In Japanese culture, there’s a belief that only imperfect objects, like a cracked teacup, can truly be beautiful. If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden. In this way, happiness and contentment are greatly enhanced because rather than dwelling on the past, worrying about the future, or fighting against what cannot be changed, there is an open-minded acceptance of the present moment. 169).Īlong these lines, an ikigai perspective is consistent with one of acceptance of what is. This is consistent with a mindfulness approach, which focuses on “nonjudgmental awareness of the present moment experience” (Hofmann, Sawyer, Witt, & Oh, 2010, p. We see here that living in the moment is an essential aspect of finding one’s ikigai. The trick is, to welcome them.Ī happy man is too satisfied with the present to dwell on the future. We don’t create our feelings they simply come to us, and we have to accept them. Ikigai can be defined as ‘a sense of being alive now, an individual’s consciousness as a motive to live.’ Stop regretting the past and fearing the future.
The following quotes and summaries will set us on the right path for finding our ikigai. Nonetheless, even without the climate, the rest of us may emulate the Okinawans’ zest for life. Of course, living on a beautiful island with a subtropical climate doesn’t hurt. Plus, they live healthy lifestyles, with light eating and plenty of exercise and rest (Garcia & Miralles, 2017).
They understand the value of kindness, community, and living in the moment. In other words, they have found their ikigai. It turns out that the inhabitants of Okinawa are doing all of the right things to support a long and meaningful life. How do they do this? They live their lives based on ikigai principles, which comprise “an intersection between 4 distinct elements: what you’re passionate about, where your skills lie, how you can earn a living and what the world needs” (Blinkist). Not only do Okinawans live incredibly long and healthy lives, but their lives are replete with happiness, serenity, camaraderie, and plenty of activity.
Namely, in today’s Okinawa, there are more people over the age of 100 than in any other place on Earth (Garcia & Miralles, 2017). Yet, somehow, many decades later, the location of this bloodbath has become known for something else far better. The Battle of Okinawa was the most devastating land battle of the Pacific war (Tzeng, 2000). The island of Okinawa was, after all, a place of extreme suffering during World War II, with over 200,000 casualties (Garcia & Miralles, 2017). Ikigai originates from an unlikely place.
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