Stand

Hitoshi Katai

Director of Federation of National Public Service Personnel Mutual Aid Associations Tachikawa Hospital, Guest Professor at Keio University School of Medicine, 1982 Medical Sciences

Tachikawa Hospital is a general hospital directly managed by the Federation of National Public Service Personnel Mutual Aid Associations, located in Tachikawa City, Tokyo. The philosophy of Tachikawa Hospital is "The practice of high-quality, compassionate medical care." A leading theory regarding the origin of the name Tachikawa is that it comes from the word "tachi" (standing), because the sound of the water from the Tama River echoed loudly.

Tachikawa Hospital opened before the war as the Tokyo Second Army Kyosai Hospital. While the director and executives were from the Army, a request was made to the Keio University School of Medicine to dispatch doctors. This dispatch continued after the war, and it remains a Keio University affiliated hospital today. Tachikawa City is becoming the center of the Tama area as development of former US military base sites progresses. While the population is aging more rapidly than in the 23 wards, it is also an area where the young population is increasing due to an influx of young people moving to the suburbs. Tachikawa Hospital plays a semi-public role in Tachikawa City, which has no municipal hospital.

As a hospital that serves as a cornerstone for the local community, all departments provide high-quality medical care to people of a wide range of ages, from babies to the elderly. It also fulfills roles such as a Regional Medical Care Support Hospital, a Disaster Base Hospital, and a government-designated Designated Cancer Hospital.

Dankei Tatekawa

Rakugo Storyteller, Member of the Japan Stand-up Comedy Association, 1988 Economics

Alongside being a Rakugo storyteller, I am also a member of the "Japan Stand-up Comedy Association." This came about through my connection with the chairman, Hiroshi Shimizu, and the vice-chairman, Zenjiro.

In a nutshell, stand-up comedy is a style of speaking while "standing" that expresses an "I THINK" worldview. As long as the intent is to say "this is what I think," it is an extremely fair and equal art form where age, gender, and even career experience do not matter at all. A young Danshi Tatekawa also used to take on the challenge in a suit, and the foundation of his satirical spirit was Moichi Tanabe, the founder of Kinokuniya Bookstore.

Danshi would cut into Tanabe, the "Emperor of Ginza Nightlife," with "rough flattery," and Tanabe was very fond of him. Perhaps as a result of his training there, when he stood for national politics, he was reportedly heckled with, "Do you think you can become a member of the Diet!?" There is a legend that Danshi immediately shot back, "I have a better chance than you." That is the kind of state I aim for. Not just my main profession of Rakugo, which has a set form, but the quick-witted eloquence of "water flowing down a smooth board." I will follow in those footsteps. Please look forward to it.

Shuichiro Taya

Associate Professor, Keio University Faculty of Law

It is said that in ancient times, people thought the moon was light leaking through a hole in the canopy of heaven. Certainly, the full moon shining clearly in the night sky looks more like a flat disk than a sphere.

The reason the moon does not look like a sphere is that there are no "clues" to perceive its shape three-dimensionally. For example, we grasp the depth of objects from the slight discrepancy between the images seen by our right and left eyes, but this discrepancy becomes smaller as the object being viewed gets further away, and it disappears at a distance as great as the moon. Also, when we walk or are shaken in a vehicle, closer objects appear to move faster and distant objects appear to move more slowly. This relationship is also a clue for a sense of three-dimensionality and distance, but it does not hold true for the extremely distant moon. That is why the moon viewed from a car window appears to "follow" us forever.

This loss of a sense of distance also distorts the sense of size. No matter how large it may appear, the actual size of the moon as reflected in the eye, without exception, is only about enough to fit inside the hole of a 5-yen coin held at arm's length. It may be hard to believe, but please try it with a 5-yen coin in hand on the next moonlit night.

Ikuhiro Asada

Teacher at Keio Senior High School, Director of the Sumo Club

The "tachiai" (initial charge) is what greatly influences the outcome of a sumo match. Wrestlers who average 185 centimeters and over 160 kilograms collide in a ring only 15 feet in diameter. The impact is immeasurable, and it is said that "60 to 70 percent of the victory or defeat is decided at the tachiai." If you fall behind, it is difficult to recover, so it is inevitable that the maneuvering to take the initiative becomes heated.

Originally, the tachiai is a movement that begins with the call of the referee, "Hakeyoi, nokotta!" after the wrestlers synchronize their breathing from a "sonkyo" (squatting) position. The match is established only at the moment when the spirits of the two wrestlers coincide, rather than by a signal from a third party. The beauty unique to sumo resides in that rare format.

In the past, there were no starting lines, and there were even matches where the wrestlers glared at each other for over an hour. The poet Jean Cocteau wrote during a 1936 visit that he was "waiting for the absolute moment, the miracle of equilibrium." The vivid transition from stillness to motion is surely the essence of sumo. I cannot help but hope that this tradition will continue to live on as a mirror reflecting culture and spirit beyond victory or defeat.