For the 50th Anniversary Commemoration
On the occasion of our 50th anniversary, we published a commemorative book titled Hitokotonushi Oboegaki. As part of this project, poet Shuntaro Tanikawa contributed a poem expressing our journey and hopes for the future.
This poem quietly yet powerfully expresses the history we have built over the years, the hands of those involved in manufacturing and construction, and the determination that connects us to the future ahead. It continues to be treasured as a reminder of our origins, which can easily be forgotten in daily work, and as an opportunity to reflect once again on the vision we strive toward.
Here, we would like to present the poem “Seeds for the Future,” contributed for our 50th anniversary milestone.
“Seeds for the Future”
Shuntaro Tanikawa
Hands Reaching Toward the Sky, Longing for Greater Heights
Legs Firmly Grounded on the Earth to Support Those Hands
While Living Sustained by the Blessings of Nature
Our Will to Surpass Nature
Gave Birth to Tools and Created Machines
The Long Journey from Primitive Humans to Homo Sapiens
We Stand at Its Trembling Frontier
Hands That Grasp, Hands That Carry, Hands That Support
Hands That Dig, Hands That Lift, Hands That Pull
Warm and Fragile Human Hands
Replaced by Cold and Rigid Hands of Metal
Yet the New Hands Are Guided by the Ancient Hands Passed Down Through Time
Breaking Yesterday, Building Today, Assembling Tomorrow
The Sweat and Tears of Every Person Working Through Those Days
There Are Stories That Could Never Be Told
There Are Songs That Could Only Be Repeated Within the Heart
That History, Holding Such Wordlessness and Silence, Is the Seed for the Future
Here and Now on Earth, Opened Toward the Infinite Universe
In Order to Live Within That Richness Filled with Contradictions
We Learn Together and Continue Questioning Without Ceasing
The Technology and Methods That Renew Reality Through Dreams