Story Four

　In Asia, including Japan, since the Middle Ages, there was a system called 'Kou' where people would spontaneously help each other by pooling rice and other goods during times of hardship. Of course, the principle was that borrowed funds should be repaid, and they didn't profit from interest, but they didn't allow free rides either. It seems that trustworthy connections (i.e., networks) were essential for circulating the benefits within the community without monopolizing them. As mentioned in Episode 3, both wild animals and humankind have helped each other since ancient times, and it is believed that such social systems have been passed down through generations and reside in our spirit.

Outside of Asia, mutual aid organizations can be found in distant Chinese communities, such as in Jamaica in the 1930s, but they were particularly prominent in Japanese immigrant communities in Hawaii and Brazil. (omitted) Unlike banks that bring profits to individuals, Tanomoshi-kou circulated funds within the community based on the ethical idea of mutual aid ('kyosai'). (omitted) In large farms and agricultural towns in Hawaii, These mutual aid organizations served as invaluable aid systems, covering expenses in emergencies such as illness, as well as milestone events like weddings, funerals, and school entrance. They also provided support for integrating fishing and coffee production businesses. (omitted) Japanese laborers who immigrated to Brazil shortly after the abolition of slavery, even then living in harsh conditions, formed mutual aid organizations there as well, transforming the agricultural sector." (Quoted from book [4-1], page 96).

"The Tanomoshi-kou and Mujin-kou provided concrete frameworks, and the established rules brought order to economic practice. From the contractual agreements that stipulated actions to be taken according to detailed numerical specifications for a certain period, I gained valuable insights into the intellectual life of the people. This revealed the existence of mutual trust, the ethics of 'contracts' as in the contractual organizations, and more broadly, agreements to help each other in various situations of real life. I believe that the concept of community and 'mutual aid' is not merely moral and abstract, I became convinced that it was a concrete idea backed by numerical certainty." (Quoted from book [4-1], page vi.).

　With the end of the warring states and the establishment of the Edo Shogunate, samurai gathered in castle towns, and it is believed that mutual assistance as a community took root in rural areas. Instead of relying on others, village communities that thought and acted independently formed the foundation for a mutually supportive society.

"Because the samurai class no longer existed in the villages, the villagers considered themselves to be autonomous entities. That is, not only were they no longer subject to the direct control of the samurai class regarding internal village matters, but the samurai class also did not participate in decisions regarding the welfare of the village community. Thus, given the right conditions, villagers could proactively undertake initiatives beyond simply meeting their tax obligations. (omitted) Even in emergencies such as fires, storms, famines, and epidemics, it was up to the village itself to decide whether or not to protect it. The main reason for the rapid increase in these cooperative groups was the village society's recognition that disasters were unavoidable and inevitable." (Quoted from book [4-1], page 104).

　In the late Edo period, while many domains were facing financial crises, the region suffered from a great famine caused by volcanic eruptions and abnormal weather patterns, resulting in many deaths from starvation. Therefore, Sontoku Ninomiya, a farmer who also served the Odawara domain, implemented irrigation projects and productivity improvements based on the concept of 'Houtoku(報徳)', and also carried out planned stockpiling to prepare for unforeseen disasters, thereby revitalizing and reforming rural areas. This was based on 'Shihou（仕法）' that utilized record-keeping and calculations (made possible by the high literacy rate), and it is surprising that such scientifically superior methods and agricultural techniques were put into practice and disseminated before the modern era. Until P.Drucker pointed this out in his 1969 book 'The Age of Discontinuity', 'knowledge of truth' was emphasized while 'knowledge of action' was neglected. Therefore, 'Houtoku', while primarily focused on agriculture and agricultural policy, was a concept far ahead of its time, rather than a general theory.

"For Sontoku, language was merely a means of recording current work, and the study of ancient times was a misguided academic pursuit. (omitted) He measured time in cycles of five or ten years of work, believing that if one continued to work diligently and conscientiously, one could sustain oneself for 100 years without losing one's life or virtue. Therefore, for Sontoku, morality was the source of life, a heavenly blessing bestowed at birth, that is, 'heavenly virtue', and inseparable from nature. It was also something that humans had to protect, nourish, and maintain through agriculture. "Repaying virtue" morally constructed diligence and maintained the blessing of life provided by nature." (Quoted from book [4-1], page 156).

Here, 'virtue（徳）' refers to the goodness and characteristics inherent in things and people (by their work or ultimately their life), and 'repaying（報）' means using it to benefit society. In doing so, he encouraged people's independence and sought mutual assistance, using 'sincerity（至誠）', 'diligence（勤労）', 'moderation（分度）', and 'sharing（推譲）' as the pillars of his reforms. It means working honestly and diligently, maintaining moderation, receiving a fair share, and giving to family or others if the share exceeds one's rights. Furthermore, unlike modern Western thought, it prioritized the pursuit of individual gain and the domination of nature, but rather governed the world and saved the people by thinking and acting meticulously and intelligently based on past data. This is a very different way of thinking from the affluence of a select few achieved through plunder and monopolization in the West since the early modern period. Now, more than ever, with the ongoing destruction of the global environment, we should consider which approach we should emulate.

