How to Read “A poor monk’s repeated fasting”
binsō no kasane toki
Meaning of “A poor monk’s repeated fasting”
“A poor monk’s repeated fasting” is a proverb that describes when someone who usually has few opportunities suddenly receives multiple good things at once, causing confusion rather than pure joy.
This proverb is used when good things happen in succession, expressing the complicated feelings that prevent someone from simply being happy.
For example, someone who is usually too busy to rest suddenly has multiple reasons to take time off at once. Or someone who rarely gets invited receives multiple invitations on the same day.
What’s important is that this doesn’t simply mean “good things overlap.” It carries a slightly ironic nuance of “rare good things overlap and cause confusion.”
Things that should make you happy end up causing trouble because of bad timing. It expresses this very human contradiction of emotions.
Even today, everyone has experienced having multiple plans fall on a rare day off. Or having several good opportunities arrive at once during an already busy time.
As an expression that accurately captures these complex feelings, this proverb remains relevant today.
Origin and Etymology
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Usage Examples
- I was finally invited out, but it’s A poor monk’s repeated fasting—I already have another commitment on the same day
- Work is usually slow, but this week three big projects landed at once. It’s truly A poor monk’s repeated fasting
Universal Wisdom
The proverb “A poor monk’s repeated fasting” offers deep insight into the strange way fortune distributes itself in life.
Why don’t good things spread out evenly? Why do they cluster together when they come?
This isn’t mere coincidence. It’s deeply connected to how human society works. Opportunities have a nature where opening one door makes other doors easier to open.
But what this proverb teaches us is the complexity of human psychology. Multiple blessings don’t always equal pure happiness.
We think, “If only this had come at a better time.” This reflects both human greediness and practical judgment.
What’s interesting is that this proverb focuses on “confusion” as an emotion. Not joy, not sadness, but confusion.
This shows that humans don’t live by simple calculations of gain and loss. We value appropriate timing and circumstances.
Our ancestors understood that even good fortune can trouble people. They knew life isn’t simple addition.
It’s a continuous series of timing and choices. This wisdom teaches us not to blame ourselves for being unable to simply enjoy good fortune.
Such complex emotions are what make us human.
When AI Hears This
When poverty compounds, the phenomenon remarkably resembles the laws of thermodynamics. Hot coffee left alone always cools down.
This happens because thermal energy naturally flows from high states to low states. Poverty works the same way.
Money as energy flows easily from high places to low places. Once it becomes low, it’s hard to reverse.
Here we should note “the irreversibility of entropy increase.” Orderly states become disordered when left alone, but the reverse doesn’t happen naturally.
Rooms get messy but never clean themselves. In poverty, when “random events” like unexpected expenses or illness occur, there’s no buffer to absorb them.
The state worsens further. Small shocks that wealthy people can absorb trigger cascading collapse for those in poverty.
Even more interesting is that reducing entropy—escaping poverty—requires “external energy input.” Just as refrigerators use electricity to cool their interiors, breaking the cycle of poverty physically requires intentional intervention from outside.
Education and support are necessary. The compounding of poverty isn’t coincidence. It’s evidence that universal laws operate in society too.
Lessons for Today
This proverb teaches modern people an important perspective on how to face good fortune.
We often wish for “more good things to happen.” But when good things actually overlap, we realize we can’t fully utilize them.
This proverb teaches the importance of being prepared to receive good fortune.
In modern society, information and opportunities increasingly rush at us all at once. Multiple invitations on social media, work requests arriving simultaneously, overlapping learning opportunities.
At such times, we need wisdom. Not exhausting ourselves trying to accept everything, but understanding our capacity and setting priorities.
What matters is not regretting unchosen options, but cherishing the one you chose. Focusing on the opportunity right in front of you brings richer experiences than greedily grabbing at every fortune.
This proverb acknowledges that you have the right to the luxurious problem of “too many good things at once.”
Don’t be ashamed of that confusion. Have the courage to make choices that suit you.
That’s the key to transforming good fortune into true happiness.
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