117Japanese proverb ことわざ
起きて半畳、寝て一畳
おきてはんじょう、ねていちじょうOkite hanjō, nete ichijō
“Standing, half a tatami; lying, one tatami.”
The meaning
Whatever one's fortune, a human being only ever occupies one mat. Measuring one's true needs frees from the race for surplus.
At the origin
A proverb of sobriety; its sequel adds: even a king eats no more than two and a half bowls of rice.
The characters
In practice
Distinguish today a true need from an urge to pile up.