Life is irreplaceable, important and beyond our power

We have discovered various concepts of inochi in contemporary Japan, some of which contradict each other. I think it impossible and dangerous to attempt to summarize this vast set of images and classify them in patterns at this stage, because it may lead us to discard a number of subtle features which may also prove valuable.

Instead, I present in this section some philosophical interpretations of the concept of inochi. These interpretations are based on the conceptual understanding I have acquired through my research on the images of inochi.

However, it may be helpful here to briefly summarize some of the main characteristics noted so far. First, there are many people who think that inochi equally given to humans, animals, plants —to all creatures— and that inochi beings live by both supporting and killing each other. Inochi is energy which keeps creatures alive, and at the same time it means the state of being alive itself. Images of inochi have close relationships to birth, growth, aging, and death. One’s inochi is irreplaceable, important, and beyond our power. It is finite, but at the same time it is connected to others in space and time forever.

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The Concept of Inochi, Part 2
(1991)
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