How to Read “A morning mushroom does not know the dark and light of the moon”
Chōkin wa kaisaku wo shirazu
Meaning of “A morning mushroom does not know the dark and light of the moon”
This proverb means that those with short lifespans cannot understand the concept of long periods of time.
A mushroom that lives only one day cannot know the monthly cycle of the moon’s phases. Similarly, people with limited experience or narrow perspectives find it hard to think about things on a longer time scale.
People use this proverb when pointing out that inexperienced people lack long-term perspective. It also applies when someone is trapped in short-term thinking.
The saying teaches the importance of being humble about matters beyond our understanding. Today, we understand it as a reminder that people have different ranges of understanding and time scales.
It suggests we need to respect others’ positions and experiences.
Origin and Etymology
This proverb likely comes from the ancient Chinese text “Zhuangzi,” specifically from the chapter “Free and Easy Wandering.”
The original text reads “朝菌不知晦朔.” It describes how mushrooms that sprout in the morning and wither by evening cannot know the phases of the moon.
“Chōkin” refers to fungi born in the morning that die within a day—mushrooms with extremely short lifespans. “Kaisaku” represents the cycle of the moon’s phases.
“Kai” means the last day of the lunar month, and “saku” means the new moon. Together they indicate a time unit of about one month.
Through this expression, Zhuangzi tried to discuss the relativity of existence. For a creature that lives only one day, one month is an unimaginably long time.
Similarly, time that seems eternal from a human lifespan might be just a moment from a larger perspective.
This profound philosophy traveled to Japan and became established as a proverb. It expresses a simple yet universal truth: those who live short lives cannot grasp long time concepts.
This wisdom has been passed down through generations.
Usage Examples
- Young employees can’t understand the importance of long-term planning—a morning mushroom does not know the dark and light of the moon, so it’s somewhat inevitable
- Explaining retirement worries to children is like a morning mushroom does not know the dark and light of the moon, so we should teach them what they can do now
Universal Wisdom
A morning mushroom does not know the dark and light of the moon offers deep insight into the relationship between experience and understanding.
We can truly understand things only within the range of time we have experienced. This represents a fundamental limit of human perception.
Explaining the moon’s phases to a mushroom that lives only one day would be just a string of meaningless words. Similarly, we find it hard to truly feel events on time scales beyond our experience, even if we understand them intellectually.
Young people cannot imagine old age. Healthy people cannot fully understand the suffering of illness. This principle explains why.
However, this proverb has been passed down not merely to point out limitations. Rather, it teaches the importance of knowing the limits of our understanding.
Admitting that there are things we don’t know or cannot understand is the beginning of humility.
This proverb also encourages compassion for others. Instead of blaming inexperienced people, we should understand that each person has their own time scale.
Such tolerance enables dialogue across generations. Recognizing that people live in different time frames is the first step toward true empathy.
When AI Hears This
For a mushroom that sprouts in the morning and withers by evening, the 30-day cycle of moon phases literally does not exist.
This is not simply about lacking knowledge. It’s a structural problem of perception explained by biologist Jakob von Uexküll’s theory of Umwelt.
Umwelt refers to the unique perceptual world each organism possesses. For example, a tick has only temperature, butyric acid smell, and touch.
It lives in a world composed of just these three types of information. No colors, no sounds exist for it.
Similarly, for a morning mushroom with a lifespan of about 12 hours, the time units its nervous system and physiological systems can detect probably max out at minutes to hours.
Moon phases physically occur, but they don’t register in the mushroom’s sensory organs and information processing system. They’re simply not included in the mushroom’s Umwelt from the start.
Analyzing this from an AI perspective, it resembles a sampling frequency problem. A device that measures only 10 times per second cannot capture phenomena vibrating 100 times per second.
At the morning mushroom’s biological sampling frequency, the long-period signal of the moon gets completely filtered out.
The essence of this proverb is not blaming ignorance. It shows that the range of perceivable worlds fundamentally differs between species.
Humans too might not “know” phenomena outside their Umwelt—they simply cannot perceive them in the first place.
Lessons for Today
This proverb teaches modern people the importance of recognizing the limits of our own perspective.
We tend to judge things based on what we can understand. However, admitting that worlds exist beyond our experience and position is the first step toward growth.
Modern society especially brings together people of different generations, cultures, and experiences. Young people have their own time scale, and elderly people have theirs.
Rather than denying each perspective, we need dialogue that assumes differences exist.
This proverb also teaches us to let go of impatience. It’s natural that some things are beyond our current understanding.
By taking time and accumulating experience, new landscapes come into view. Instead of rushing to understand everything, living this moment carefully will eventually lead to understanding on longer time scales.
Know your limits, respect others’ perspectives, and walk without rushing. Such humble and tolerant attitudes are the warm wisdom this proverb offers to those of us living today.
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