🚗 Life on Site: A Routine of Driving and Conversations
After finishing a meeting with a supervisor at one construction site, I got back behind the wheel. My daily routine is nothing but driving and conversations. Every day I meet countless people and try to solve endless problems.
Constructing a complex building requires constant coordination with many different parties and the resolution of both major and minor issues. And it’s never just one site—sometimes I manage up to five projects at the same time. To survive in such an environment, I must learn to read people’s minds and understand their intentions.
👤 My Personal Approach to People
After turning fifty, I no longer feel uneasy when meeting new people. With just a glance at a person’s facial features, expressions, and way of speaking, I can usually sense how to interact with them.
Approaching everyone in a single rigid way will eventually cause harm to myself. That’s why I needed my own “weapon.” Over the years, I’ve developed a more flexible way of conversing and relating to people, which has brought me both effectiveness and, inevitably, more work.
Still, many people insist that “dealing with others is the hardest thing.” Personally, I find driving much more unpleasant.ㅎㅎ
😓 The Pain of Human Relationships
Conversations with colleagues and acquaintances often reveal that human relationships are their greatest source of suffering. Of course, I can’t directly solve those problems for them.
The truth is, the method for navigating relationships is quite simple, but explaining it is far more complex. That is why I decided to write—hoping to offer some guidance on how to live a happier life as a human being.
📰 An Article That Left Me Disappointed
Not long ago, I came across an article. A professor named Baek Jae-kwon remarked that former president Yoon Suk-yeol “looked like a crocodile, and therefore was destined to become president.” Reading it, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed.
This professor even published books claiming to read people’s destinies through “animal physiognomy.” Yet he provided no explanation for Yoon’s impeachment—a pivotal event—focusing only on the assertion that he was “bound” to become president. I wondered: can destiny truly be explained in such a way?
🔍 The Skepticism Toward Eastern Studies
In modern society, many still regard Eastern philosophy as mere superstition. Cases like this, I believe, contribute to that view. When personal opinions are stated as absolute truths without clear evidence, they only undermine the credibility of Eastern thought.
It’s natural for people to be curious about their future. That curiosity often gets exploited by vague claims and overly simplistic predictions. But in today’s world, statements like “it will probably be so” lack true persuasive power.
🤔 Questions That Remain
So, does physiognomy truly exist?
If it does, what grounds can support it?
And can we explain physiognomy through a logical, scientific lens?
🌿 From Physiognomy to the Five Elements
In the East, the idea of “physiognomy” has existed for centuries. It is the attempt to read a person’s character, destiny, or lifespan through their facial appearance and expressions. In other words, it is a way of inferring life’s tendencies from outward looks.
Human beings, by nature, live in constant relation to others. That’s why we instinctively observe speech, tone, and expression to make judgments:
“Ah, this person probably has this kind of temperament.”
But physiognomy can only show the surface. It cannot reveal the deeper mind of a person. However, if one knows the year, month, day, and hour of birth, Eastern study—K-Bazi—can provide insight into a person’s inner tendencies and the flow of their life. That is why I wish to begin by examining physiognomy, the surface of humanity.
☯️ The Five Elements: A New Beginning
For thousands of years, countless Eastern thinkers have studied the philosophy of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements. Over time, these ideas have seeped into language, thought, and culture in ways we barely notice. Understanding even a fraction of this framework can provide valuable wisdom for life.
Yet, as centuries passed, the Five Elements were sometimes reduced to mere symbols or letters, stripped of their deeper meaning.
That is why I aim to reinterpret the Five Elements—bringing them back into perspective. And I will begin this journey with physiognomy.