Most people don’t begin to live until they know they’re going to die.
In 1952, Japanese director Akira Kurosawa explored that uncomfortable truth in his film “Ikiru,” which translates “to live.” The film opens with a quiet, devastating fact: Kanji Watanabe is dying. We know it before he does.
Watanabe has spent decades as a bureaucrat — a section chief in a city office — stamping papers, following procedure, preserving order. His wife is dead. He has devoted his life to saving money and providing for his son. He has done what was expected. He has been respectable. Responsible. Safe.
He has also been spiritually absent from his own life.
When he learns he has cancer and has only months to live, he feels hollow. The routines that once filled his days now feel meaningless. He first tries distraction and pleasure. That fails. Then, almost accidentally, he discovers something different: purpose. He throws himself into one small but meaningful public project and finds, at last, a sense of peace.
In the final image we see of him, he sits alone on a swing in the snow, softly singing a song from his youth about how brief life is. It is one of the most haunting scenes ever filmed — not because of tragedy, but because of clarity. He has finally awakened.
Suicide’s what happens when you can’t find reasons to keep living
Third parties aren’t any better than two parties if they anoint rulers
Deep-seated shame makes it hard for me to take my needs seriously
New Year’s resolutions don’t change anything until we change ourselves
Be careful what you hunger for; it’s very often not what you need
Dad who made space for daughter reminds me little moments matter
Goodbye, Sonny
My father’s narcissistic control left me resentful of all authority
Private property ownership is just an illusion in this country today