The Japanese experience

It is undoubtedly the greatest force that contributes to the success of a nation. In the words of an expert on Japanese affairs, the secret of Japan’s success lies in “never quarrelling amongst themselves, always doing everything together.”

In August 1945, the U.S.A. dropped two atom bombs on Japan, reducing two major cities to ruins. Yet, strangely enough, the Japanese seem to bear no grudge against the Americans, for, they say, it had only reacted to Japan’s violence in the arena of war. The responsibility, therefore, needs to be shared by each side. This realistic attitude on the part of the Japanese has seen them through all kinds of adversity and brought them to extraordinary heights of progress in modern times.

Both the big industrial cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, bustling with life, became enormous areas of devastation in a matter of minutes. Within a ten-mile radius, every kind of life–human, animal and vegetable was blown to bits. One and a half million people died on the spot. Ten thousand of them simply disappeared. Yet these cities have been built once again with wide streets, spacious houses, parks and gardens, all of which have a modern look. Only one ruined building has been left as it was to remind one of the grim punishment meted out to the Japanese during the Second World War.

When Mr. Khushwant Singh visited Japan, he learnt, much to his astonishment, that the Japanese do not exploit the events of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to discredit the U.S.A. It is other nations, on the contrary, who have exploited these events for this purpose. When Khushwant Singh asked the reason for this attitude, a Japanese replied in a surprisingly calm tone:

“We hit them first at Pearl Harbour. We killed a lot of them. They warned us of what they would do, but we thought they were only bluffing. They beat us fair and square. We were quits, and now we are friends.” (The Hindustan Times, April 4, 1981)

A memorial has been erected to commemorate the dead, the victims of a gruesome tragedy. The museum displays photographs depicting death and destruction on a mass scale. About 70 lakh Japanese visit Hiroshima every year to witness this spectacle. However, one can sense the hidden feelings of hatred against Americans during a conversation with the Japanese. But they do not let it rule their lives.