The Wabi Sabi Way of Living
Wabi Sabi is a deep interest and passion with me. I have found it to be a very fulfilling way of living, especially as I am growing older, and I would love to share it with others who are on the same journey of life...
Wabi Sabi takes on a very special meaning as I grow older. It offers a wonderful alternative lifestyle to a routine-as-usual, been-like-this-and will-be-like-this, now-what-is-there-to-change kind of lifestyle. It works for those who want to add meaning to their lives; who feel the age creeping on and find it difficult to cope, and who want to make life interesting…and consequently, are looking for answers…
The only all-important questions you have to ask yourself are: Do you want to change? Are you willing to work hard at change? Will you do all that is needed to bring about the change you so desire?
Wabi Sabi’s roots lie in Zen Buddhism. It was brought from China to Japan by Eisai, a 12th century monk.
The beauty of Wabi Sabi lies in its attitude, which allows you to see and therefore release your dependence on material possessions. In no way does it deny you what you need, but it certainly helps you to distinguish between needs, wants and random desires. Wabi Sabi allows the world to unfold without your having any desire to control it. How very often we find ourselves trying to control our own little world, control people, and events and things that happen. Wabi Sabi says to let go…
Life gets stripped to what is within us.
Wabi Sabi, then, is a poverty that is mature(seasoned), centered, balanced and aware; it is the stillness of perception; it is knowing what is real and lasting, what to focus on, and what to leave behind.
Wabi Sabi is being content with whatever happens every day, because Wabi Sabi allows for imperfection. We appreciate whatever we encounter, big, or trifling. It allows for slowing down and finding beauty in what seems ordinary. It allows time for solitude, and for exploring our own personal truth. You live only for and in the moment, knowing that there is no permanence. When there is no permanence in nature, how can we want permanence in our lives, knowing that we are a part of nature? All life is cyclical, and as one season follows another, everything passes – the good and the ugly, the happy and the sad. We find our bodies aging, but do we find beauty in our aging bodies? With Wabi Sabi we can accept and find beauty in our aging bodies, and at the same time appreciate the aging of our souls.
Mind you, this is not a giving in or giving up. It is an appreciation of our soul, and this automatically takes away all the negative, bright shades, and instead, colors our souls with the most beautiful of mature colors, dull and glowing. We see our own wisdom in the light of our experiences – not as something to be ashamed of, or be cynical about, or even be bitter about, but as something that happened. We have moved on physically, but the essence is to move on in our head, heart and soul. When an earthquake or typhoon happens, causing untold damage and destruction, we suffer immeasurably, but then, just as nature moves on, birthing and renewing itself, we too have to leave our grieving, angry, questioning hearts and move on birthing and renewing ourselves...
Therein lies the core – Move on…
Wabi Sabi makes you smile when you find flaws in your work – you see that the pressure to be perfect is (and in fact, always was) completely self-imposed, and therefore completely destructive. How much easier life gets when you tell yourself – mmmmm, never mind…and ….move on instead of brooding or repairing or trying to repair the flaw.
Wabi Sabi gives you the freedom to stop following rules that don’t feel right to you or for you…Who said? and, According to who? are questions you don’t feel hesitant about asking anymore.
And so, you learn to love living simply, stripping away all that is unnecessary; you feel detached from wealth, strong enough to accept whatever comes your way without any fear at all. You learn to value and use peacefulness and harmony in the way you talk, and dress, in your home, and in the way you are. And you do this without being rigid, or harsh on yourself. Your home becomes your sanctuary – while ensuring cleanliness and orderliness, you set aside all need for perfection and judgmentalism. Instead, you focus on the beauty of things as they are, imperfect as they may be. You find profundity in earthiness. You cut through layers of superficiality and find what is authentic. You strive only for an atmosphere of tranquility, peace, freshness, quietness and balance.
Wabi Sabi is the beauty of things imperfect, impermanent and incomplete; it is the beauty of things modest and humble and it is the beauty of things unconventional. Since the Wabi Sabi life is so unassuming, and simple, it co-exists very harmoniously with nature.
To lead the Wabi Sabi way of life is not easy. It requires mental strength and effort to move away from an artificially created comfort zone into a natural, comforting way of life. We have to learn when to make choices, and when to leave things be. We have to push away the trappings of our lives and flow into the poetry of our lives. We have to steer away from indulgence and move towards quiet contentment with simple things. We have to veer away from the speed of life, and paddle slowly on the river of life.
When we think Wabi Sabi, we see that:
Wabi Sabi is Flea markets not brand stores; wood not plastic; rice paper not glass.
Wabi Sabi celebrates cracks and crevices and the marks of time, weather and loving use, not brand-new, polished, and showcased.
Wabi Sabi embraces liver spots, and the march of time on our bodies not made-up-to-look-young, and defying-time-surgical procedures.
Wabi Sabi is the sipping of green tea in the calm and peace of a moss garden.
Wabi Sabi is not rushing to spiritual gurus to find peace, but it is a life of quiet contemplation and the living of the spiritual values of kindness and compassion first to yourself, then to those around you.
Wabi Sabi runs away from the harshness of life to the quiet reality of life, embracing it as it is.
Wabi Sabi is not being-what-you-want-me-to-be but it is being-what-I-am.
If we compare what is Wabi Sabi with what is considered Modern day-competitive-high tech, then it is:
Handcrafted vs. Mass produced
Soft edges vs. Hard edges
Patina vs. Plastic
Stone vs. Steel
Listens vs. Talks
Sees vs. Shows
Slow vs. Fast
Plain vs. Fancy
Reflective vs. Unconscious
Mindful vs. Mindless
Heartfelt vs. Heartless
Authentic vs. Copied
Private vs. Public
Non-material vs. Materialism
Present oriented vs. Future oriented
To everything there is a season vs. Everlasting
Listening to your heart vs. Listening to the voices of others
Come, live the Wabi Sabi way, and you will feel completely and truly liberated….
