{"id":1378,"date":"2026-02-07T23:25:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T14:25:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/?post_type=interview&#038;p=1378"},"modified":"2026-02-07T23:25:47","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T14:25:47","slug":"kawaguchi_en","status":"publish","type":"interview","link":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/stories\/kawaguchi_en\/","title":{"rendered":"Three Days Liberated From Thinking, Experiencing a New World"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\">A little before participating, Mr. Kawaguchi says he had been spending more time thinking about himself and what lay ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Work wasn&#8217;t going &#8220;incredibly well,&#8221; nor was it in a &#8220;really bad&#8221; situation.<br>Even so, he had lost sight of &#8220;what&#8217;s truly important for me going forward,&#8221; and days continued where he couldn&#8217;t focus on work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\">Against this backdrop, we asked Mr. Kawaguchi about the experiences that unfolded within him during the three days of the nehan retreat he attended.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u3010\u30ea\u30c8\u30ea\u30fc\u30c8\u4f53\u9a13\u8ac7\u3011\u5ddd\u53e3\u3055\u3093\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/w5JhAdH7V9I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\">A Retreat That Started With &#8220;Just Showing Up&#8221;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>At first, I really didn&#8217;t know anything and just showed up, that&#8217;s how it felt.<br \/>\nI didn&#8217;t know what we&#8217;d be doing, and I was anxious but also excited at the same time.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Mr. Kawaguchi reflects this way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>nehan retreats don&#8217;t provide detailed explanations of the content beforehand.<br>The retreat begins without knowing what will happen.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>I had been thinking a lot about who I really am.<br \/>\nMy work wasn&#8217;t going super well, but it wasn&#8217;t a terrible situation either.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>There wasn&#8217;t a major problem.<br>Even so, he had lost sight of &#8220;what&#8217;s truly important for me going forward,&#8221; and it was a period where his thoughts kept spinning endlessly.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>I couldn&#8217;t focus on work at all.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>In this state of mind, the three-day retreat arrived.<br>With encouragement from someone he trusted, he participated with a feeling close to &#8220;just trying it out.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But looking back, it seems he was able to participate at the perfect timing.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>I&#8217;m truly glad I could participate at that timing.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\">All the Confusion I Was Holding Was Released<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>As the retreat progressed, Mr. Kawaguchi engaged in breathwork.<br>Even without understanding its meaning or mechanism, he says he felt his body responding as the work continued.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>Honestly, I didn&#8217;t really understand the breathing either, but I screamed a lot, thrashed around a lot, cried a lot, and laughed a lot.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>During the work, these reactions happened one after another without him realizing it, and before he knew it, what had been accumulating inside Mr. Kawaguchi was overflowing outward.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>It felt like all the unclear, subconscious parts of myself\u2014all the confusion I&#8217;d been carrying\u2014were completely released.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/\u540d\u79f0\u672a\u8a2d\u5b9a-0792-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1228\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\"><strong>Time Away From Digital, Completely Facing Yourself<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the most impactful experiences for Mr. Kawaguchi was spending time completely disconnected from digital devices.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>When they said they&#8217;d hold onto my phone, I honestly thought there&#8217;s no way I could do that.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>In everyday life, smartphones are constantly at hand. He says he felt strong resistance to letting it go.<br>Yet ultimately, Mr. Kawaguchi went through the entire three days without touching his phone once.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>In the end, I never asked for it back even once, and I made it through all three days.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Surrounded by nature, disconnected from digital devices, time continued without talking to people or making eye contact.<br>For modern people living while receiving massive amounts of information from outside, digital detox is extremely effective for deepening inner observation.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>I think that was probably the most I&#8217;ve ever been away from digital devices in my entire life, even since I first got a phone.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Without information coming in from outside, awareness inevitably turns inward.<br>No need to worry about others&#8217; eyes. No need to be conscious of social norms. A space where you can simply savor what you&#8217;re feeling.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>In this nature, away from digital devices, truly facing myself.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>There were also experiences of not talking to people and not making eye contact. I could really face myself.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>I think these became incredibly important three days for the rest of my life.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\"><strong>A Sensation I Couldn&#8217;t Reach Through Thinking Alone<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Mr. Kawaguchi says he&#8217;s originally someone who thinks things through a lot.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>I have this habit of thinking constantly\u2014always considering reasons why something won&#8217;t work, reasons why it will.<br \/>\nWhy am I struggling with this? Why am I suffering so much? I was in a state of trying to solve everything through thinking.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Thinking itself isn&#8217;t necessarily bad, but nehan retreats approach participants&#8217; own truth that thinking alone cannot reach.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>Through this retreat, I feel I was able to touch something beyond thinking\u2014the emotional parts, the essential human parts.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>Emotions, and within those emotions, my subconscious awareness\u2014the meaning of living and working from truly deep places, family, precious people. All of that was there.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Through breathing and bodily responses, sensations that had been buried deep in his consciousness seemed to emerge.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>This life is truly wonderful, incredibly filled with love\u2014both life and the world.<br \/>\nI experienced a new world not trapped by thinking, and honestly, it&#8217;s this easy feeling, this excitement about what&#8217;s to come.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>Time spent touching sensations buried deep in consciousness through breathing and bodily responses.<br>For Mr. Kawaguchi, it may have been an experience that changed how he sees the world itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/\u3081\u3050\u307f\u3055\u3093\u56de\u96c6\u5408\u5199\u771f\u4fee\u6b63-1024x768.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1230\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\"><strong>The Sensation I Want to Cherish in My Life Ahead<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"interviewer_content\">\n<div class=\"left_content\">\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/02\/\u8a18\u4e8b\u8a71\u8005\u753b\u50cf\u5ddd\u53e3\u304f\u3093.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"180\" height=\"180\" \/>\n<p class=\"name\">Mr. Kawaguchi <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"right_content\">\n<p>From now on, not just through thinking, but also considering what kind of person I want to be, in what kind of world, doing what kind of things\u2014I truly feel I want to live the best life with my precious people. These three days made me genuinely feel that way.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p>What he couldn&#8217;t see when trying to move forward through thinking alone.<br>By returning to his senses, something naturally welled up within him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For Mr. Kawaguchi, these three days at the nehan retreat may have become &#8220;time to return to his original senses.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":1379,"template":"","interview_category":[12],"class_list":["post-1378","interview","type-interview","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","interview_category-soul_stirring_stories"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/interview\/1378","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/interview"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/interview"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1379"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"interview_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nehan.life\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/interview_category?post=1378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}