Maneki Neko : The Secret to Good Luck and Happiness by Nobuo Suzuki, translated from Spanish by Russell Andrew Calvert (Tuttle)

Nobuo Suzuki is a Japanese writer and philosopher. He studied art and literature in Europe before focusing on zen buddhism, creativity, and personal development. His first book was Wabi Sabi : The Wisdom in Imperfection in which he “considers the beauty of imperfection and how understanding this concept can deeply transform our lives”. 

In Maneki Neko, Suzuki writes about good luck - “Lucky symbols, lucky numbers, lucky charms and luck-creating rituals”. He asks himself, “How is it that a disciplined and hard-working people like the Japanese are so invested in the idea of luck? And what exactly does “good luck” mean? The book was first published in Spanish as Maneki Neko : il Libros Japones de la Buena Fortuna in 2023 by Ediciones Obelisco. 

Anyone new to Japan will be surprised at how seriously the Japanese rely on luck and good fortune. They go to shrines and temples and buy amulets and good luck charms, known as omamori, for a variety of reasons - good health, wealth, traffic safety, a safe birth, and success in education and business. 

In his preface, Suzuki says, “Luck is not a question of chance”. He has always been fascinated by the concept of good luck and bad luck. When he was a child, he often thought, “Why are there some people for whom nothing ever goes right, while others always achieve their objectives.”

Suzuki introduces the Western reader to some of Japan’s most common icons of good luck - the maneki neko, known in English as the “beckoning cat”, the daruma or “lucky Buddha”, the senzaburu or “thousand cranes”, the seven lucky gods of fortune and how the Japanese people use these items to improve their lives. Before delving into the history of the lucky charms, he talks about the four types of good luck. 

Suzuki references James A. Austin’s book Chase, Chance and Creativity : The Lucky Art of Novelty and how Austin defined the four types of good luck - blind luck which is out of our control, luck through perseverance and action which is partly under our control, luck through opportunity hunting and luck through invitation which are also partly under our control. 

Out of the four types of good luck, only blind luck is completely out of our control. Some examples would be being born into a wealthy family, winning the lottery, having good or bad weather on a trip. The other types of luck require a bit of effort on our part. Suzuki says, “In these pages, we’ll meet a concept of luck that is not a question of chance, but is gently simmered with three ingredients essential to Japanese culture - effort, wisdom, and confidence”.

The Japanese have a word for effort. Ganbatte which roughly translates in English to “do your best”. It’s about perseverance. It is “the basic ingredient for progressing and achieving good results”. 

Wisdom is about knowing the key to success - “what makes money flow and what makes you lose it”. Suzuki believes it is the second keystone to good luck. For confidence, Suzuki refers to a popular saying - “If you believe it, you create it”.

Although the book is more of a self-help book about improving your life through good luck,it is a great introduction to the mysteries surrounding the icons and symbols of good luck of Japan. Most Americans probably pray for good luck but how many Americans do you know that carry a rabbit’s foot or a four-leaf clover? ~Ernie Hoyt