December 9, 2013
“You have to love your job. You must fall in love with your work.” – Jiro Ono
Jiro Ono is a man almost eclipsing ninety, who has been making sushi for over seventy-five years. Jiro owns a three-michelin star ten-seat sushi counter in Tokyo, serving only – sushi. A meal at his restaurant lasts about fifteen to twenty minutes and consists of twenty sushi pieces, served one at a time. The price of a meal starts at thirty thousand yen (that is close to one thousand Malaysian Ringgit) and features seasonal catches available at the infamous Tsujiki fish market. He is considered to be the world’s best sushi chef.
“Jiro Dreams of Sushi” is a beautiful documentary directed by David Gelb which was released last year. It tells the story of a man’s love for the art of making sushi. This documentary is not about what the perfect sushi looks or tastes like. It is about the spirit of a shokunin – one who dedicates his life to the pursuit of perfecting his craft.
In a world where resources are abundant, there are no constraints to learning and achieving what we set our mind to. The art of mastering and refining a particular skill, however, is now a rare phenomenon. It takes more than just hard work and dedication; it must come from the heart, from the soul.
true passion
Jiro started making sushi since he was 9 and to this day, after almost a century, he has maintained the same routine everyday, apart from having quit smoking.
“I have never once hated this job. I fell in love with my work and gave my life to it.
Even though I am 85 years old, I don’t feel like retiring.”
He further adds that “all I want to do is to make better sushi” as he doesn’t think that he has achieved perfection. Only a true master knows that perfection is unattainable, and yet continues to strive for it.
What makes me happy and keeps me going? Passion. To be passionate in what I do. To love what I do. I believe that when you are truly passionate about something, it doesn’t matter how time consuming, how difficult or challenging, or how repetitive it is, you never second-guess or doubt yourself when you’re doing it. You just keep pushing forth. It is a kind of stubbornness that only you will know deep down that nothing is going to stop you from pursuing it. And it is the commitment that you put into your work. What I learn from this film is that true passion brings about patience and commitment. Perhaps I should work at being less flighty, and maybe one day, I might just be lucky enough to find it, the one thing that I would be willing to commit my entire life to doing. That would be a very beautiful thing to have.
We learn from the documentary that Jiro is a man of few words. He takes his work very seriously. He is very hard on himself and is never satisfied with his work. He sets a high standard for self-discipline and is constantly looking ahead at improving his skill. He is impatient – a perfectionist. The one ingredient that ties all these attributes together is his passion. It is pure and comes from the heart.
honour and respect
An apprentice usually trains for at least ten years under Jiro before they become a sushi chef. When they start, they are required to perfect the technique of squeezing hot hand-towels (to the satisfaction of Jiro, that is) before they are allowed to touch any fish. Listening to the interviews of his apprentices, it is plain from their answers that Jiro is not an easy man to work with, but from their expression, you sense the respect that they have for Jiro. They can only dream of one day attaining half his skill.
I can relate to that for I was very fortunate to have undergone an apprenticeship under one such man, a shokunin himself. Like Jiro, his passion for the work that he does has made him one of the most respected and sought-after lawyers in the country. He has taught me tremendously and I've come to realise that to be the best, one must at least be passionate. He has been an inspiration to me and continues to inspire me.
If you are looking to be inspired, I urge you to watch this gorgeously filmed documentary. Plus, the soundtrack is epic! If not, watch it for the intricacies of sushi making.