"For the moderation（分度）, Bun (分) represents what Heaven or the natural order makes available. Heaven gives and permits, but critically important is its limitation. Heaven provides according to principles. Sontoku repeatedly expressed this as an unavoidable path due to the natural order of cause and effect. This allows for the production of food and other things that humans need in real society. It also forms the basis for human strategy. Do(度) determines the distribution, This illustrates the human aspect of knowing the limits of nature and using the energy that nature provides to do work. (omitted) Of the income obtained from production, forty percent is paid to the feudal lord as tribute by order of the government. The remaining half is used for the needs of the family ('internal portion'). This is a blessing from heaven to the self, and half of the internal portion is kept within. In other words, it is set aside for the scope of the self, especially for the family ('self-contribution'). The remaining half is either given away ('concession') or given to others ('other-contribution')". (Quoted from book [4-1], pages 178-179).

"The kanji for Shihou (仕法) means 'to implement a series of laws' or 'to apply methods'. While this method was particularly aimed at the revitalization of villages and abandoned lands, it was usually designed to reintroduce production achievements, that is, virtue, into agriculture. Furthermore, the concept of time was incorporated into Shihou. For example, it was implemented over a set period, such as ten years, and a review was conducted at the end of the period. (omitted) By implementing long-term plans, the sincerity of humanity was realized and recorded. (omitted) The emphasis on accuracy was clearly not to encourage discipline, but to spread a morality of yielding, saving others, and saving all villages in the four seas (world) as one village. This was not economics in the modern sense. While some attempted such a redefinition, in the Tokugawa period, it meant saving others in an orderly manner ('governing the world and saving the people'), and this is the conceptual origin of what we now call economics." (Quoted from book [4-1], page 176).

　Subsequently, the concept of 'Houtoku' and its practical application 'Shihou' were passed down to Sontoku's disciples. During the Meiji, Taisho, and Showa eras, it expanded into an organization called the Houtoku-sha, which consisted of several dozen to around 200 members. At the end of T.Tomita's book, 'Houtoku-ki(A Super-Translation of the Record of Houtoku)', it is mentioned that many business leaders, such as Eiichi Shibusawa, Zenjiro Yasuda, Kounosuke Matsushita, Toshio Doko, and Kazuo Inamori, learned from Sontoku, started and grew businesses after the Meiji era, and made social contributions in terms of employment and improving living standards. I believe Japan should be more proud of these historical facts.

"The Houtoku movement, particularly the Houtoku-sha movement, developed and expanded mainly in the Enshu region (western Shizuoka Prefecture), as will be discussed later. Enshu is also known as the birthplace of or the birthplace of the founders of major manufacturing companies such as automobiles, musical instruments, and food processing. For example, the region had Sakichi Toyoda of Toyota Automatic Loom, Michio Suzuki of Suzuki Motor, Soichiro Honda of Honda Motor, Torakusu Yamaha of Yamaha Music/Motor Co., Koichi Kawai of Kawai Piano, Fujisaburo Suzuki of rock candy, and so on. They were all commoners—carpenters, auto repairmen, watchmakers, confectioners, etc.—who, through their skills, talent, and ingenuity, started businesses and developed them into large corporations." (Quoted from book [4-2], page 4).

　In particular, the Houtoku movement in the Enshu region was characterized by a bottom-up, association-style system and a leadership model guided by wealthy farmers. Furthermore, the distribution of Hotoku societies in 1906, after the Russo-Japanese War in the late Meiji period, was as follows:

"The total number of so-called town and village Houtoku societies in Shizuoka Prefecture, excluding the main headquarters, was 430. (omitted) Even within Shizuoka Prefecture, it is clear that Enshu Province (Enshu), located in the western part of the prefecture, accounted for an overwhelming 80%. Moreover, within Enshu, the three areas of Iwata, Ogasa, and Shuchi (the central and eastern Enshu regions), located east of the Tenryu River, accounted for a large number, making up 61.5% of the total." (Quoted from book [4-2], pages 48-50).

　So, what were the main types of mutual aid activities of the Houtoku societies, and how did they change?

"[Loans][Education][Industrial development][Water management and civil engineering][Education][Relief][Relief for distressed villages][Commendation of good deeds][Facilities for responding to the current situation] were diverse. (omitted) Looking at it very broadly, The Houtoku-sha can be seen as having shifted its focus throughout the Meiji period, from relief for impoverished villages to water management and civil engineering/industrial development, and finally to its function as a public organization." (Quoted from book [4-2], pages 72-74).

"Unlike credit unions, the Houtoku-sha clearly stated its position of not prioritizing finance. (omitted) The Houtoku loan program, which required complex procedures, was not abundant, and the Enshu-no-Kuni Houtoku-sha sought modernization, but ultimately organized separate organizations such as the Kakegawa Credit Union and the Mitsuke Houtoku-sha United Credit Union, and began to prioritize savings itself." (Quoted from book [4-2], page 94).

　Thus, a society existed in Japan, at least until a few decades ago, where people worked diligently for the good of society and others, diligently engaged in planned production and stockpiling, and shared their wealth rather than hoarding it. A union-like aspect of workers' unions also existed in practice (legal frameworks were established after the Meiji era). In terms of ingenuity and planned economy, there were excellent entrepreneurs who learned from the 'Shiho' system and started and developed their businesses. However, with the passage of time, it seems that there were no longer any business leaders who inherited such aspirations, and only the achievements of founding businesses were recognized. Furthermore, with modernization, the financial aspect of 'Houtoku' shifted to credit unions, and although the ideological aspects through moral education activities remained, its role in the socio-economic system diminished. On the other hand, 'Kou' was positioned as a mutual lending company based on trust within the local community under the Mutual Lending Business Law of 1915, and after World War II, it transformed into a mutual bank.

　In Episode 5, this article outlines the history of cooperatives in Japan, highlighting how they were affected by the modernization process following the Meiji Restoration.

Series: Learning about cutting-edge science and human history to prevent social division