A collection of quotes from people of the past: messages from famous military commanders and great figures of the world.

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.

Famous Japanese military commanders and world-renowned great figures have left behind many memorable quotes over the course of long history.

In this article, we’ll introduce quotes from such figures of the past!

Among the sayings they left us are words that inspire people living today, expressions that convey stern strength, and insights that can serve as hints when taking action—each filled with various sentiments.

When you’re unsure about something in life or facing a moment that makes you feel like giving up, please take a look at the quotes we introduce.

Collection of quotes from people of the past. Messages from famous samurai warlords and world-renowned great figures (21–30)

It wasn’t by chance that we made it back alive. This is our mission.Sandwich Man

These are words from Sandwichman, a comedy duo from Sendai, that express a determination to keep moving forward.

The key point is that at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake, they happened to be in Kesennuma, Miyagi—one of the disaster areas—while filming a TV show.

They convey what it means that they survived: being alive in that place was both fate and a mission, and they believe they are called to walk forward and pass on the story to the future.

You can feel their love for their hometown and their resolve to carry it on their shoulders as they move ahead.

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kappamaki

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He who fails to prepare is preparing to fail.Benjamin Franklin

This is a famous quote by Benjamin Franklin—remembered as a Founding Father in the United States—about the importance of preparation.

It’s a saying that corrects the attitude of those who neglect to prepare, conveying that failing to prepare sets the stage for failure.

By deliberately expressing in a roundabout way that preparation is essential to avoid failure, it even evokes a sense of fear about failing.

The words also suggest that, to prevent all kinds of failures, it’s important to prepare broadly and thoroughly.

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kappamaki

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Collection of quotes from people of the past: Messages from famous military commanders and world-renowned great figures (31–40)

Beneath mud and earth lies solid rock; above clouds and mist shines the sun. At the height of discontent, there is still fortune, nor is hope absent.Kanzo Uchimura

I would like to introduce a famous saying by Kanzo Uchimura: “Beneath the mud lies bedrock; above the clouds and mist shines the sun.

Even at the height of complaint, happiness and hope are not absent.” Kanzo Uchimura was a Christian thinker active in the Meiji era.

Disasters can bring many hardships.

At such times, Uchimura left words he hoped we would remember.

It is said to mean that even when times are painful and difficult now, a stable and bright future surely awaits beyond.

He likens difficult situations to mud, and the bedrock represents the strength within us that lies beneath these serious problems.

Furthermore, he tells us that even when we feel or voice complaints, happiness and hope still exist.

Life brings all kinds of experiences, doesn’t it? Even so, we are reminded of the importance of maintaining a positive outlook.

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Nakajima Junko

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Nature is an impartial and merciless enemy. Society is an unjust enemy with human sentiment.Soseki Natsume

Let me introduce a famous quote by Natsume Sōseki: “Nature is a fair yet ruthless enemy.

Society is an unjust yet compassionate enemy.” Natsume Sōseki was a Japanese novelist and scholar of English literature.

His major works include I Am a Cat, Botchan, Sanshirō, And Then, Kokoro, and Light and Darkness.

This line—“Nature is a fair yet ruthless enemy.

Society is an unjust yet compassionate enemy.”—appears in his work Reminiscences.

It’s a quote that encourages us not to underestimate nature and to prepare for natural disasters.

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Natural disasters strike when we least expect them.Torahiko Terada

Here is a famous and important saying by Torahiko Terada: “Natural disasters strike when they have been forgotten.” Terada was a Japanese physicist, essayist, and haiku poet.

As a researcher, he was interested in disasters such as fires and earthquakes, and it is said that after the 1923 Great Kanto Earthquake, he became even more deeply engaged with the subject.

This quote reminds us that the peaceful passing of everyday life without incident is not something to be taken for granted.

It is a phrase worth engraving in our hearts.

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Earthquakes will strike again and again. To prevent severe damage, we will build parks and roads.Shinpei Gotō

I would like to introduce a famous quote left by Shinpei Goto: “Earthquakes will come again and again.

To prevent great damage, we must build parks and roads.” From this saying, one can sense his conviction to protect human life.

Shinpei Goto devoted himself to the reconstruction after the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, making present-day Tokyo a city resilient to disasters.

Immediately after the earthquake, he became Minister of Home Affairs and then Minister for Reconstruction to rebuild Tokyo, which had suffered immense damage.

Along with the quote, he conceived reconstruction measures, but at the time he faced criticism from those around him.

It is said that enormous funds were required to put them into action, and landowners opposed the purchase of tracts that had been reduced to burned-out fields by the quake.

Although his budget was cut, Goto poured his efforts into building a disaster-resilient city.

Thanks to those efforts, Tokyo became stronger against earthquakes than it had been in the past.

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Nakajima Junko

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Prepare pessimistically, act optimistically.Kazuo Inamori

Let me introduce a famous quote left by Kazuo Inamori: “Prepare pessimistically, act optimistically.” Kazuo Inamori was a Japanese entrepreneur and engineer.

He founded Kyocera and Daini Denden, which is now KDDI, and served as chairman of the Inamori Foundation, a public-interest incorporated foundation.

He was also honorary chairman of Japan Airlines.

In the planning stage, with a strong will that says, “No matter what, we must accomplish this,” one should reexamine the plan with a pessimistic eye; then, in the execution stage, with the confidence that “We can definitely do it,” one should carry it out optimistically—brightly and with dignity.

Doesn’t this conviction also apply to disaster preparedness?

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