We all are acquainted with the concept and ideology of “Ikigai”. Knowingly or unknowingly, Ikigai plays a very important part in our daily life. It is something that helps us to get up every morning and keeps us going.
Japan has seen a shift towards awareness and the freedom to seek one’s desired role in the last 20 years, which is huge and this is because more and more people are getting inclined towards the concept of “Ikigai” which gives them freedom and a makes their work-life more balanced.
There is no direct translation for the Japanese word “Ikigai” and the rough meaning of it is “things that you live for “ or “reason or things that help you wake up in the morning”.The word “Iki” in Japanese translates to life and “gai” translates “to be worthwhile”.
Japan has been through a lot of devastation and destruction, people residing there have been through a lot of trauma and hardships, from facing the aftermaths of World War II to seeing the people dying a painful death due to the deadly Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear explosion.
It takes a lot of courage and strength to wake up strong from such ruins and plan thinking about the future, and the people in Japan followed the concept of Ikigai which gave them a sense of hope that each day can be filled with joy if they do things that they truly enjoy.
After many types of research and surveys conducted by scientists, sociologists have concluded that people who follow the concept of “Ikigai” tend to live a long and happy life than the people who don’t follow the theory of “Ikigai”.
It makes us notice and appreciate every little thing that happens in our daily life and teaches us to celebrate and experience them.
Humans hardly notice the small little joys in their daily life, they have hardly any moment to rest and enjoy the present moment, always running after something to achieve, "Ikigai” makes you look at the larger picture of the life and helps you to be comfortable with all the miserable and hardship situation that you might face in life.
A southern island in Japan known as Okinawa is the most practiced place of the” Ikigai” ideology and that’s why the island has the highest population ratio of centenarians. People here live without any stress and worrying and the beautiful soothing weather of Okinawa drives more and more people here.
However, there is a slight difference in the ideology of the “Ikigai” for the people residing in the West and people in Japan. For the West, the “Ikigai” is associated with a Venn Diagram with four qualities overlapping each other: what you love, what the world needs, what you can be paid for and what are you good at.
But for Japanese people, the “Ikigai” has nothing got to do with income or any money. According to them,” Ikigai” helps one to look forward to life and not worry about the miserable present and that is the sole reason why Japan has the longest-living citizens in the world.
According to Japanese culture, everyone has got an “Ikigai” in them and each of them has certain mental and spiritual values and these make them feel that they have a purpose or a reason.
Adding the “Ikigai” in your life is simple, make a list of small three things: your values, things you are good at, and things you like to do, and the cross-section of these three lists will be the “Ikigai”, that you must follow for the rest of your life.
By finding our true “Ikigai” and the purpose, we can lead a true and meaningful life and we’ll eventually find ourselves being happier and enjoying little things. In a fast-paced world like today, we need to find our “Ikigai” as it will keep us satisfied in long run and make us dive deep into ourselves.
Written by - Srijita Roy
Edited by - Rudransh Khurana
Humans hardly notice the small little joys in their daily life, they have hardly any moment to rest and enjoy the present moment, always running after something to achieve, "Ikigai” makes you look at the larger picture of the life and helps you to be comfortable with all the miserable and hardship situation that you might face in life.
A southern island in Japan known as Okinawa is the most practiced place of the” Ikigai” ideology and that’s why the island has the highest population ratio of centenarians. People here live without any stress and worrying and the beautiful soothing weather of Okinawa drives more and more people here.
However, there is a slight difference in the ideology of the “Ikigai” for the people residing in the West and people in Japan. For the West, the “Ikigai” is associated with a Venn Diagram with four qualities overlapping each other: what you love, what the world needs, what you can be paid for and what are you good at.
But for Japanese people, the “Ikigai” has nothing got to do with income or any money. According to them,” Ikigai” helps one to look forward to life and not worry about the miserable present and that is the sole reason why Japan has the longest-living citizens in the world.
According to Japanese culture, everyone has got an “Ikigai” in them and each of them has certain mental and spiritual values and these make them feel that they have a purpose or a reason.
Adding the “Ikigai” in your life is simple, make a list of small three things: your values, things you are good at, and things you like to do, and the cross-section of these three lists will be the “Ikigai”, that you must follow for the rest of your life.
By finding our true “Ikigai” and the purpose, we can lead a true and meaningful life and we’ll eventually find ourselves being happier and enjoying little things. In a fast-paced world like today, we need to find our “Ikigai” as it will keep us satisfied in long run and make us dive deep into ourselves.
Written by - Srijita Roy
Edited by - Rudransh Khurana
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