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The One-Straw Revolution

4.38 of 5 stars 4.38 · rating details · 1,117 ratings · 151 reviews

Fukuoka demonstrates how the way we look at farming influences the way we look at health, the school, nature, nutrition, spiritual health and life itself. He joins the healing of the land to the process of purifying the human spirit and proposes a way of life and a way of farming in which such healing can take place.

Paperback, 14th Impression, 181 pages

Published 2006 by Other India Press (first published 1975)

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Community Reviews

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Feb 15, 2008 John added it · review of another edition

I legally downloaded the book in PDF form from http://www.soilandhealth.org/

This book made me realize that something else is possible.

The author writes that he is a farmer in Japan who gets rice yields that meet or eclipse the most highly productive regions in Japan, yet he:
- uses no artificial fertilizer
- does not plow
- does not sow seed but rather tosses it on the ground and forgets it
- does not weed
- does no insect control
- works far fewer hours than those who use the above

His descriptions of...more

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Apr 15, 2013 Bobby Albrecht rated it 3 of 5 stars

I appreciate the mission of the book, bringing people back to a place of harmony where food is not just something we consume to survive, but something that is entirely bound up in our enjoyment of life. I also appreciate his criticism of the "discriminating mind" of science, unable to allow the individual to simply experience and requiring categorization for all things.

However, his arguments fall flat left and right throughout this easy read. At one moment he will be professing the subjectivity...more

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Feb 06, 2013 Siddhartha rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Slow food enthusiasts, Organic farmers and buyers, Eco conscious consumers

Shelves: serious-non-fiction

Every once in a while, we chance upon a book that we finish it in one sitting, and wonder why we did not find it earlier. Every once in a while, we chance upon a book that makes us think "Exactly how does any one else not think like this?". A book that introduces a new paradigm.. a new dimension to our world view. The new paradigm may or may not be one with which we are comfortable.

This outstanding book by Masanobu Fukuoka is one such. And the new paradigm it introduced to me is both comfortable...more

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Sep 20, 2012 Abbe added it · review of another edition

Shelves: in-library

Review

"_The One-Straw Revolution_ is one of the founding documents of the alternative food movement, and indispensable to anyone hoping to understand the future of food and agriculture."—Michael Pollan

"Only the ignorant could write off Fukuoka, who died two years ago at the age of 95, as a deluded or nostalgic dreamer...Fukuoka developed ideas that went against the conventional grain....Long before the American Michael Pollan, he was making the connections between intensive agriculture, unheal

...more

Review

"_The One-Straw Revolution_ is one of the founding documents of the alternative food movement, and indispensable to anyone hoping to understand the future of food and agriculture."—Michael Pollan

"Fukuoka's do-nothing approach to farming is not only revolutionary in terms of growing food, but it is also applicable to other aspects of living, (creativity, child-rearing, activism, career, etc.) His holistic message is needed now more than ever as we search for new ways of approaching the environment, our community and life. It is time for us all to join his 'non-movement.'"—Keri Smith author of How to be an Explorer of the World

“Japan’s most celebrated alternative farmer...Fukuoka’s vision offers a beacon, a goal, an ideal to strive for.” —Tom Philpott, Grist

“_The One-Straw Revolution_ shows the critical role of locally based agroecological knowledge in developing sustainable farming systems.” —_Sustainable Architecture_

“With no ploughing, weeding, fertilizers, external compost, pruning or chemicals, his minimalist approach reduces labour time to a fifth of more conventional practices. Yet his success in yields is comparable to more resource-intensive methods…The method is now being widely adopted to vegetate arid areas. His books, such as The One-Straw Revolution, have been inspirational to cultivators the world over.” —_New Internationalist_

Product Description

Call it “Zen and the Art of Farming” or a “Little Green Book,” Masanobu Fukuoka’s manifesto about farming, eating, and the limits of human knowledge presents a radical challenge to the global systems we rely on for our food. At the same time, it is a spiritual memoir of a man whose innovative system of cultivating the earth reflects a deep faith in the wholeness and balance of the natural world. As Wendell Berry writes in his preface, the book “is valuable to us because it is at once practical and philosophical. It is an inspiring, necessary book about agriculture because it is not just about agriculture.”

Trained as a scientist, Fukuoka rejected both modern agribusiness and centuries of agricultural practice, deciding instead that the best forms of cultivation mirror nature’s own laws. Over the next three decades he perfected his so-called “do-nothing” technique: commonsense, sustainable practices that all but eliminate the use of pesticides, fertilizer, tillage, and perhaps most significantly, wasteful effort.

Whether you’re a guerrilla gardener or a kitchen gardener, dedicated to slow food or simply looking to live a healthier life, you will find something here—you may even be moved to start a revolution of your own.

