Modern education often prioritises measurable results, efficiency, predictable outcomes and rational approaches to solving problems. However, experiences such as bereavement, illness, natural disasters and personal loss do not always have straightforward solutions. A new study by a researcher at Doshisha University in Japan proposes a different approach, arguing that education should also help people understand suffering and navigate the uncertainties of human life.
The study, conducted by Professor Fumio Ono of Doshisha University’s Faculty of Global and Regional Studies, was published online in the journal Educational Philosophy and Theory on September 1, 2026. It examines how Japanese philosophical traditions, shaped by interactions between Eastern and Western thought, could contribute to an educational philosophy better equipped to respond to personal suffering and global catastrophes.
The research questions the limitations of what is known as “technological rationality”, an approach that emphasises efficiency, prediction, measurable achievement and the use of rational intervention to address problems.
While these principles remain valuable for organising educational systems, Ono argues that they may not adequately address experiences that cannot be controlled or anticipated.
Japan’s disaster experience inspires a different educational philosophy
Ono’s research was influenced by the devastating events of March 2011, when the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear disaster exposed the difficulties of responding to unexpected and catastrophic events.
“The devastating events of March 2011, including the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear disaster, made me realize that it was necessary to develop a form of thought capable of responding to such unexpected and catastrophic events,” Ono said.
To develop his argument, the professor brings together two philosophical approaches. The first is Augustin Berque’s mesology, or fūdo-gaku, which examines the relationship between people and their environments. The second is Tokuryu Yamauchi’s “logic of lemma”, a non-Aristotelian approach rooted in Nāgārjuna’s Madhyamaka philosophy.
The latter offers a way of moving beyond conventional binary distinctions through a “middle” path. By combining these perspectives, Ono develops the concept of “knowledge of pathos”, which recognises the role of passivity, suffering, vulnerability, fragility and the uncontrollable dimensions of human existence.
This approach challenges the tendency to classify experiences through opposing categories such as success and failure, strong and weak, normal and abnormal, or victim and perpetrator. Instead, it makes room for the contradictions and complexities that shape human experiences.
The study proposes that suffering should not always be treated as a problem that must be eliminated. It can also be an important part of understanding how people relate to themselves, others and the world around them.
Education could move beyond measurable achievement
The proposed philosophy of pathos could have implications for schools, universities, counselling services, healthcare and welfare. Rather than concentrating exclusively on identifying problems and finding solutions, professionals could pay greater attention to what individuals are experiencing and how they make sense of difficult circumstances.
Disasters, wars, bereavement, illness and social crises can disrupt people’s existing beliefs and understanding of the world. According to the study, education can contribute not only to restoring knowledge and skills after such events but also to helping individuals rebuild their understanding of themselves and their surroundings.
“Through the proposed philosophy of pathos, education can be understood not only as a way of developing people’s abilities, but also as a way to help people make sense of suffering and reconfigure their relationship with the world,” Ono noted.
The researcher suggests that this perspective could influence educational practices over the next five to ten years. Educators could place greater emphasis on responding thoughtfully to suffering and remaining engaged with situations where immediate answers are unavailable, rather than focusing solely on resolving problems quickly.
Such a shift could also encourage institutions to recognise suffering associated with failure, illness, loss and disaster as experiences shaped by social relationships, rather than treating them exclusively as individual difficulties.
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