In this blog post, I will compare the leisurely lifestyle I discovered during my trip to Brazil with Korea’s intense daily life. I will also examine the reasons why Korean society has lost its sense of mental ease from historical and cultural perspectives, and propose ways to create a society that is more generous and kind toward others.
The Leisure I Discovered in Brazil and the Reality in Korea
Are you familiar with Brazil? When people think of Brazil, soccer, the Samba Festival, and the Amazon usually come to mind. Of course, these images are inextricably linked to Brazil. However, what left the deepest impression on me during my trip to Brazil was not soccer, samba, or the Amazon, but their “leisure.”
Perhaps because Korea is located on the opposite side of the globe and there hasn’t been much exchange between the two countries, it’s rare for Koreans to travel to Brazil. My trip wasn’t a planned one either; it was an impromptu journey sparked by a sudden invitation from a high school classmate. I left without sufficient prior research, and after a long flight of nearly 24 hours, I arrived in Brazil—a foreign country where English was barely understood.
My first cultural shock there came when I asked for directions. Since they spoke a “Brazilian” version of Portuguese that differed from the language spoken in mainland Portugal, we could only stammer our way through a conversation while referring to a travel guidebook. Yet, they were incredibly kind to us—foreigners with yellow skin whose language they didn’t understand. When they couldn’t understand our words, they explained using body language, and if that didn’t work, they took it upon themselves to guide us. They would take two or three hours out of their day to show us around the city with a map in hand, providing detailed information useful to travelers—such as which transportation to use, how to get there more cheaply, and famous local foods. Having grown accustomed to seeing locals rush away the moment a foreigner spoke to them, we couldn’t help but feel a mix of bewilderment, gratitude, and envy.
Their kindness wasn’t reserved solely for foreigners. One day, while taking a taxi to our destination, there was an accident where the taxi we were in grazed the car next to us, smashing the side mirror. We were tense, expecting a fight to break out, but instead, we saw the taxi driver and the driver of the other car smiling and exchanging greetings. After saying hello, the taxi driver continued driving and reassured us not to be alarmed. Were the kind locals we met just that way because they had plenty of time on their hands? Was the taxi driver able to laugh because the damage was minor? I think it was more because they possessed a “sense of ease” that we Koreans often lack. This impression wasn’t just based on a single experience; it was something I felt firsthand throughout my trip as I observed their daily lives.
During the Samba Festival, I happened to meet an older man at a restaurant who spoke English, and we became friends and enjoyed the festival together. However, I noticed that most shops were closed, with the exception of a few places selling alcohol. To our way of thinking, the festival period is a chance to boost sales, so it was puzzling that they weren’t doing business. When I asked him about it, he explained that Brazilians work the rest of the year just to enjoy a few days of Carnival once a year, and some even quit their jobs after working for just one year. To him, it was perfectly natural. They don’t live to make money; they work to enjoy life and live to have fun. That’s why they can smile even if they aren’t as financially comfortable as we are, even if they inconvenience others, and even if they invest a lot of time in complete strangers.
What about us? What do we live for, and what do we work for? Even without comparing ourselves to them point by point, there is a significant difference between their mindset and that of Koreans. We are always in a hurry, get angry easily over small matters, and struggle desperately to outdo others and succeed. This is evident not only in news stories about excessive private education costs and corruption among politicians and businesspeople, but also in everyday life, such as cutting in line and indifference toward others. While this fierce drive has been the driving force behind Korea’s remarkable economic development, it has brought economic prosperity but has, in fact, robbed us of peace of mind.
A life with peace of mind is a happy one. Peace of mind likely means a high level of satisfaction with one’s current circumstances. Such people are more likely to be happy. It’s a well-known story, but surveys on happiness indices comparing developed and developing countries show that while citizens of developed nations feel they are unhappy, those in poorer countries consider themselves happy. Economic prosperity does not necessarily lead to happiness.
South Korea enjoys greater economic prosperity than Brazil, yet it lacks the same level of mental ease. Of course, some individuals derive happiness from the very act of earning money and working. However, even such people need mental ease. Those with mental ease are more likely to be generous and kind to others than those without it. Since society is a place where we live alongside others, an attitude that cares only for oneself and is indifferent to others is never desirable.
There may be various reasons why Korea lacks mental 여유, but I believe the biggest reason is Korea’s history. We have suffered countless invasions from neighboring countries in the past, endured Japanese colonial rule in modern times, and after liberation, the Korean War completely devastated our lives. In these circumstances, we demonstrated our national resilience and achieved tremendous economic development in a short period. However, this process may have been driven by an obsession with escaping a life of suffering and poverty. Today’s adults, who endured difficult childhoods, worked even harder out of memory of those times, and this may have led to the current lack of mental 여유. In contrast, today’s young Koreans, who grew up without deprivation, tend to prefer a life that is relatively leisurely and enjoyable—even if it means living with less—rather than a fiercely competitive life marked by abundant economic 여유.
In South Korea, with its small land area and limited resources, it is difficult to expect a lifestyle similar to that of Brazilians. Competition with others is inevitable if one wishes to lead a comfortable life. But perhaps that is precisely why we need even more “peace of mind.” It is up to today’s young people, who will lead Korea in the future. If we maintain a sense of mental ease and strive for such a life, might Korea someday become a country with a sense of mental ease, just like Brazil? I hope we can become a society that is economically prosperous yet also possesses a sense of mental ease.
Practical Ways to Cultivate a Sense of Mental Ease
We need to think about how to cultivate a sense of peace of mind. For example, engaging in spiritual practices like meditation to reflect on oneself and reduce stress can be helpful. Spending time in nature to slow down the pace of life is also a good method. As I experienced in Brazil, it is important to develop the habit of finding and savoring small joys in daily life. If we all make a little effort to find that sense of peace, society as a whole will become a warmer and happier place.
