1. Opening Address for the Graduation Ceremony, March 25, 2016
R.P. Takashi HAYASHITA, President Sophia University
Congratulations to all of you who have obtained a doctoral or master's degree or completed the
Course of Midwifery today. These degrees and the completion of the Course are the fruit of all of
the efforts you have made. I would also like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to your
parents, families, and friends who are present here to see your admirable graduation.
Today, you are able to mark this new chapter in your life because of the efforts you have made of
course, but also as the result of the warm support and, occasionally, strict admonishment you
have received from your families, teachers, and friends. I hope that, upon this occasion, you will
renew your feelings of gratitude to those around you. I would like to express my sincere respect,
especially to your families and friends present today, for the manner in which they have guided
and supported you to obtain these outstanding degrees.
As you start a new chapter in your life, what I expect from you is to have big dreams for your
future and pursue your dreams without ever giving up.
This February, an international research team succeeded in the direct observation of space-time
ripples called "gravitational waves" at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory
(LIGO) in the United States. This was a discovery at a Nobel Prize level that was covered in the
front pages of newspapers. These gravitational waves are produced by the collision of two black
holes which are both spinning, as if to create a whirlwind, about 1.3 billion light-years from
Earth. The gravitational waves were predicted by Einstein's general theory of relativity in 1916,
and detecting them had become the dream of many scientists. And now, exactly one hundred
years later, this scientists ' dream has become a reality.
The gravitational waves are ripples that reached Earth after travelling 1.3 billion light-years. I
truly marvel at the wonders of the universe. Seeing the universe in gravitational waves is as
revolutionary an event as when mankind first saw it in infrared rays, X-rays, and microwaves.
This past February, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched the X-ray
Astronomy Satellite "Hitomi." The objective is to observe the universe in X-rays and shed light
on the mystery of black holes. Using gravitational waves to make observations is expected to
revolutionize astronomy that will unravel the mystery of the birth of the universe. The
determination of the world 's scientists not to give up on their dreams led to this major discovery
one hundred years later.
I would like to share another story about pursing dreams. Did you watch the NHK morning
drama, "Massan"? This story traces the origin of made-in-Japan whiskey. Masaharu Kameyama,
whose nickname was "Massan," studied in Scotland, the home of whiskey, and learned about
making whiskey. He returned to Japan with a Scottish woman named Ellie he met in Scotland.
Together, the couple overcame hardships and created Japan's first homegrown whiskey. When
Ellie, with whom Massan endured many struggles together, passed away, Massan locked himself
up in a room for two full days and kept on crying. He finds and begins to read a letter Ellie gave

2. him just before her death. The letter read as follows: "I am so very grateful that I met you. Thank
you for making me your wife. Thank you for bringing me to this beautiful country, my home,
Japan. Our life together has turned into a beautiful adventure.. .Keep perfecting your whiskey
until you make a whiskey that will bring people all around the world great joy. Massan, your
dream has always been whiskey. My dream was you!"
This story is based on the true story of Masataka Taketsuru, also known as the "father of
Japanese whiskey," and his wife Rita. She lived in a foreign country with a completely different
culture, language, and religion from her home country of Scotland, while leaving her parents
there. She undeniably had unimaginable hardships. Still, in the TV drama, Ellie's dedicated
efforts established ties with a variety of people and led to Massan's success.
A Bible passage from the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians was just read to us. It is a famous
passage called the "hymn of love." It tells us that in accomplishing anything, it is not only the
actions that matter; it teaches us to have love, the spirit of devoting to others and not to oneself.
With regard to the theme depicted in the TV drama, I gather that, like this passage, it was not
only the actions of Ellie and Massan but also the couple's profound love that touched the hearts
of many people and led to the realization of their dream.
You will graduate from Sophia University's graduate schools and enter the workplace or go onto
a doctoral program. You yourself must pave the way for your life ahead. But do not forget: one
success is sometimes built over one hundred failures. You should not be afraid of making
mistakes. If you fall seven times, you just need to get up eight times. Always believe in yourself
and challenge yourself to many things, remembering to live life based on the spirit of our school
motto, “Men and Women for Others, with Others,” and not fearing mistakes. I would like to
sincerely wish you all the best in your bright futures.
I would like to close by sharing with you the following words that Ellie´s father left for Ellie:
“Do what you want. It is alright to fail. If you make a mistake, recover from it. Your life is yours.
Live without regrets. Life is an adventure.”
Congratulations on your graduation.