What is Wabi-Sabi?
“Wabi-sabi” is a Japanese aesthetic philosophy that encourages finding beauty in imperfection, impermanence, and the incomplete. It values authenticity, simplicity, and the natural cycle of growth and decay.
The term is derived from two concepts:
Wabi: This refers to the rustic simplicity, freshness, and quietness found in nature. It can also denote the beauty that comes with age and wear, suggesting an appreciation for the impermanent and the imperfect.
Sabi: This conveys the beauty that comes with the passage of time, such as the patina that develops on an object or the weathering of materials. It also encompasses an understanding of the transient nature of life and the acceptance of impermanence.
Wabi-sabi encourages us to embrace the flawed or imperfect aspects of life, objects, and experiences.
It celebrates asymmetry, irregularity, and the authenticity of natural materials.
This philosophy can influence various aspects of life, including:
- aging
- art
- design
- architecture
- and lifestyle choices
It promotes a deeper appreciation for the beauty of simplicity and imperfection.
3 Teachings From the Wabi-Sabi Philosophy That Will Improve How You Perceive Life
1. Where there is acceptance, there is freedom, progress, and growth.
We aren’t perfect, and life is not perfect.
Things will not always go our way, and as humans, we have a natural inclination to fix them. Unfortunately, this does not always work in all scenarios. In some cases, things are as they are, and we have to simply accept them.
Acceptance will give us freedom from searching for perfection. However, it is important to keep in mind that acceptance does not mean giving up.
2. Aim for excellence and improvement rather than perfection.
Like everything around us, we are always in a state of improvement and change.
Perfection can never really be achieved, as there is always room to get better. When we chase perfection, there will always be that void, because we’re running after something we will never really achieve.
Focusing instead on improvement means we treat every day and every opportunity we get as a chance to be better than we were yesterday.
At the end of the day, when we look back at what we have accomplished, we compare our present performance to the previous one and focus on the improvement. This is achievable and fulfilling.
Rather than focusing on how close we are to perfection, we should focus on how much we have improved from yesterday.
One of the best ways to do this is by journaling and keeping track of your progress. For instance, if you want to spend less time on your phone, keep track of the time you spent scrolling on day one. Then, keep a record for the coming days.
This way, you can look back to see the improvement.
This will likely work better than simply telling yourself you want to spend just one hour on your phone. Every day you don’t reach that goal, you might have strong feelings of guilt and failure.
3. Appreciate the beauty of all things.
Due to the imperfections that exist around us, sometimes it can be challenging to notice, let alone appreciate the beauty that surrounds us.
The Wabi-sabi philosophy is rooted in recognizing and appreciating the beauty of things as they are, even when they are broken, old or damaged.
Most of us have heard of Kintsugi, a form of Japanese art whereby broken objects are glued back together using gold fillings to give them ‘golden scars.’ These golden scars exist to show us that broken things still have a story to tell and a contribution to society, so they deserve to be appreciated.
I believe that the same is also applicable to people. Those we think are broken or have had complicated pasts still have the beauty that can be seen if we look for it. And we ought to find and appreciate that beauty in everyone we meet.
Final thoughts on the Wabi-Sabi Philosophy
Life is fragile and unpredictable. We can do the best we can to plan for the future we want and think we deserve, but we will not always get it.
Sometimes things will not go our way, and life might throw stones at us, but that’s not the end of the world.
We still have the ability to focus on the beauty in the imperfections and focus on becoming better than we were yesterday rather than focusing on being perfect, something we might never achieve.
Our beauty (and that of the world around us) lies in our imperfections, so why take that away from ourselves?
The Wabi-Sabi philosophy is one I firmly believe we should all aim towards understanding and try to have it guide us.
Remember, broken crayons still color!
Editor’s note: This article was originally published Feb 28, 2024 and has been updated to improve reader experience.
Photo by olia danilevich