Great figures who went through “A past I'm ashamed of”
“A past I'm ashamed of” — Things you did that still make you cringe. Here are 4 figures who went through something like it.
- Dazai Osamu（1909–1948）“The Man Who Pretended to Talk in His Sleep” — A boy who wanted his father's fountain pen could only ask for it by pretending to talk in his sleep.
- Fukuzawa Yukichi（1835–1901）“The Man Who Pretended to Be Fine” — As a child, he let his head be shaved without crying, because sake was the reward.
- Miyamoto Musashi（1584–1645）“The Master Who Never Met His Time” — "I did not win because I had mastered the art of fighting." The man who never lost wrote this at sixty.
- Yanagiwara Byakuren（1885–1967）“The Woman Who Lied All the Time” — She was a poet, the wife of a coal-mine king, and people called her the "Queen of Tsukushi." Years later she said: I could not get through my days unless I was lying all the time.
Category: Failure & setbacks / Related worries: Made a big mistake, Failing again and again, My work was rejected
The opening chapters of every story are free to read. Start with whoever catches your eye.
Figures who went through this
- Dazai Osamu — The Man Who Pretended to Talk in His Sleep
A boy who wanted his father's fountain pen could only ask for it by pretending to talk in his sleep. He lied, borrowed money, and even begged a prize committee, "Please give it to me." The embarrassing, hard-to-look-away life of a writer.
- Fukuzawa Yukichi — The Man Who Pretended to Be Fine
As a child, he let his head be shaved without crying, because sake was the reward. He grew up resolved never to let joy or anger show, yet to the man who looked after his household accounts and errands, he was someone who let joy and anger show without hiding them. The proud, bluffing life of the man once on Japan's 10,000-yen bill.
- Miyamoto Musashi — The Master Who Never Met His Time
"I did not win because I had mastered the art of fighting." The man who never lost wrote this at sixty. He never served any lord, was laughed at by a child for being a coward, and failed at a painting in front of his lord. The proud, bluffing life of a swordsman.
- Yanagiwara Byakuren — The Woman Who Lied All the Time
She was a poet, the wife of a coal-mine king, and people called her the "Queen of Tsukushi." Years later she said: I could not get through my days unless I was lying all the time. One autumn day at thirty-five, in front of a friend, she began to cry. "I'm thinking of doing something like falling off a cliff."