To go from “death” to “life,” it turns out all you need is “42.”

Ever since The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy first posited that 42 is the answer to life, the universe, and everything, people have pondered… why? But now, in a surprising answer that would make that book’s quirky universe proud, it seems that the answer was hiding in Japanese puns all along.

Here’s the tweet showing the answer, posted by Twitter user @Mr_Quof.

▼ And if you can’t read Japanese, no worries,
scroll down for an explanation.

▼ The word at the top is “shi-ni-ta-i” meaning “want to die.”
The “die” part is pronounced “shi-ni” which is important because…

▼ …in Japanese, 4 is pronounced “shi” and 2 is pronounced “ni,” so we can rewrite
the word using the numbers as replacements. (Like “4u” and “gr8” in English.)

▼ Then we can combine the 4 and 2 together, and hey,
that kind of looks like a kanji written in a fancy calligraphy style….

▼ It’s the kanji for “to live,” making the word “i-ki-ta-i” at the end.
Thanks to 42, we went from “want to die” to “want to live!”

I don’t know about you, but I think that’s pretty deep. The number 42 has the power to take things that are dead and turn them into life, all thanks to the magic of Japanese calligraphy and coincidental homophones.

Although to be fair, I think the meaning of life was accomplished when humanity managed to create a one-piece romper suit with Kim Jong-un’s face plastered on it, but hey, that’s just my personal spiritual belief on the matter.

Source: Twitter/@Mr_Quof
Top image: PAKUTASO (edited by SoraNews24)
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