Zen Words for Everyday Life Vol. 7

Hello, こんにちは, Bonjour, Guten Tag, Buenos días, 你好, 안녕하세요.
I have put together a list of ways to say “hello” in different languages.

When you learn a foreign language, the word for “hello” is extremely important. It ranks right up there with “thank you” in terms of how useful it is. When you actually travel to a foreign country, the simple act of greeting someone shortens the distance between yourself and the locals. Even within Japan, if someone from another country comes up to me and says “konnichiwa” in Japanese, I feel like it creates a sense of familiarity, making it easier to communicate.

Greetings are the lubricants in our communication. The Japanese word for “greeting” is “aisatsu,” which is written with the kanji “挨拶.” This word is apparently an abbreviation of the Zen phrase “ichiai issatsu” (一挨一拶), which originally has a slightly different meaning than the one we’re familiar with.

The character 挨 (ai) means “to aggressively move in for the attack,” while 拶 (satsu) means “to counterattack without delay.” Ichiai issatsu originally began as a form of Zen question and answer sessions. It was a way for the master of a Zen dojo to assess the progress of his disciples’ training.

The master would suddenly ask a question, and the disciple had to quickly answer on the spot. It was a true duel of wits. You had to answer without taking the slightest moment to think. In that way, the master could put the fruits of one’s training to the test. And it is this kind of intense exchange that gave us the word aisatsu—greeting.

A modern-day equivalent might be when you’re out on the street, and out of the blue, someone you know calls out to you. The quickness of your response and the content of what you say can show quickness on your feet you are.

Greetings can show what is in somebody’s heart. For example, a new employee or transfer might join your team at work, and your image of them could improve if they give a nice, friendly greeting. Not only that, but when you greet someone, you convey not only your tone of voice, but also your facial expression, behavior and personal appearance.

Bearing in mind the strict origins of the Zen phrase “ichiai issatsu” that later developed into “aisatsu,” it may be worthwhile to try tweaking your daily greetings.

If you start overthinking it, you might end up fumbling your greetings. Obviously, that’s no good. Think of each greeting as a form of training. No matter what you do, if you think about it in your own way and try to deepen your understanding, you will come to realize what is important. I hope you will understand that Zen training is not something extraordinary, but a series of ordinary things that are right in front of us.

Saihoji　 　 FUJITA Ryuko