How to Read “Make a late meal serve as meat, and a leisurely walk serve as a carriage”
Banshoku motte niku ni ate, anpo shite motte kuruma ni atsu
Meaning of “Make a late meal serve as meat, and a leisurely walk serve as a carriage”
This proverb describes a state of mind where you can feel satisfied with a simple meal and find walking as pleasant as riding in a carriage. It teaches that you can feel truly happy without material wealth, depending on how you view things.
The saying praises people who don’t complain about not having a luxurious life. Instead, they find joy in simple living.
The key point is that they’re not just enduring hardship. They genuinely feel content from the heart.
It shows a way of life where happiness comes from inner fulfillment, not external conditions.
Today, material wealth has become normal, and people tend to want more and more. But this proverb asks us what true happiness really is.
You can enjoy a meal without going to fancy restaurants. You can enjoy traveling without luxury cars.
The proverb teaches the value of having this kind of mental freedom.
Origin and Etymology
This proverb likely comes from ancient Chinese philosophy, especially Taoist thought. “Late meal” refers to simple food, while “meat” means luxurious meat dishes.
“Leisurely walk” means walking calmly and slowly. “Carriage” refers to vehicles like horse-drawn carriages.
In ancient China, philosophers valued gaining happiness through mindset rather than pursuing material wealth. Thinkers like Laozi and Zhuangzi taught spiritual freedom that isn’t affected by external conditions.
This saying follows that philosophical tradition.
The proverb probably came to Japan through Chinese classical texts. However, clear records of when or how it arrived don’t seem to exist.
Still, writings from the Edo period contain many expressions that honor simple living. This suggests that samurai and intellectuals accepted it as an ideal way of life.
Looking at the structure, the phrase “make… serve as…” repeats twice. This creates a parallel form, which is a characteristic rhetorical device in classical Chinese.
This confirms the saying’s origins in Chinese classics. The idea of treating simple food and walking on foot as equal to luxury meat and carriages expresses a core principle of Eastern philosophy.
It values spiritual fulfillment over material possessions.
Usage Examples
- After retirement, I live on my pension, but with the spirit of “Make a late meal serve as meat, and a leisurely walk serve as a carriage,” every day feels fulfilling
- He lives a simple life, but just like the saying “Make a late meal serve as meat, and a leisurely walk serve as a carriage,” he always seems satisfied
Universal Wisdom
This proverb speaks to a deep truth. Human happiness depends not on external conditions but on our inner state of mind.
Why do people chase material wealth? Because they believe that getting external things will make them happy.
But throughout history, many wise people have realized something important. This pursuit never ends.
Humans have a tendency to compare. If your neighbor has something better, you want it too. Once you get one thing, you want the next.
This chain of desire is like a thirst that can never be satisfied. That’s why our ancestors used this proverb to show there’s another path.
Savoring simple food like a meat dish. Enjoying walking on foot like riding in a carriage. This isn’t just endurance or giving up.
Rather, it shows a richness of sensitivity that can fully appreciate what you already have. A heart accustomed to luxury becomes dull and misses small joys.
But a heart that can find happiness in simplicity has the power to discover joy in every aspect of life.
This proverb has been passed down for so long because it captures a universal truth about human society. Material wealth and spiritual wealth don’t always match.
In every era, some people have found inner fulfillment without being controlled by external conditions. Their way of living has continued to give hope to many people.
When AI Hears This
When humans seek luxurious meals and vehicles, they actually consume enormous amounts of energy. According to the second law of thermodynamics, energy dissipates in every process, and disorder (entropy) increases.
In other words, bringing expensive meat to the table requires thermal energy to escape into the environment at each stage: raising animals, transportation, and cooking. When you drive a car, the chemical energy of fuel disperses into the atmosphere as waste heat.
What’s interesting is that human satisfaction doesn’t necessarily correlate with the amount of energy dissipated. For example, compare a 1000-calorie luxury steak with a 500-calorie simple dinner.
The energy dissipation from production to consumption is overwhelmingly larger for the former. But satisfaction can reverse depending on how hungry you are and your mindset.
The same applies to cars. Traveling at 100 kilometers per hour requires about 8 times more energy than 50 kilometers per hour. But your satisfaction upon arrival doesn’t become 8 times greater.
What this proverb suggests is that a lifestyle achieving high satisfaction with less energy dissipation is actually an efficient strategy aligned with the physical laws of the universe.
Life is originally programmed to maximize survival and reproduction with limited energy. The desire for luxury is culturally added later.
It might actually be an inefficient behavior pattern that accelerates entropy increase. From a physics perspective, simple satisfaction is the most energy-efficient way to pursue happiness.
Lessons for Today
Modern society constantly urges us to seek more. A better job, higher income, more comfortable life.
But this proverb makes us stop and ask: What is true wealth?
The meal you ate today, the path you walked today. Were you able to truly savor and enjoy them?
Perhaps we’re so focused on acquiring things that we overlook the value of what we already have.
What this proverb teaches is that happiness isn’t something to acquire. It’s something to discover.
Finding flavor in simple food. Feeling comfort in walking. By cultivating this kind of sensitivity, life becomes much richer.
Starting tomorrow, why not look at your usual commute with different eyes? Why not eat a convenience store rice ball slowly and savor it?
You’ll realize there’s enough joy in everyday life without chasing special things. Your world changes with just a shift in mindset.
That is the path to freedom that this proverb has been conveying for over two thousand years.
Comments