The only all-important questions you have to ask yourself are: Do you want to change? Are you willing to work hard at change? Will you do all that is needed to bring about the change you so desire?
Wabi Sabi’s roots lie in Zen Buddhism. It was brought from China to Japan by Eisai, a 12th century monk.
The beauty of Wabi Sabi lies in its attitude, which allows you to see and therefore release your dependence on material possessions. In no way does it deny you what you need, but it certainly helps you to distinguish between needs, wants and random desires. Wabi Sabi allows the world to unfold without your having any desire to control it. How very often we find ourselves trying to control our own little world, control people, and events and things that happen. Wabi Sabi says to let go…
Life gets stripped to what is within us.
Wabi Sabi, then, is a poverty that is mature(seasoned), centered, balanced and aware; it is the stillness of perception; it is knowing what is real and lasting, what to focus on, and what to leave behind.
Wabi Sabi is being content with whatever happens every day, because Wabi Sabi allows for imperfection. We appreciate whatever we encounter, big, or trifling. It allows for slowing down and finding beauty in what seems ordinary. It allows time for solitude, and for exploring our own personal truth. You live only for and in the moment, knowing that there is no permanence. When there is no permanence in nature, how can we want permanence in our lives, knowing that we are a part of nature? All life is cyclical, and as one season follows another, everything passes – the good and the ugly, the happy and the sad. We find our bodies aging, but do we find beauty in our aging bodies? With Wabi Sabi we can accept and find beauty in our aging bodies, and at the same time appreciate the aging of our souls.
Mind you, this is not a giving in or giving up. It is an appreciation of our soul, and this automatically takes away all the negative, bright shades, and instead, colors our souls with the most beautiful of mature colors, dull and glowing. We see our own wisdom in the light of our experiences – not as something to be ashamed of, or be cynical about, or even be bitter about, but as something that happened. We have moved on physically, but the essence is to move on in our head, heart and soul. When an earthquake or typhoon happens, causing untold damage and destruction, we suffer immeasurably, but then, just as nature moves on, birthing and renewing itself, we too have to leave our grieving, angry, questioning hearts and move on birthing and renewing ourselves...
Therein lies the core – Move on…
Wabi Sabi makes you smile when you find flaws in your work – you see that the pressure to be perfect is (and in fact, always was) completely self-imposed, and therefore completely destructive. How much easier life gets when you tell yourself – mmmmm, never mind…and ….move on instead of brooding or repairing or trying to repair the flaw.
Wabi Sabi gives you the freedom to stop following rules that don’t feel right to you or for you…Who said? and, According to who? are questions you don’t feel hesitant about asking anymore.
And so, you learn to love living simply, stripping away all that is unnecessary; you feel detached from wealth, strong enough to accept whatever comes your way without any fear at all. You learn to value and use peacefulness and harmony in the way you talk, and dress, in your home, and in the way you are. And you do this without being rigid, or harsh on yourself. Your home becomes your sanctuary – while ensuring cleanliness and orderliness, you set aside all need for perfection and judgmentalism. Instead, you focus on the beauty of things as they are, imperfect as they may be. You find profundity in earthiness. You cut through layers of superficiality and find what is authentic. You strive only for an atmosphere of tranquility, peace, freshness, quietness and balance.
Wabi Sabi is the beauty of things imperfect, impermanent and incomplete; it is the beauty of things modest and humble and it is the beauty of things unconventional. Since the Wabi Sabi life is so unassuming, and simple, it co-exists very harmoniously with nature.
To lead the Wabi Sabi way of life is not easy. It requires mental strength and effort to move away from an artificially created comfort zone into a natural, comforting way of life. We have to learn when to make choices, and when to leave things be. We have to push away the trappings of our lives and flow into the poetry of our lives. We have to steer away from indulgence and move towards quiet contentment with simple things. We have to veer away from the speed of life, and paddle slowly on the river of life.
When we think Wabi Sabi, we see that:
Wabi Sabi is Flea markets not brand stores; wood not plastic; rice paper not glass.
Wabi Sabi celebrates cracks and crevices and the marks of time, weather and loving use, not brand-new, polished, and showcased.
Wabi Sabi embraces liver spots, and the march of time on our bodies not made-up-to-look-young, and defying-time-surgical procedures.
Wabi Sabi is the sipping of green tea in the calm and peace of a moss garden.
Wabi Sabi is not rushing to spiritual gurus to find peace, but it is a life of quiet contemplation and the living of the spiritual values of kindness and compassion first to yourself, then to those around you.
Wabi Sabi runs away from the harshness of life to the quiet reality of life, embracing it as it is.
Wabi Sabi is not being-what-you-want-me-to-be but it is being-what-I-am.
If we compare what is Wabi Sabi with what is considered Modern day-competitive-high tech, then it is:
Handcrafted vs. Mass produced
Soft edges vs. Hard edges
Patina vs. Plastic
Stone vs. Steel
Listens vs. Talks
Sees vs. Shows
Slow vs. Fast
Plain vs. Fancy
Reflective vs. Unconscious
Mindful vs. Mindless
Heartfelt vs. Heartless
Authentic vs. Copied
Private vs. Public
Non-material vs. Materialism
Present oriented vs. Future oriented
To everything there is a season vs. Everlasting
Listening to your heart vs. Listening to the voices of others
Come, live the Wabi Sabi way, and you will feel completely and truly liberated….
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