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Aug 15, 2012 jeremy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: translation, nature

the one-straw revolution is a pragmatic, philosophical exposition on "do-nothing" farming, an agricultural method that eschews nearly all modern technological and chemical enhancements in favor of a more holistic and balanced approach. masanobu fukuoka was a japanese farmer and often-ridiculed practitioner of this "do-nothing" style of farming (which, despite its name, actually requires considerable hard work- just far less than most modern agricultural processes). fukuoka's method included four...more

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Jun 26, 2009 Rebecca rated it 5 of 5 stars

So if you crossed Yoda with Joel Salatin and made him a laboratory scientist with a Japanese rice-grain-vegetables-citrus farm, you'd get a rough and awkward parody of Fukuoka Sensei.

Really, to capture this guy's wit and humility and flashing intelligence, you really need to read the book. Possibly over and over. Outside would be best. In Japan-- perfect.

So, if I may debase his great ideas with my little summary, the idea of the book is that People Mess Up Nature. Even good farming practices, li...more So if you crossed Yoda with Joel Salatin and made him a laboratory scientist with a Japanese rice-grain-vegetables-citrus farm, you'd get a rough and awkward parody of Fukuoka Sensei.

Really, to capture this guy's wit and humility and flashing intelligence, you really need to read the book. Possibly over and over. Outside would be best. In Japan-- perfect.

So, if I may debase his great ideas with my little summary, the idea of the book is that People Mess Up Nature. Even good farming practices, like pruning, mulching, weeding, flooding, and composting have only become necessary because we've messed up the way nature thrives on its own.

Fukuoka Sensei experimented for years on his small farm, slowly pruning out all the practices of farming that have been thought necessary for millenia. The result is a naturally harmonious and productive way of farming that he calls, with the humility of a true Zen master, Do-Nothing Farming.

Acolytes arrive at his farm expecting that Do-Nothing means really not doing anything. It actually means lots of work: much more difficult than following formulas or procedures or practices. It requires accurate awareness of the natural world, a precise understand of the specific natural processes at work in the spot you are trying to cultivate, and also a good deal of inner work-- in the farmer.

And from the inner world of the farmer, a new view on the world's problems. Maybe the world doesn't need to produce MORE meat, MORE food, MORE grain, MORE energy. Maybe we need to realize that we can thrive on less. That we ignore the bounty that nature is willing to shower upon us every season, and choose to eat with our heads (11-12 servings of carbohydrates, 6 of proteins, 5 of fruit, check!) rather than with our hearts and bodies. Seasonal, local, handmade, in communities, with gratitude.

So I thought it was a far-sighted, insightful, wise, funny, extraordinarily persuasive little book. I'd like to carefully incorporate his ideas about do-nothing farming(maybe skipping the maggots-for-dinner proposal)into my tiny garden, or at least into my awareness of the natural world and my place in it.

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Jan 08, 2013 Denis Farley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So far, a birthday gift, heard a lot about it and looking forward.

Up to page 110 now, a little past half way at 180 pages throughout. Having become interested in Permaculture (I suppose that is a proper name now), principles after hearing Bill Mollison speak around '94, and noticing Mr. Fukuoka's name among the literature and references within the discipline over the years, it is an unqualified pleasure to take in this translation from the Japanese, his life, ideas and practices. There is much...more So far, a birthday gift, heard a lot about it and looking forward.

Up to page 110 now, a little past half way at 180 pages throughout. Having become interested in Permaculture (I suppose that is a proper name now), principles after hearing Bill Mollison speak around '94, and noticing Mr. Fukuoka's name among the literature and references within the discipline over the years, it is an unqualified pleasure to take in this translation from the Japanese, his life, ideas and practices. There is much resonance and harmony for me among these pages, and I suppose some satisfaction. In a sense, it is like there has been some text put to a void, an emptiness or if I were a character like Diogenes of Sinope, the light I had been carrying in search of an honest man, had finally found a face on which to shine. I suppose the same could be said of Bill Mollison, ten or fifteen years Mr. Fukuoka's junior.

There is so much I could say, even of the form and framework of the book itself, comprised of short two to four page chapters, the plain straight forward language, the bits lost in translation, briefly explained in apology, almost as if they were a kind of haiku prose. The technical information, abundant and expanded in Mollison's Designer's Manual, is here restrained, teasing the reader with a desire to know and experience more. Chapters posed as questions, as in page ninety-nine's "What is Human Food?" are like the morning sun waking you from a long sleep, perhaps a mocking bird breaking your trance.

I'm reminded of John Donne's lines in the poem, For Whom The Bell Tolls,
"No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less."

