Raku wa ku no tane, ku wa raku no tane
Pleasure is the seed of suffering, suffering is the seed of pleasure
Raku wa ku no tane, ku wa raku no tane literally means, “pleasure is the seed of suffering, suffering is the seed of pleasure.” In other words, pleasure comes from pain and pain comes from pleasure. If you let yourself get too comfortable, you let down your guard and something bad can happen. When times are tough, we tend to forget that things can get better. This saying, in its entirety, is usually used to emphasize the latter. However, you can just use the first part as a warning. When things are going well for someone, you can caution them not to let their guard down or neglect things they should be doing by saying, “Raku wa ku no tane desu ne.” Otherwise, they could be caught unprepared by unforeseen circumstances or face the consequences of not doing the things they should be doing to maintain the good life. On the other hand, you could encourage someone in hard times by just saying, “ku wa raku no tane desu ne.” In other words, things might be hard now but if you persevere and don't give up hope, things will only get better.
So, the next time to find yourself or someone else getting too used to their situation remember, “Raku wa ku no tane, ku wa raku no tane.”
Usage note: Most Japanese sayings can be turned into complete sentences just by adding “desu” to the end. To add emphasis, add “desu yo”. To ask for agreements (think, “yeah,” “right,” “you know”), add “desu ne”.
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