From My Upcoming Book – Japan and the Discipline of Survival

Japan’s history is not a story of uninterrupted power, but of disciplined survival. Isolated for centuries, shaken by earthquakes, reshaped by fire, and devastated by war, Japan rebuilt itself not once, but many times.

The Meiji Restoration was not merely a political reform; it was a civilizational decision. A nation that had lived in controlled isolation chose, within a few decades, to master Western technology without abandoning its own cultural core.

After the destruction of 1945, Japan faced another turning point. Instead of clinging to resentment, it invested in education, precision, and collective responsibility. The result was not only economic growth but the construction of a modern identity built upon discipline and social harmony.

To understand Japan is to understand a society that transformed vulnerability into structure, and structure into strength.

— Mesut Dereli