Message

I met many children in an orphanage in India who had no home to return to. The village was far poorer than Japan. Even if people wanted to work, there were no jobs. Parents could easily die in wars or accidents, even when they were married. And even when they survived, if one parent was left alone, they might abandon their child and disappear. Some children were born with no one to care for them from the very beginning. Some lost their mothers on the roadside shortly after birth.

On the internet, one often sees comments such as, “Why do poor people have children?” or “Isn’t it their own responsibility?” Yet women continue to give birth. This is instinct. Human beings are born to pass life on. People often ask, “Why have children?” But human beings are not born in order to accomplish something. We are born in order to live.

Human society itself is only about ten thousand years old. The idea of universal human rights has been seriously discussed for no more than two hundred years. Even in the United States, one of the world’s most advanced nations, it has been only about sixty years since African Americans were able to attend any university freely. Humanity has existed for hundreds of thousands of years. For almost all of that time, there were no nation-states, no welfare systems, and no formal education. Yet people continued to have children.

Even today, meaningless wars continue to take lives, leaving countless children orphaned. Still, people continue to have children. Human beings do not wait until society is fully prepared before bringing children into the world. For hundreds of thousands of years, women have been born with the capacity to bear children and become mothers. This instinct cannot simply be erased. Just as we breathe without thinking, just as hunger makes us want to eat, women give birth. That is why every man and woman alive today exists. If children were born only after society had become perfectly prepared to receive them, humanity would never have survived.

Another common claim on social media is that “Children from troubled parents become troubled children.” I do not believe this.

The children of Jhamtse Gatsal are living proof. They are growing into kind, thoughtful, and responsible people. Whenever we visit, they run toward us saying, “Good morning, Sir!” and “Good morning, Madam!” before embracing us. At first, this surprised us. Before long, it simply became part of everyday life.

At Jhamtse Gatsal, about 95 percent of the children go on to university. Those who do not still find meaningful work and build their own lives with determination. What is being nurtured there is not merely academic achievement, but remarkable character.

The problem is not the mothers who give birth. Of course, I cannot recommend becoming a single mother. Yet not every child is born into a family that has had time to prepare. Humanity has always continued through precisely such uncertainty. Even families that appear happy today cannot know what unexpected tragedy may come tomorrow. And when war breaks out, families can disappear overnight.

Children cannot choose their parents. Therefore, they bear no responsibility for the circumstances into which they are born.

So who is responsible?

In Japan, responsibility for children has long been placed almost entirely upon their parents. But how many parents are truly capable of carrying that responsibility alone? Even families that appear happy from the outside may be struggling behind closed doors. Ordinary happiness is far more fragile than we imagine.

The reality is simple. It is impossible to expect every parent to bear the entire responsibility for raising every child. Whatever happens, children will continue to be born. Passing life from one generation to the next is one of humanity’s deepest responsibilities.