Fortune-telling of the Rooster Year in 1921 - No. 1 - New Year’s dawn fortune-telling & personal hobbies

Aug 26, 2026

New Year’s dawn is framed through Rooster-Year fortune-telling, linking 1921 with the Taisho era’s tenth year and arguing that ten-year epochs help observe societal and natural shifts. The text reviews postwar domestic change, corporate decline, and diplomatic positioning within the League of Nations, while emphasizing Japan-US cooperation and citizens’ awareness as key to national progress. It closes with personal reflections on hobbies and recreation, recommending social clubs and shared, accessible communal spaces.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages62

Reading Time2 h 36 min

AccessFree to download

Fortune-telling of the Rooster Year in 1921

Societal and historical ten-year outlook

Postwar domestic change and diplomacy

Japan-US cooperation and citizens’ responsibilities

Personal Hobbies and Recreation for our Compatriots (1 of 3)

Consul Sugimura

Vice Consul Yoshida

Fortune-telling of the Rooster Year in 1921 New Year’s dawn. My heart is aroused by a rooster’s cry. Worldwide, this is the arrival of 1921. But for us it is the arrival of the year 2581. From the standpoint of our society, after the three years from the end of the war, we are going to have anew spring of the year ten of Taisho in the midst of developing the national character of our home country. Considering ten years as an epoch is not just an idea. If you carefully observe the change of the society and nature, the time of ten years is one indicator of how we adopt change. The events of ten years in human society are the accumulation of successive yearly progress, and a hundred year plan of a nation is connected ten-year links; for the human race always needs to have a future plan to strive for good results. To that end, it is convenient that history is divided into different sections in order to examine changes in form, amendment of contents, rules or objections, etc.. I was entrusted with an examination of the history of the first ten years of the Taishoera. Looking at domestic politics and foreign affairs, indeed the transition in the last ten years makes us feel the change of the times more than the hundred-year history of the feudal age. The main thing of national and social progress is democracy, which respects the rights of the people and is not merely a desk topic, but finally signs of realization have appeared. It is natural that the prosperity of excessive business during wartime stumbled after the war, causing business turmoil and corporate slump. However, it is very early to predict the bankruptcy of the state from these facts. In our country's diplomacy, there were some failures in part. However, from a global point of view, our country is gaining an important position as a new member of the League of Nations. The fact does not give a pessimistic assertion in foreseeing the destiny of our country in the future. There is doubt as to whether Japan can make appropriate progress with the development of the world. But I don’t believe government and civilian research are too lazy to meet the needs. In particular, the stimulus from the outside world that was received in the first decade of Taisho was great, but the stimulus in the following decade will be more powerful than that. It is easy to predict the momentum of improving progress of our country if we look atthe fact that Japan's revitalization of national authority and efforts of the people, with repeated stimulus and repulsion, have been shown to the world. I think that Japan will not withdraw from the framework of the world's most powerful nations or fall into unfortunate circumstances within the next ten years. For example, even if the dissolution of the League of Nations is forced, Japan will never experience isolation unless Japan holds considerable armaments and has failed as a leader of alliance to lead the larger Asia initiative in the future. If we take a close look at the future of our home country, compared to the future of our compatriots living in the US, we feel that there is less concern for the latter than the fear for the former. As the former has many obstacles to its improvement, the latter also has major obstacles. However, there are no good ideas for the former, but for the latter there should be many countermeasures. However, if our government failed to take countermeasures or failed in foreign negotiations, it is certain that we cannot demonstrate the true value of national ability. Japanese and US officials and governments regard the bilateral relations as vital to ensuring world peace and are said to intend to settle the disputes and to coordinate mutual coordination of armaments. I believe that Japan's duties in the New Year, the 10th year of Taisho, lie particularly in cooperative action on Japan-US relations. Among the so-called ABC countries in diplomacy, Japan has traditionally been friendly only to Britain, the Country

FAQs

How does the text explain the importance of a ten-year epoch?

It argues that careful observation of society and nature shows ten years as an indicator of how change is adopted, with yearly progress accumulating into broader national planning.

What does the text say about Japan’s postwar business and political environment?

It notes wartime overexpansion followed by postwar stumbles, leading to business turmoil and corporate slump, while warning against overly pessimistic conclusions about the nation’s future.

What hobby and recreation ideas are suggested for compatriots?

Consul Sugimura mentions administrative work, cigars/cigarettes, and discussions, then suggests starting small communal food-focused ideas like a cafeteria. Vice Consul Yoshida highlights theater and Noh songs and emphasizes establishing social clubs to meet, talk, and build mutual understanding.

Aug 26, 2026

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