How to Read “Better a living poor person than a dead rich person”
Shishite no chōja yori ikite no hinjin
Meaning of “Better a living poor person than a dead rich person”
This proverb means that being alive and poor is far better than gaining wealth or becoming rich after death.
In other words, no matter how poor you are, having life itself is more valuable than gaining riches after you die. This saying teaches us about the preciousness of life.
People use this proverb when advising someone who is pushing themselves too hard for money or status.
It warns against the foolishness of pursuing wealth at the cost of health or life. It’s also used to encourage people who are lamenting their poverty, helping them recognize the value of being alive.
Even in modern society, this saying sounds an alarm against situations where people harm their health through overwork or risk their lives in dangerous jobs just to earn money.
Only by being alive can you feel happiness or spend time with loved ones. Poverty might be temporary, but a lost life never returns.
Origin and Etymology
The exact source of this proverb has not been identified. However, it’s believed to have been passed down as folk wisdom in Japan since ancient times.
Looking at the structure of the phrase, it compares two contrasting states: “a dead rich person” and “a living poor person.”
“Shishite” is an old Japanese expression meaning “after dying,” and “chōja” refers to a wealthy person.
Meanwhile, “ikite” literally means being alive, and “hinjin” represents a poor person. This contrasting structure suggests that the proverb’s origins are deeply connected to people’s values regarding life, death, and wealth.
Since ancient times in Japan, there has been faith in the afterlife and the next world.
At the same time, there has also been a strong philosophy emphasizing the preciousness of life in this world. While influenced by Buddhism, common people have always valued the importance of “living in the present.”
This proverb likely emerged as practical life wisdom based on ordinary people’s real experiences.
There’s also a theory that during the Edo period, as realistic and practical values spread among merchant culture, such sayings about the value of life gained support.
No matter how much property you leave behind after death, it means nothing if you’re not alive. This extremely realistic view of life is embedded in these words.
Usage Examples
- Rather than risking all your assets on risky investments, think “Better a living poor person than a dead rich person” and live prudently
- Working yourself to death to leave an inheritance is putting the cart before the horse—doesn’t the saying go “Better a living poor person than a dead rich person”?
Universal Wisdom
Behind this proverb’s transmission through generations lies a history of humans constantly weighing the value of wealth against life.
Everyone has the desire to become wealthy. But at the same time, when that desire runs wild, we risk losing sight of what matters most.
What’s interesting is that this proverb doesn’t “affirm poverty” but rather teaches “the absolute value of life.”
People make various efforts to gain wealth, but in the process, they sometimes harm their health or endanger their lives.
Looking back through history, countless people have lost their lives pursuing wealth—through harsh labor in gold mines, dangerous voyages, and life-threatening business ventures.
The universal truth this proverb reveals is the seemingly obvious yet easily forgotten fact that “being alive is the prerequisite for everything.”
No amount of property means anything if you, the person who would enjoy it, don’t exist. When people are blinded by immediate gains, they lose sight of this fundamental truth.
Our ancestors understood this human nature deeply. That’s why they used extreme contrast to present the contradictory concept of “wealth after death,” making the value of life stand out.
This is wisdom about the essence of human existence that resonates across time.
When AI Hears This
A living human body maintains a temperature of about 36 degrees Celsius, which is higher than the surrounding environment.
In physics, maintaining such an ordered state requires continuous energy input. Just as a refrigerator needs constant electricity or its contents will spoil, life must continuously take in energy from food to maintain the order called “body.”
What’s important here is that being alive is the state of “being able to choose.”
What to eat today, whom to meet, where to go. These choices only become possible when chemical reactions proceed in the body, nerves transmit signals, and muscles move. In other words, freedom of choice is supported by the physical phenomenon of energy metabolism.
On the other hand, no matter how much wealth exists, if you die, the subject that uses it disappears.
The information called “property” remains, but once the life system that recognizes and judges its value stops, physically it’s just an arrangement of matter. Thermodynamically speaking, the cessation of life activity is an irreversible change that can never return to its original state.
This proverb recognizes that the dynamic process of continuing to metabolize, even in poverty, is essentially more valuable than the static state of wealth.
The phenomenon of being alive itself is a miraculous endeavor that creates order against the laws of the universe.
Lessons for Today
In modern society, many people sacrifice their physical and mental health in pursuit of success and wealth.
What this proverb teaches us is the importance of not misjudging our priorities.
If you’re currently suffering health problems from work stress or cutting sleep to work, stop and think for a moment.
Is what you’ll gain at the end of that effort really worth sacrificing your current health or life? Promotion and higher income are wonderful goals, but to enjoy them, you first need a healthy body and mind.
Specifically, it’s important to get regular health checkups, take adequate rest, and have the courage to refuse unreasonable overtime.
Also, when taking risks with investments or side businesses, you should avoid bets that threaten your life’s foundation.
This proverb isn’t saying to meekly accept poverty. Rather, it teaches that as long as you’re alive, you have chances to improve your situation.
If you’re healthy and alive, you can work again. You can learn. You can challenge yourself.
But once you lose your life, it cannot be exchanged for any amount of wealth. Your life itself is your most valuable asset.
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