Under a photo of Fukuoka standing in his rice field, on the back dust jacket are these words written by Wendell Berry, "Like many in the West, and sooner than most of us, Masanobu Fukuoka has understood that we cannot isolate one aspect of life from another. When we change the way we grow our food, we change our food, we change society, we change our values . . .The One-Straw Revolution is an inspiring, necessary book about agriculture because it is not just about agriculture."

And I still have about seventy pages to go.

Other highlights are the diagram on page 129, Nature's Food Mandala Diagram One & two on page 131.
The final collection of chapters collected under section Roman Numeral V, deal with a kind of dialogue, Fukuoka's apology more or less, couched in a Zen like non-logic. Chapter titles such as "Foolishness Comes Out Looking Smart," "Who is the Fool," "A Village Without War & Peace," and the book title, "One-Straw Revolution," illustrate his thinking, a one-man revolution . . . In the living of it.
With this book, we have the legendary Japanese god of healing, Okuninushi-no-mikoto, who travels around tossing good fortune from a large sack which he carries over his shoulder.(less)

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Glee Looking at this review with my particular perspective, I'm just trying to imagine/contrast/compare with the book reports you probably turned in to Mis...more
Jan 09, 2013 09:31am

Denis Farley I suppose the turning point was Sing Sing prison, maybe spring of 1964. I just had a great day at the invitational Mets tryout, (we played the inmate...more
Jan 10, 2013 12:10am

Denis Farley Oh, one of Ms Forrestal's assignments was Steinbeck's, The Pearl. It stuck with me enough to write a song with the same name, but at the time I was tr...more
Jan 10, 2013 12:51am

Aug 04, 2008 Mel rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you're into sustainable agriculture this is a must read. It's interesting to read something from the 70's that applies even today. There's also a bit of history into how the Japanese food industry began to change with an influx of American agriculture ideas after WWI.

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Dec 30, 2008 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars

We make things too complicated. We're not as smart as we think we are. The earth pays for our arrogance. Eat well. Simple, whole foods. Don't work too much or you won't have time to write a haiku.

Starting from the thesis that life has no meaning, Mr. Fukuoka explains how this realization led him to his "do-nothing" farming method. His views of the Westernization of agriculture in Post WWII Japan lead to musings on how the Japanese have become removed not only from their food source, but also the...more

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Nov 13, 2009 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Foodies, Gardeners, and folks interested in Sustainability

Recommended to Jennifer by: Ben

Shelves: garden-and-plants, green-and-sustainable

"Right Food, Right Action, Right Awareness"

"When a decision is made to cope with the symptoms of a problem, it is generally assumed that the corrective measures will solve the problem itself. They seldom do. Engineers cannot seem to get this through their heads. These countermeasures are all based on too narrow a definition of what is wrong. Human measures and countermeasures proceed from limited scientific truth and judgment. A true solution can never come about in this way."

It's hard to belie...more

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Sep 16, 2012 Kerry rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Very interesting read. I passed this over in the late 70s because books like Schumacher's "Small is Beautiful were more my style. I found the info about his planting processes fascinating and they made a lot of sense. As someone who grew up in Tasmania during the permaculture years, I am sure Bill Mollison would approve of this style of farming. I found the spiritual aspects of his philosophy less useful and interesting. We are poisoning ourselves and depleting our arable land so books like this...more

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Jun 24, 2009 planetkimi rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: gardening, non-fiction, philosophy

The One-Straw Revolution creates plenty of food for thought!

The book seems to me to be way ahead of its time. It was originally written in the late 1970s, but it sounds like it could have been written today. Organic farming is fairly mainstream now, but it wasn't at the time Fukuoka wrote this book. It's amazing to think about the strength of mind it must have taken for Fukuoka to rethink farming from the ground up.

The ideas he shares about the role of science and the limits of human knowledge...more

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Jul 30, 2012 Erich rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. Not only because I learned of it directly from the translator a short time after the English version became available. I remember it as though it were yesteryear! It was after 1:00AM on a cold and wet summer night in Berkeley when I was hitchhiking home after work. This cat pulls over and gives me a lift almost all the way home! I asked what he did and he told me about this book he translated, so I went and got it. To bad more American Farmers and agriculture pols did not read...more

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Mar 11, 2012 Adam Shand rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: permaculture, spirit

As I understand it Fukuoka, and this book, was one of the inspirations for Bill Mollison's development of the concepts of permaculture. For me it represents what I love most about the ideas of permaculture and what I hope to one day emulate. The idea that through deep observation you can slowly reduce and simplify the process of agriculture until all of the work you do is operating in tandem with nature. Thus creating better produce with only necessary work.

