Out of curiosity, Tang Ning decided to see what was going on with this "real manifest place", so he contacted his former assistant Kojima through Eiji Tsuburaya and went to a "real manifest place" in Tama-gu. The village is small, with just over 100 people and covers an area of 15,000 square meters. But this village is their "theoretical department", and it is one of the more important of the 39 settlements in Japan.

On the day I went, I caught up with dozens of Yamagishikai members from all over Japan who came here for a rally. In the square in the middle of the village, a group of teenage children are nervously watching their food stalls, and the smell of barbecued meat, braised eggs, fried noodles, cakes and other foods is wafting around. Younger children act as guides, and no matter where they come from, they will be pulled by them to eat a variety of meals. There was no tobacco or alcohol at the dinner table, everyone sat together, drank herbal tea, ate and chatted.

The founder of the "Yamagishi Kai" was named Yamagishi Kodaizo, who was born in 1902 and died in 1961, and was originally an expert chicken farmer in Shiga Prefecture. In 1953, together with more than 20 "comrades", he sold all his family property, raised funds to buy land, and began to operate the first "real land". Since then, it has gradually developed, and today it has formed a unique life model based on agriculture and agricultural product processing, with integrated life and operation. (This is true, in 2003 there was also a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Yamagishi Association!) ）?

Shan'an Village looks a bit like Tao Yuanming's Peach Blossom Garden, however, they are not "ignorant of the Han Dynasty, regardless of the Wei and Jin Dynasties", but are closely connected with the outside world. They abide by the laws of Japan and carry out large-scale financial and trade activities in strict accordance with the basic norms of the market economy, and their green food products "Yamagishi" eggs, pork, and milk are very popular in Japan.

Led by Mr. Kojima, Downing visited the village. Find out about the living conditions of the residents here. The people of the mountain shore village were dressed relatively plainly, similar to ordinary farmers. They eat two meals a day, both in the public cafeteria, and they eat "big pot rice". The meal eaten at 10 o'clock in the morning is called the "second meal"; In the afternoon, the meal was eaten at 4:30 o'clock, which was called "first food". Regardless of the size of the meal, until you are full. Moreover, the villagers consciously do not approach tobacco and alcohol. The food is all homegrown in the village. It is full of natural green food, nutritious enough, but not abundant, like the "assembly feast" we saw that day is not very common.??

I looked at the recipe of the previous day in the cafeteria: pickles, eggs and rice in the morning, vegetable noodle soup and fried tofu in the afternoon, it was indeed just "coarse tea and light rice". There is a small stall in the village where the villagers can receive daily groceries, fruits, and snacks at will, and no one manages them, but a notice is set up on the stall: everything that comes is free. People live in a much like university dormitories, with rooms basically the same size. Outside, there is a small Japanese-style garden. An old man was leisurely tending to the pine branches, and when he saw us, he smiled and greeted us, and the ease and happiness on his face were something I couldn't see in busy Tokyo.

Residents of the "real land" generally do not leave the area, and if they want to travel, they can borrow a car in the village. The cost of eating and lodging outside is paid by the "Yamagishi Association". I saw that there were no entertainment facilities here, and the "izakaya" (small hotel) and "climbing vault" (pachinko) that can be found in the deep mountain towns of Japan were completely nowhere to be seen here. There is a reading room next to the conference room, where you can see the publications of the "Yamagishikai" and some newspapers, except for watching TV. Maybe that's their only pastime, right?

The "Drill Society" (meaning Workshop) is the core of the operation of the whole village, and so many people live together. There is no need for a leader, and there are no laws and regulations, relying on "drilling", every morning before work, the villagers who work together first have a "drilling" meeting to discuss today's work progress and process. After the afternoon work, there is another "drill session" to review the problems encountered at work, whether technical or emotional, of course. If you encounter difficulties in your work, you can "drill" at any time;

In addition, there are various "drill meetings" every night, as long as you are interested in discussing the topic, you can participate, and if you have any needs or problems in life, you can also propose to the village office, and everyone will jointly "study and drill" to decide. In fact, the form of the "drill meeting" is very free, three or five people get together, you can carry out "drilling", and even everyone drinks coffee and snacks together, it does not need to be as serious as a meeting, the most important thing is that everyone stands in the "zero position" to think, listen to others attentively, and solve problems together.

At first, Downing had always wondered, what if someone was lazy? Or will someone be punished for making a mistake? But according to his observations, every villager is very happy with his work, because it is not forced to do it, but what you want to do, and when you are doing what you like, you don't want to be lazy at all; As for making mistakes, in fact, things are right or wrong, it is the subjective judgment of people, what you think is right, may be wrong for others, so there is no question of making mistakes, but to examine what you really think, when your heart is harmonious, the whole world is harmonious.

Living such a poor life, outsiders may think that this is because of the economic distress of the "Mountain Shore Society", but the reality is the opposite. It is said that in the mid-80s of the last century, Toyozato alone in Mie Prefecture, had an annual income of 4 billion yen, and they also held "happiness stocks" purchased by the World Bank on the condition that they would provide high-quality agricultural and sideline products on a regular basis.

In addition to supporting the villagers and livestock, the agricultural products produced by the Happiness Society are also their most important source of income, and they have a good reputation in Japan, especially eggs and milk, but their agricultural products are usually only sold to specific targets. In each real place, there will also be regular sales vehicles carrying agricultural products to the nearby community to sell, and nearby residents will also go directly to the farm to buy fresh vegetables and fruits; In addition, the agricultural products produced in each of the regions are exchanged with each other, so you can eat seasonal fruits and vegetables and souvenirs from all over Japan, so the agricultural production of the entire Happiness Society is supported by the "foreign villagers" of the city, neighboring communities, and metropolitan areas.

Kojima told Downing that from the day people join the Yamagishi Society, their property will be confiscated, whether it is a large sum of money or a debt, everyone will spend the money, everyone will pay the debt, and "come and go freely". Most of the people who joined the "Mountain Shore Society" were peasants and ordinary wage earners. But there are also many high-level entrepreneurs who have "seen through the red dust" and come to join with their family property.

A while ago, a Japanese television station reported that "real and obvious" also triggered a lawsuit. Because according to Japanese law, donated assets are subject to donation tax, and the "Yamagishi Society" does not consider it a donation, in the end, the court ruled that the "Yamagishi Society" evaded taxes, and paid 7 billion yen with a fine, so you can imagine how financially it is. (To be continued.) )