Arigatai

(有り難い)

The Japanese expression ありがとうございます (arigatō gozaimasu) carries a meaning far deeper than a simple “thank you.” It originates from the adjective 有り難い (arigatai), formed from ari (“to exist”) and gatai (“difficult”), literally meaning “difficult to exist” or “rare to come by.” Gratitude, then, is born from recognizing that something precious has appeared that was never guaranteed. The phrase took shape during Japan’s Heian period (794–1185), when Buddhist thought profoundly influenced language and culture, describing human life, the opportunity to encounter the Dharma, and meaningful meetings as arigatai because they were exceedingly rare blessings. The addition of gozaimasu, the honorific form of the classical verb gozaru (“to exist”), adds a layer of reverence, expressing not only thanks but recognition that what has come into being is worthy of deep appreciation. In this sense, arigatō gozaimasu becomes more than gratitude. It is an acknowledgment that every kindness, every encounter, and every present moment is a rare gift whose existence should never be taken for granted.

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Current scientific understanding suggests that our galaxy almost certainly contains billions of potentially habitable planets, making the existence of a world like Earth remarkably likely. Yet the emergence of one particular human experience is another matter entirely. Even using conservative estimates, the probability of the exact sperm and egg that became “you” meeting is roughly 1 in 1.7 quadrillion, before accounting for genetic recombination, the countless improbable events across generations, and the unbroken chain of ancestors stretching back billions of years. When those realities are considered, the odds become so unimaginably small that they effectively defy comprehension. We often think of gratitude as appreciation for what has happened, but perhaps its deepest expression is the realization that our very existence is itself an event so extraordinarily improbable that every moment, every meeting, and every breath can be seen as an arigatai, a rare blessing that did not have to exist.

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“You,” as this experience, are inextricably intertwined and woven by This Beloved Universe. To that I say: ありがとうございます (arigatō gozaimasu).

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That I met “you”

Every time I do

Is not just distinct

But impossibly rare.

May it always be

This, beautifully

Every here and now.

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Once upon a dream

I heard a voice say to me

A blessing it may not seem

But a blessing it is indeed.

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Here in the midst of paradise

I hear your voice

Speak no language

Known to me,

But still I hear

You say to me.

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Now and here

Allways “we”

The All that is all

Seen and unseen

Nameless as is

All that is This

Is…

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In the stillness

Silently

The synchronized

Heart beat

Is the cadence and rhythm

That moves your feet

And you “see” you

When you look at “me.”

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No need to calculate

Probability

This Arigatai

Every time we meet.

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Everything is This

And All to “me”

This experience that I

Claim to be

May everything

Ever be

Gratitude for you and me.

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ありがとうございます