It's also a beautiful story of one man...more

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Apr 29, 2013 Nathan Titus rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: everything-and-nothing, philosophy

Great farming techniques, but I subtract one star for the philosophy that "man knows nothing and never can." The fact that this book (or any book) has been written proves that that type of mindset is simply wrong. It was not the impotence of the mind that allowed the author to come up with all the great farming methods presented in this book, methods that I plan to use, methods that would make the world better if they were used more often. I also disagree with the statement that nothing is ever...more

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Mar 02, 2013 Beth Dillon rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This tiny manifesto packs a large punch. Not only does Fukuoka discuss natural (do-nothing) farming, but he also talks about diet, development of human culture, nature and an experience-based wisdom, or way of thinking, that strives to make absolutely no conscious determination of ideas/thought. His four principles of farming are pragmatic and inspiring (I wish I had enough land to plant grain this very minute); I'm excited to experiment with his techniques in the future. I'll need to chew on hi...more

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Nov 10, 2011 librarianka rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: environment, farming, philosophy, ethics, spiritual, biology, gardening, food, favourite

I don’t know how I came upon this book. It has found its way into my Kobo reader. I borrowed the epub version of it from my library via the website. Thank goodness it has been brought back into printing. Upon reading it I immediately became fascinated by it and by its author. I knew nothing about Masanobu Fukuoka, who lived to be 95 (died on16 August 2008) and was a Japanese scientist, philosopher, and a farmer and developed a very unique way of farming, and also influenced many people in farmin...more

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Oct 22, 2010 Letters Journal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a book about rice, winter grain, and fruit tree farming in Japan and a meditation on the limits of human knowledge and language. Or, it is more accurate to say that it is a story about the limits of human knowledge and language, told through the lens of rice, winter grain, and fruit tree farming in Japan.

I have never grown rice or winter grains, and I probably never will. Yet, this book was absolutely captivating and exciting. Fukuoka’s approach to farming and to life is to seek non-acti...more This is a book about rice, winter grain, and fruit tree farming in Japan and a meditation on the limits of human knowledge and language. Or, it is more accurate to say that it is a story about the limits of human knowledge and language, told through the lens of rice, winter grain, and fruit tree farming in Japan.

I have never grown rice or winter grains, and I probably never will. Yet, this book was absolutely captivating and exciting. Fukuoka’s approach to farming and to life is to seek non-action and avoid tasks, rather than taking them on. He sums up the basis for his “do nothing” farming method thus*: “All my research has been in the direction of not doing this or that. These thirty years have taught me that farmers would have been better off doing almost nothing at all.”

One feels immediately the urge to argue against this assertion. My initial counter-example was playing Go. Surely, doing nothing at all will not improve one’s Go game. Then I remember that the primary problem of weak Go players is playing unnecessary stones, of trying to do too much rather than playing natural or fundamental moves. For Fukuoka, “do nothing” is not an absolutist principle but a lighthearted and casual approach to life.

In some ways, Letters is an attempt to develop a “do nothing” approach to spreading communist ideas. When we put forward the slogan “Do Nothing!” we do not propose an absolute inverse of the activist demand to “Do Anything!”. Le Garcon Dupont writes:

"The refusal to offer solutions, to insist that such must be imposed at a wholly different (and higher) organisational level is the only radical solution we have to offer. People take no notice if you tell them things could be otherwise; if you reveal to them your desire to change things: it instantly turns off a switch in their head. However, if you tell them there is no hope, if you tell them that they can achieve nothing… this provokes their intellectual antibodies, and they start thinking about what they can do."

The do nothing farmer allows nature to solve its own problems, rather than constantly supplying solutions (which, in turn, create new and more difficult problems). For example, the ’solution’ of pesticides creates many new problems, whereas allowing natural solutions like spiders does not.

Fukuoka is aware of the contradictions inherent to writing and advocating doing nothing, and he is aware of the limits of communicating his ideas. One of the best sections of the book describes his attendance to a farmers’ co-op meeting, where he argues against the use of fertilizer and urges the other farmers to just scatter the rice straw back onto their fields. He knows that his message cannot be to the co-op (it is financed by the fertilizer industry and etcetera), but in knowing this – and being unattached to the outcome of his intervention – he actually leaves open some space for communicating.

"Here I have been, talking all the time about how everything is of no account, saying that humanity is ignorant, that there is nothing to strive for, and that whatever is done is wasted effort. How can I say that and then go on chattering like this? If I push myself to write something, the only thing to write is that writing is useless. It is very perplexing."

The One-Straw Revolution is a beautiful book. It leaves me cautiously optimistic about, at least, my own ability to one day grow vegetables in my backyard by learning how not to do this or that.

