How to Read “Other people’s rice is white”
Tanin no meshi wa shiroi
Meaning of “Other people’s rice is white”
This proverb describes a common human psychology. Whatever other people have always looks better to us. Even when there’s little real difference from what we have, or when it’s exactly the same thing, it seems more attractive when someone else has it.
Haven’t we all experienced this? The stationery your friend uses, the lunch your coworker eats, the book the person next to you is reading. Objectively, these things aren’t different from your own, yet somehow you feel envious.
This proverb is used in such everyday situations. Today it’s understood to have the same meaning as “the grass is greener on the other side.” It serves as a warning about our tendency to lose sight of the value of what we already have.
Origin and Etymology
The exact origin of this proverb isn’t well documented in historical records. However, the structure of the phrase reveals an interesting background.
Let’s focus on the expression “white rice.” In old Japan, white rice was a precious food. Most common people ate barley or mixed grains with their rice. Pure white rice was a special treat.
That’s why “white rice” became a symbol of “something good” or “something enviable.” This cultural context shaped the proverb’s meaning.
The proverb likely emerged from agricultural village life. When people looked at a neighbor’s dinner table, the rice seemed whiter and more delicious, even though everyone ate similar meals. The proverb captures this simple human psychology.
Even when eating the same rice, your own bowl seems ordinary because you’re used to it. Someone else’s bowl looks fresh and appealing. This psychological illusion is expressed through the word “white.”
Like “the grass is greener on the other side,” this proverb captures a universal human tendency. That’s why it has been passed down through generations.
Usage Examples
- That person’s job always looks more interesting, but other people’s rice is white, you know
- When I look at social media, other people’s rice is white—everyone seems so happy that I feel down
Universal Wisdom
“Other people’s rice is white” reveals a fundamental human desire and the distortion it creates in our hearts. Why can’t we properly evaluate what we already have?
The answer lies in how our brains work. We become less sensitive to familiar things and react strongly to new or unknown things. This was an effective survival strategy.
By constantly paying attention to our surroundings and seeking better environments and resources, humanity prospered.
However, this instinct becomes a double-edged sword in modern society. If we constantly compare ourselves to others and focus only on what we lack, we’ll never find peace of mind.
Our ancestors keenly understood this human nature.
This proverb has been passed down because it’s more than just an observation. It’s both a warning and a comfort. The message is: “The person you envy might actually be envying you.”
Just as your neighbor’s rice looks white to you, your rice looks white to your neighbor. Understanding this relativity is the deep wisdom this proverb conveys.
When AI Hears This
The human brain has no function to measure “absolute whiteness.” The moment you compare your rice bowl with your neighbor’s, your brain switches to relative evaluation mode.
Visual psychology experiments prove this. Identical gray squares appear brighter when surrounded by black and darker when surrounded by white. We don’t see “actual color” but rather “difference from surroundings.”
This mechanism directly affects meal satisfaction. When you set your own bowl as the reference point, every other bowl is perceived as a “positive difference.” Even with the same number of grains, a slightly different presentation makes your brain judge “theirs has more.”
Behavioral economist Kahneman’s research shows humans react 2.5 times more sensitively to losses than gains. Using your own bowl as the standard, other bowls always look like “evidence you’re losing out.”
More interesting is how easily reference points shift. The moment you see someone else’s bowl, your brain unconsciously adopts it as the new standard. Now your own bowl gets classified as “the inferior one.”
This automatic reference point updating is the true identity of the human psychology that can never be satisfied.
Lessons for Today
This proverb teaches modern people that happiness doesn’t exist in comparison. It’s natural psychology that other people’s possessions look better. But if you let this control you, you’ll never feel satisfied.
What matters is rediscovering the value of what you already have. The meals you eat daily, the tools you use without thinking, the people who stay by your side. To someone else, these might be enviable.
When you feel down looking at others’ glamorous social media posts, remember this proverb. You’re only seeing the “white-looking parts” of their lives. Behind those posts are worries and struggles just like yours.
Take time to carefully examine your own daily life. You’ll find value that familiarity had made invisible. If other people’s rice looks white to you, your rice looks white to someone else too.
When you realize this fact, you’ll begin to feel the happiness that already exists in your life.
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