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Member Profiles
President of Ichiryu Associates, Inc., and television presenter
Yoshio Ichiryu
Yoshio Ichiryu is the representative director of Ichiryu Associates, Inc., and a television presenter. He was born in 1946. After graduating from the University of Tokyo in 1968, he went to work for the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (now the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry).
After working as the secretary to the late Kiichi Miyazawa and the late Kakuei Tanaka in 1970, when they served as the Minister of International Trade and Industry, he enrolled at Harvard University.
He retired from the Ministry of International Trade and Industry in 1998 after serving as secretary to Minister of International Trade and Industry Keijiro Murata; as director of the Kansai Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry; and as Vice-minister for Policy Coordination.
Since establishing Ichiryu Associates, Inc., in 2000, he has served as a management consultant and traveled on the speaking circuit. He also holds numerous positions such as officer of listed corporations such as Shima Seiki Mfg., Ltd.
He opened the Excellence Academy in 2008 to train a new generation of management professionals. The institution has produced more than 450 graduates.
Since 2012 he has hosted the program “Ichiryu Yoshio ga Tou: Nihon no Mirai” (BS TV Tokyo), which he uses to communicate his views on various issues.
A place of interchange with Buddha and the gods
Drawn by the majestic scenery and mythological air of the mountainous Kii region, I have visited Koyasan many times. In particular, I've often stayed at Amanosato at the base of Koyasan, and it was a remarkable place. In firefly season, the fireflies will land on your unfolded hand. It was a moving experience. I've made many pilgrimages to Niutsuhime-jinja Shrine, a World Heritage located nearby. The shrine, which was a place where the Buddha and Shinto gods intermingled before Koyasan was founded, came into existence along with a fusion of Buddhism and Shintoism based on the unique worldview of the Japanese. This distinctive religious outlook is found in no other country, and I believe that it offers us many lessons that resonate with contemporary Japanese.
I’ve experienced the wonder of Koyasan, which offers many opportunities to enjoy delicious food and relax, but I look forward to staying in Shukubo lodgings if I can ever find the time so that I can gain a deeper experience of this temple and learn more about it.
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