Wabi Sabi: The Japanese Art of Impermanence

a sense of desolation, employing such visual images as reeds that had been withered by frost. This pattern of use increased, as did the spirit of utter loneliness and finality implied by the term, and it went hand in hand with the Buddhist view on the existential transience of life known as mujo. The concept of mujo, taken from the Sanskrit anitya

in the love of seasons and the keen awareness of life’s impermanence they still retain a deep appreciation for things wabi sabi—an appreciation impervious to a millennium of change.

A million miles from the “love hotels” and the uncontrolled urban sprawl, tucked away in the back streets of Kyoto, one can find the Tawaraya Hotel, an oasis for the seeker of the quintessential expression of Japanese hospitality. One could be forgiven for not even noticing the low-level building, as there is little on the outside to suggest the hi

There was even, at one point, a narrowly defeated vote on whether the Japanese should keep their own language or switch to English. Fortunately, the language was kept, and it has continued to function as a link between the past and the present.

a defining feature of later wabi sabi designs.

it is the almost mystical process of balancing different elements of a design in an aesthetic way that separates the proverbial men from the boys.

Zen teachers stress a state of mind called mushin , which could be likened to a state of total absorption in a task. This concentration helps subdue the ego so that mind and body can work in a free, natural, and uninhibited way.

The word wabi 侘 comes from the verb wabu, which means to languish, and the adjective wabishii, which was used to describe sentiments of loneliness, forlornness, and wretchedness.

that says that someone who makes things of poor quality is in fact worse than a thief, because he doesn’t make things that will last or provide true satisfaction. A thief at least redistributes the wealth of a society.