Also of interest in this book but beyond the scope of this small review: Fukuoka’s criticisms of Buddhism and organic food ideology.(less)

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Dec 06, 2010 Ivan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: pertanian, filsafat, hikmah-wise

Sudah lama saya tidak membaca buku ini sejak pertengahan tahun ini. Pertama mendapat informasi mengenai buku ini dari seorang teman sedepartemen. Buku ini kemudian saya cari di perpustakaan kampus sesuai dengan informasi teman saya tersebut. Bukunya lecek tipis tidak terawat, mungkin buku lama.
Buku ini sebenarnya mengetengahkan mengenai cara bertanam tanaman terutama yang sering dibahas disini adalah padi, buah-buahan, gandum gerst dan sayuran secara alami. Dengan kata pengantar dari Mochtar Lu...more Sudah lama saya tidak membaca buku ini sejak pertengahan tahun ini. Pertama mendapat informasi mengenai buku ini dari seorang teman sedepartemen. Buku ini kemudian saya cari di perpustakaan kampus sesuai dengan informasi teman saya tersebut. Bukunya lecek tipis tidak terawat, mungkin buku lama.
Buku ini sebenarnya mengetengahkan mengenai cara bertanam tanaman terutama yang sering dibahas disini adalah padi, buah-buahan, gandum gerst dan sayuran secara alami. Dengan kata pengantar dari Mochtar Lubis yang merupakan salah satu sastrawan Indonesia terkenal membuat buku yang merupakan perpaduan antara ilmu pertanian, filsafat, sastra ini menjadi lebuh berbobot.
Jika dikampus saya mendapat kuliah tentang minimum tillage yang artinya pengolahan tanah secara minimal, mungkin inilah yang ingin disampaikan Tn. Fukoka di dalam buku ini dengan tentunya ada beberapa konsep di luar minimum tillage yang banyak sekali dibahas didalam buku ini yang akan menambah pengetahuan mengenai cara bertanam secara alami.
Cara bertanam secara alami yang selama ini saya pahami yaitu bertanam secara organik ternyata banyak yang tidak sesuai dengan apa yang diketengahkan dalam buku ini. Dalam pertanian organik yang masih memerlukan input dari luar terutama pupuk alami, insektisida alami dan saprotan pertanian sungguh berbeda dengan pertanian alami yang cenderung membiarkan alam untuk mengolah lahan dan menumbuhkan biji sesuai dengan kodrati mereka menurut siklus alami ekosistem.
Jika dalam pertanian konvensional, petani membiarkan menumpuk dan cenderung membiarkan bahkan membuang hasil jerami mereka sebelum dibakar maka dalam pertanian alami ala manasobu fukoka jerami tersebut dikembalikan ke lahan tanpa dipotong-potong beberapa minggu sebelum biji disemai. Pada waktu jepang sedang gencar gencarnya impor gandum dari Amerika pada tahun 70an Tn. Fukoka menganjurkan menanam jenis gandum lokal yang bernama gandum gerst yang bisa panen sesuai dengan iklim di jepang dibanding dengan jenis gandum luar (Amerika) yang panen pada waktu musim hujan, sehingga meningkatkan busuk panen yang akhirnya menurunkan kualitas dan kuantitas panen.
Tidak hanya pertanian akan tetapi juga perternakan yang disorot disini. Pemeliharaan ayam leghorn yang dibirkan liar dan mendapat pakan secara alami dari alam menurut Tn. Fukoka lebih baik dari segi kulitas hasil telur dan daging yaitu memiliki kuningteur yang kenyal dan berwarna orange cerah dibandingkan dengan Telur ayam dan daging yang dipelihara dalam kandang.
Penanaman semanggi sebagai LCC (Tanaman Penutup Tanah) akan mengurangi gulma yang tumbuh yang akhirnya dapat mengurangi pemakaian herbisida (yang sangat ditentang dalam pertanian alami) dan pemakaian tenaga kerja.
Tn. Fukoka juga membahas masalah metode ilmiah yang menurut dia kurang bisa menjangkau keterpaduannya dengan alam dan hanya membahas persoalah pada suatu sisi (tidak menyeluruh dan meninggalkan konsep keterpaduan). Beliau juga sering menentang para ilmuan yang hanya menggunakan hasil hasil temuannya untuk meningkatkan kecepatan efisiensi yang sering bertabrakan dengan konsep alami dari suatu sistem pertanian.
Selain membahas masalah-masalah diatas Tn. Fukoka juga membahas Diet alami berada dalam tingkat keempat setelah diet ringan (hanya mementingkan nafsu), diet dengan standart biologis (yang banyak diterapkan dalam diet diet ala Amerika), diet alami (yang masih membeda-bedakan antar bahan makanan) dan yang terakhir adalah diet surgawi yang sudah tidak ada pembedaan antar bahan makanannya.
Akan tetapi kekurangan buku ini jika ingin menerapkan sistem pertaniannya di Indonesia (walau sudah di translate dalam bahasa Indonesia) adalah masalah konversi satuan dan musim di Jepang yang berbeda dengan yang ada di Indonesia. Waalaupun begitu buku ini sangat cocok bagi pengembangan pertanian khususnya pertanian alami aka organik di Indonesia walaupun diharuskan dengan beberapa penambahan tertentu untuk mencapai kesesuaian tersebut.

