“Kaze ni Tatsu Lion” — A Song That Feels Like a Farewell Letter from Africa

In this series, I’d like to introduce Japanese songs that I truly love.

Last time, I wrote about “Nagori Yuki.”

These songs may not be widely known outside Japan, but here in Japan, they’ve quietly stayed in people’s hearts for many years.

Most of the songs I write about are deeply tied to my own memories and emotions, and I hope to share them little by little through this series.

If you prefer reading in Japanese, you can check the full Japanese version here（日本語版はこちら）.

This time, I’d like to talk about “Kaze ni Tatsu Lion” by Masashi Sada.

It’s been so long since I first heard this song that I can’t even remember when it was anymore. But I still clearly remember how deeply it moved me the first time I listened to it.

Let’s start by listening to the song

Masashi Sada — “Kaze ni Tatsu Lion”

The full lyrics of this song cannot be included here due to copyright reasons.

Please listen to the video above for the song itself.

An English translation of the lyrics is shared in the comment section of the same video (by @Rixson8), and it really helped me understand the song more deeply.

If you’re interested, I recommend checking it out while listening.

My Thoughts on the Song

“Kaze ni Tatsu Lion” was released in 1987, with both the lyrics and composition written by Masashi Sada himself.

The title “Kaze ni Tatsu Lion” literally means “A Lion Standing Against the Wind.”

The song was inspired by Dr. Koichiro Shibata, a former doctor at Nagasaki University who was later sent to Kenya and devoted himself to medical work across Africa.

After Dr. Shibata returned to Japan, Sada became acquainted with him and wrote this song based on the stories he heard from him.

Sadly, Dr. Shibata passed away in 2025.

A Letter Turned Into a Song

The lyrics begin suddenly with a letter:

“I was surprised by your sudden letter, but happy. More than anything, I was relieved that you didn’t hate me…”

From there, the song unfolds as a reply letter — written by a doctor working in Africa, addressed to someone back in Japan.

I remember being genuinely surprised when I first heard it.

Turning a personal letter into song lyrics felt incredibly unique to me.

And yet, through that single letter alone, we as listeners come to understand so much.

We begin to sense the relationship between the two people, the feelings they still carry for each other, the woman’s current situation, and even the doctor’s beliefs about the life he chose to live.

What impressed me most was how much emotion is conveyed through a single word near the end of the song: “Congratulations.”

That one word quietly tells us everything.

The woman he once loved is getting married.

She wrote to tell him, and this song becomes his reply.

I still think it’s remarkable storytelling — revealing the emotional landscape of two people through the form of one letter.

How the Song Feels Different to Me Now

This song was released in 1987, so I probably first heard it a few years later.

Back then, what moved me most was the doctor’s sense of purpose and the way he chose to live his life.

I imagined a lion standing proudly on a cliff, its mane blowing in the wind as it gazed across the vast African plains.

I was deeply moved by the doctor’s quiet determination and conviction.

That was the part of the song that stayed with me when I was younger.

But recently, when I listened to it again, I realized a different part of the song now reaches me more deeply.

It’s the final words:

“Congratulations. Goodbye.”

When I was younger, I only saw the doctor as someone admirable — someone extraordinary.

But now, when I hear those words, I feel the quiet sorrow hidden inside them.

I think part of the reason is that, when I first heard this song, I was younger than the doctor in the story.

Now, I’ve already become older than him.

Somehow, I now listen to this song with the feeling of looking at someone younger than myself.

Near the end of the song, there’s a line about praying for someone’s happiness from far away.

I imagine that, when he left Japan to pursue his dream, he chose to part ways with the woman he loved.

Not because he stopped loving her.

That’s why saying “Congratulations” must have hurt.

And “Goodbye” must have felt heartbreaking.

These days, whenever I listen to this song, I always end up crying during that final section.

More than the powerful climax where he sings about wanting to be “a lion standing against the wind,” it’s those quiet final words — “Congratulations. Goodbye.” — that make me feel the doctor’s true resolve and silent strength.

Maybe the fact that different parts of the song make me cry now is simply proof that I’ve grown older too.

A Lyric I Especially Love

There’s another lyric in this song that has always stayed with me.

“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t hard… but I’m happy.”

I think that feeling is true for many people.

When we’re living the life we truly wanted for ourselves, the hardships somehow feel more bearable.

I feel that was probably true for this doctor as well.

Even in a difficult life filled with inconvenience and hardship, there was still happiness in walking the path he had chosen for himself.

A Lyric I Still Don’t Fully Understand

There’s one lyric I still don’t completely understand, even now.

It’s a line about not wanting to become arrogant about “living only in the present.”

I still find myself wondering what that really means.

Sometimes I think I’d love to hear Masashi Sada explain it himself.

But at the same time, maybe giving a clear explanation would somehow take away part of the song’s beauty.

Maybe some words are meant to remain slightly out of reach.

Maybe some lyrics stay with us precisely because we never fully solve them.

It Was Also Adapted Into a Film

Actor Takao Osawa was apparently so moved by this song that he eventually made a film inspired by it.

I went to see the movie myself, though honestly, it felt a little different from the image I personally had of the song.

That said, the song plays at the end of the film, and I really loved that moment.

I’d actually like to watch that final scene again someday.

From what I understand, the movie itself is mostly fictional.

But in the end, for me, “Kaze ni Tatsu Lion” will always be a song before it is a movie.

And I have a feeling that, as I continue getting older, different parts of this song will continue to move me in new ways.

I wrote this article because I hope people who have never heard this song before might someday discover it for themselves.

If this song leaves even a small feeling in your heart, that would mean a lot to me.

Thank you so much for reading until the end.

If you prefer reading in Japanese, you can check the full Japanese version here（日本語版はこちら）.

I also wrote an article about “Nagori Yuki.”