most obvious is temperature. Temperature is measured with absolute numbers, but whether it feels comfortable depends not on the number itself, but on its relative difference from your current state. In the summer, a cool air-conditioned room feels good, and in the winter, a heated room brings comfort. That pleasure arises from being released from a previously uncomfortable state — relative to your own neutral. Eating a meal after days of hunger, taking a bath after a long absence, sleeping in your bed after time away — these moments feel more pleasurable precisely because they follow a period of discomfort. In reality, there’s no such thing as absolute happiness. We only perceive happiness in a relative sense, based on contrast. People who don’t realize this — even if they achieve their dreams or reach their ideal lifestyle — will always find something new to be dissatisfied with.
Ideally, just like how spring and autumn temperatures feel most pleasant, living close to your natural neutral is already a form of happiness. But people often chase after artificial highs, disrupting that balance, only to experience discomfort again from the backlash. The first thing you need to realize is that being in a neutral state is already happiness. Most people don’t appreciate their daily lives or the things they take for granted until something happens to disrupt them. But the key is to recognize and value these everyday moments *before* something happens. That’s what truly matters. And still, if you truly wish to change something in your life, as discussed in the “ How to Make Your Dreams Come True” chapter, you’ll need to shift your “neutral” — your habits, your norms, and your baseline.
One thing to remember: even if you achieve your dream, your neutral will shift. So the joy you now imagine will no longer feel like joy when you reach it. It will simply become your new normal. No matter how your life changes, if you don’t understand, appreciate, and feel happiness in your neutral, you will forever experience discomfort when returning to it from a temporary high. If you’re caught in a cycle of scrolling through social media, feeling inspired and uplifted by idealized posts, only to crash back into dissatisfaction when facing your real life — that’s the result of poor neutral management. If you want to break that pattern, start by counting the blessings you have now. The fact that you can eat a warm meal, sleep in a safe place — these are incredible blessings. If you can’t truly feel grateful for these, nothing you do will ever satisfy you. People who can’t return to neutral can’t circulate well either.
From the birth of the universe to this very moment, everything has been connected as one continuous flow. This very moment is the result of cycles in motion, through which the neutral point has gradually shifted. Earth, born long ago, will eventually vanish. It continues to live through its rotation and revolution. On its surface, nature and living beings are born and die in a continuous loop.
Society and people affect each other. You yourself — your body circulates through breath, blood, and cell regeneration. Circulation and neutrality are fundamental laws. Once you understand this, most things in life begin to work. It’s not magic — it’s principle. And when you embody this, you’ll naturally feel happiness no matter what happens, and you’ll be able to bring happiness to those around you. If you can create healthy circulation and shift your neutral, your life will become far more fulfilling.
This content is part of my book, LIFE HAS NO MEANING
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