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Feb 20, 2011 Gloria rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pretty remarkable book. The first half really was fascinating to me; the second half was less so, but only in the sense that he is describing or endorsing what many since his time have described over and over again—not that it is bad, as we clearly haven't absorbed or learned it. More specifically: Part one is his story; Part two is his four principles of no-work farming and specific issues for things like rice, orchards, etc; Part three about marketing of food, and Part four about food and eati...more Pretty remarkable book. The first half really was fascinating to me; the second half was less so, but only in the sense that he is describing or endorsing what many since his time have described over and over again—not that it is bad, as we clearly haven't absorbed or learned it. More specifically: Part one is his story; Part two is his four principles of no-work farming and specific issues for things like rice, orchards, etc; Part three about marketing of food, and Part four about food and eating. Part V, well, is part five.

One can always describe his over-arching philosophy as one deeply rooted in Eastern philosophy, as they say very "zen"; he does challenge issues of duality, and the impossibility of knowing nature ("that which is conceived to be nature is only the idea of nature arising in each person's mind" p 25) which smacks more as a general question of how we moderns separate ourselves from nature in viewing the world (we are NOT beasts!). His notion of do-nothing is truly rooted in Buddhist thought, though, so do not misinterpret it as an adolescent might…!

Some notes:

"The usual way to go about developing a method is to ask 'How about trying this?' or 'How about trying that?' bringing a variety of techniques one upon the other. This is modern agriculture and it only results in making the farmer busier. My way was opposite. I was aiming at a pleasant, natural way of farming, which results in making the work easier instead of harder. 'How about not doing this? How about not doing that?'--that was my way of thinking . I ultimately reached the conclusion that there was no need to plow, no need to apply fertilizer, no need to make compost, no need to use insecticide. When you get right down to it, there are few agricultural practices that are really necessary." p 15

"To the extent that trees deviate from their natural form, pruning and insect extermination become necessary; to the extent that human society separates itself from a life close to nature, schooling becomes necessary. In nature, forming schooling has no function… Almost everyone thinks that 'nature' is a good thing, but few can grasp the difference between natural and unnatural. If a single new bud is snipped off a fruit tree with a pair of scissors, that may bring about disorder which cannot be undone. When growing according to the natural form, branches spread alternately from the trunk and the leaves receive sunlight uniformly. If this sequence is disrupted the branches come into conflict, lie one upon another and become tangled, and the leaves wither in the places where the sun cannot penetrate. Insect damage develops. If the tree is not pruned the following year more withered branches will appear. Human beings with their tampering do something wrong, leave the damage unrepaired, and when the adverse results accumulate, work with all their might to correct them. When the corrective actions appear to be successful, they come to view these measures as splendid accomplishments. People do this over and over again. It is as if a fool were to stomp on and break the tiles of his roof. Then when it starts to rain and the ceiling begins to rot away, he hastily climbs up to mend the damage, rejoicing in the end that he has accomplished a miraculous solution." p 17-18

"Before researchers become researchers they should become philosophers. They should consider what the human goal is, what it is that humanity should create. Doctors should first determine at the fundamental level what it is the that human beings depend on for life." p 74

"The other morning I heard a four-year old girl ask her mother, 'Why was I born into this world? To go to nursery school?'" p. 163(less)

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Feb 19, 2012 Cheryl in CC NV rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It really is an amazing book. Ok, fine, not every detail of what Fukuoka proposes would work elsewhere, for example where there are harsh winters, but the idea of living simply, of letting nature guide farming practices, of not using chemicals and not tilling for a monoculture, is exceedingly valuable. And what a healthy way to live - eating hydroponic tomatoes and commuting to an office job and relaxing in front of the tv will kill you a lot faster than living on a few acres and growing your ow...more It really is an amazing book. Ok, fine, not every detail of what Fukuoka proposes would work elsewhere, for example where there are harsh winters, but the idea of living simply, of letting nature guide farming practices, of not using chemicals and not tilling for a monoculture, is exceedingly valuable. And what a healthy way to live - eating hydroponic tomatoes and commuting to an office job and relaxing in front of the tv will kill you a lot faster than living on a few acres and growing your own food, relaxing by shelling peas kind of thing. I know, it sound corny, but in this gentleman's voice, it sounds not only lovely but plausible, even necessary.

