How to Read “Longing on the left, slander on the right”
Hidari omoi ni migi sososhiri
Meaning of “Longing on the left, slander on the right”
“Longing on the left, slander on the right” is a proverb that expresses a folk belief. When your left ear itches, someone is thinking fondly of you. When your right ear itches, someone is speaking badly about you.
This is simply a superstition. But it gives us a fun way to imagine things when our ears suddenly itch. If your left ear itches, you can feel happy that someone somewhere is remembering you.
If your right ear itches, you might reflect on your actions. Maybe you upset someone without realizing it.
Today we understand this as a superstition with no scientific basis. Still, people who know this saying remember it when their ears itch. It becomes a small topic for conversation.
This proverb humorously expresses human psychology. We all wonder how others think of us when we’re not around.
Origin and Etymology
This proverb comes from an old Japanese folk belief about itchy ears. The exact first written record is unclear. But by the Edo period, this belief was already widespread among common people.
The contrast between “longing” and “slander” is interesting. These opposite words connect to the body’s left-right symmetry. Why is left good and right bad? The reason isn’t clear.
But Japanese culture has long assigned meaning to left and right. For example, the Left Minister ranked higher than the Right Minister. This shows how left was considered superior.
Many cultures worldwide link physical sensations to someone talking about you. Japan made this idea more specific. People distinguished between left and right ears. They also separated good rumors from bad ones.
There’s no scientific basis for this, of course. But people have always tried to read signs from their body’s changes. This folk belief may express a simple human wish. We want to feel connected to others, even those we cannot see.
Usage Examples
- My left ear has been itching for a while. With “Longing on the left, slander on the right,” maybe someone is thinking of me.
- My right ear is starting to itch. They say “Longing on the left, slander on the right,” so maybe someone is badmouthing me.
Universal Wisdom
The proverb “Longing on the left, slander on the right” contains a deep human truth. It speaks to our fundamental loneliness and our desperate wish to overcome it.
We can never know how we exist in other people’s minds. Is someone thinking fondly of us? Or are they criticizing us? We have no way to know the truth.
So people looked for meaning in small bodily changes. They interpreted an itchy ear as a sign of invisible connection. Someone far away was thinking of them. This is unscientific superstition, yes.
But behind it lies a deep human need. We want to believe we live in someone’s memory. We want to exist in someone’s heart.
What’s interesting is that this belief includes both good and bad talk. People want to exist in others’ consciousness, even if it means being criticized. Complete forgetfulness might be the most frightening thing of all.
This proverb expresses a simple truth about human nature. We are fundamentally social beings. We can only feel our own existence through relationships with others.
We cannot live alone. We always carry the wish to connect with someone. This has been true in every era.
When AI Hears This
When humans observe someone critically, the act of observation itself distorts the information. This is exactly the observer effect in information theory.
Imagine you start watching a coworker with the hypothesis “this person can’t do their job.” Your brain activates a filter called confirmation bias. It prioritizes collecting only information that supports your hypothesis.
Even if they make just one mistake out of five attempts, you think “see, I knew it.” That mistake gets strongly recorded in memory. The four successes fade into the background and become invisible.
The moment your brain sets to criticism mode, the incoming information itself changes quality.
What’s more serious is that this observation affects the target too. People who feel critical eyes on them become tense. Their performance actually declines.
Just as shining light on an electron changes its state in quantum mechanics, the act of critical observation changes the target’s actual state.
This proverb reveals the trap of information asymmetry. Information heard favorably through the left ear and information heard critically through the right ear come from the same reality. But they become completely different datasets depending on the observer’s filter settings.
Perhaps objective observation is fundamentally impossible.
Lessons for Today
“Longing on the left, slander on the right” teaches us something important. Worrying too much about our invisible reputation is pointless. What do others think of us? What rumors are they spreading? We can never really know.
Just as we can’t judge by itchy ears, we can’t read true intentions from social media reactions or people’s attitudes. These remain guesses at best.
What matters is not being swayed by others’ evaluations. Instead, take responsibility for your own actions and words. If someone thinks well of you, it’s probably because of your sincere daily behavior.
If someone criticizes you, don’t fear it. Use it as a chance to reflect on yourself.
We can dismiss this proverb as mere superstition. But from another angle, it teaches us about humility in relationships. We are always being watched and evaluated by others.
That’s why being sincere even when no one is watching matters. Being the same person in private and public is ultimately the easiest way to live.
Don’t fear others’ eyes. Have the courage to live according to your own conscience.
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