From the introduction by Larry Korn: "The fundamental distinction is that Mr. Fukuoka farms by cooperating with nature rather than trying to 'improve' upon nature by conquest."

A quote from Mr. F.: "When a decision is made to cope with the symptoms of a problem, it is generally assumed that the corrective measures will solve the problem itself. They seldom do." The examples given make it clear that we need to bear this in mind not just in farming, but in the rest of our lives. Get more fresh air and exercise, to make your whole body healthier, and you won't need to pop as many pills (which cost money which lack of sufficient causes one stress which makes one feel the need for more pills). We all know this - but Mr. F. encourages one to feel it strongly enough to begin to practice it.

Another example of how a person can live more completely and holistically by living more simply: "When it is understood that one loses joy and happiness in the attempt to possess them, the essence of natural farming will be realized. The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings."

Or try this: "In nature there is life and death, and nature is joyful. In human society there is life and death, and people live in sorrow."

Lest you think this is 'too deep' for you, note that there is humor, too. Mr. F. notes that Einstein was given the Nobel Prize for explaining something about physics. "His explanation is bewildering, however, and it caused people to think that the world is complex beyond all possible understanding. A citation of 'disturbing the peace of the human spirit' should have been awarded instead.'"(less)

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Sep 07, 2010 Bryan rated it 4 of 5 stars

the book started off amazing and i read about half of it in one night. somewhere in the middle (closer to the end) i lost interest a bit and almost knocked it down to 4 stars because of that, but it came back in the end. in the beginning he talks about his experience as a young scientist and i really enjoyed that part, how his life in natural farming is an attempt to show how people actually know nothing. when he got to the middle he starts harping repetitively about natural diet, natural food,...more

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Dec 11, 2012 Josh Volk rated it 4 of 5 stars

This recent obituary posted on comfood re-inspired me to read Fukuoka's writings. I've read a little of The Natural Way of Farming and saw him on a Japanese television show a few years back. Definitely an inspiring figure in truly sustainable agriculture.

Remembering a great man: Masanobu Fukuoka

Sadly, natural farming innovator Masanobu Fukuoka passed away,
Saturday, August 16, 2008, at his home in Iyo, Ehime Prefecture, Japan of
old age. He was 95.

Fukuoka authored a number of books including One S...more

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Jul 01, 2008 Damian Satterthwaite-Phillips rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: People who love the earth and/or simplicity

Recommended to Damian by: Charles Chemin

This is really like a 4-star book combined with a 2-star one. This book starts out fabulously, all about simpler existence and simple farming. Life without fucking everything up, basically, and it's very inspiring. But then the author gets increasingly preachy, and goes on a Zen-and-the-Art-of-Motorcycle-Maintenance-type patting himself on the back... (though actually much less obnoxiously). Ultimately I tend to largely agree with Fukuoka's life philosophy, but he needs to tone it down a bit. I...more

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Feb 09, 2013 Briankiwi rated it 4 of 5 stars

"Even moths, if you shake the powder off their wings first, are very tasty."
"There is no time in modern agriculture for a farmer to write a poem or compose a song."
"Human beings are the only animals who have to work, and I think this is the most ridiculous thing in the world. Other animals make their livings by living, but people work like crazy, thinking that they have to in order to stay alive."
"There is no one so great as the one who does not try to accomplish anything."

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Dec 18, 2012 David Koblos rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sustainability

Empty your mind and understand. In this book Fukuoka relates his experiences with commercial agriculture, how he became disillusioned with science, how he embarked on the natural way, and what he means by that. Simplicity is the key. Just like the book, the ideas are so clear and easy that a child would understand them, and Fukuoka makes a point of how and why this approach makes all the difference. A great read, that can open eyes, and start a revolution with just one straw.

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Sep 19, 2012 Adam rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: essays

Fukuoka's farming technique fascinates me; I would like to see an addendum on how his methods have been adapted to other places and crops. And I heartily agree with his economic arguments, but the philosophical treatise near the end of the book cost it a star for me. I'm not a fan of negation, on the whole -- the "you can't know anything and all attempts at knowledge are foolish" argument. To be sure, endless, blind faith in scientific knowledge is a dangerous mistake, but I do not believe the p...more

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Jun 24, 2009 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: homesteading

This book presents Fukuoka's fascinating philosophy of no-till farming, mixed in with a bit of zen-like poetical wording on farming. One of my favorite quotes: "There is no other way than through the destruction of the ego, casting aside the thought that humans exist apart from heaven and earth." And for the permie and science teacher in me: "Food grown in soil balanced by the action of worms, microorganisms, and decomposing animal manure are the cleanest and most wholesome of all."

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Sep 05, 2012 Userman rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: agriculture

A book that goes much further then simply detailing a new 'method' of agriculture and instead explores an entire new philosophy and worldview. Fukuoka's specific achievements are not repeatable for everyone - simply due to climate and other conditions, but his life can be an inspiration to all. The fundamental ideals of observation and cooperation with nature are now, at this time when industrial agriculture is failing, the principles of the way forward.

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Aug 10, 2009 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars

I know nothing.

However, here are a couple of quotes I liked:

pg 88
'To say it in a word, until there is a reversal of the sense of values which cares more for size and appearance than for quality, there will be no solving the problem of food pollution.'

pg 159
'We have come to the point at which there is no other way than to bring about a "movement" not to bring anything about.'

pg 177
'Let us say that the key to peace lies close to the earth.'

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About Masanobu Fukuoka

Masanobu Fukuoka was born in 1914 in a small farming village on the island of Shikoku in Southern Japan. He was educated in microbiology and worked as a soil scientist specializing in plant pathology, but at the age of twenty-five he began to have doubts about the "wonders of modern agriculture science."

While recovering from a severe attack of pneumonia, Fukuoka experienced a moment of satori or p...more Masanobu Fukuoka was born in 1914 in a small farming village on the island of Shikoku in Southern Japan. He was educated in microbiology and worked as a soil scientist specializing in plant pathology, but at the age of twenty-five he began to have doubts about the "wonders of modern agriculture science."

While recovering from a severe attack of pneumonia, Fukuoka experienced a moment of satori or personal enlightenment. He had a vision in which something one might call true nature was revealed to him. He saw that all the "accomplishments" of human civilization are meaningless before the totality of nature. He saw that humans had become separated from nature and that our attempts to control or even understand all the complexities of life were not only futile, they were self-destructive. From that moment on, he has spent his life trying to return to the state of being one with nature.

At the time of his revelation, Fukuoka was living in a Japan that was abandoning its traditional farming methods and adopting Western agriculture, economic and industrial models. He saw how this trend was driving the Japanese even further from a oneness with nature, and how destructive and polluting those practices were. As a result, he resigned his job as a research scientist and returned to his father's farm on Shikoku determined to demonstrate the practical value of his vision by restoring the land to a condition that would enable nature's original harmony to prevail.

Through 30 years of refinement he was able to develop a "do-nothing" method of farming. Without soil cultivation such as plowing or tilling, chemical fertilizers, pesticides, weeding, pruning, machinery or compost, Fukuoka was able to produce high-quality fruit, vegetables and grains with yields equal to or greater than those of any neighboring farm.

In his 60's, Fukuoka sat down to document what he had seen and done. In 1975 his first book "One Straw Revolution" was released and has had a profound impact on agriculture and human consciousness all over the world. "One Straw Revolution" was followed by "The Natural Way of Farming" and then by "The Road Back To Nature."

Since 1979, Fukuoka has been touring, giving lectures and sowing the seeds of natural farming all over the world. In 1988 he was given Deshikottan Award, and the Ramon Magsaysay Award. In 1997 he received the Earth Council Award.

from http://fukuokafarmingol.info/fintro.html (less)

More about Masanobu Fukuoka...

Books by Masanobu Fukuoka

Natural Way of Farming: The Theory and Practice of Green Philosophy

Sowing Seeds in the Desert: Natural Farming, Global Restoration, and Ultimate Food Security

The Road Back to Nature: Regaining the Paradise Lost

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“When it is understood that one loses joy and happiness in the attempt to possess them, the essence of natural farming will be realized. The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.” — 28 people liked it

“I do not particularly like the word 'work.' Human beings are the only animals who have to work, and I think that is the most ridiculous thing in the world. Other animals make their livings by living, but people work like crazy, thinking that they have to in order to stay alive. The bigger the job, the greater the challenge, the more wonderful they think it is. It would be good to give up that way of thinking and live an easy, comfortable life with plenty of free time. I think that the way animals live in the tropics, stepping outside in the morning and evening to see if there is something to eat, and taking a long nap in the afternoon, must be a wonderful life. For human beings, a life of such simplicity would be possible if one worked to produce directly his daily necessities. In such a life, work is not work as people generally think of it, but simply doing what needs to be done.” — 24 people liked it

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