Wabi-sabi is the appreciation of simplicity and the natural state of things.
Wabi refers to finding beauty in humble, unadorned objects.
Sabi is the deep feeling evoked by the passage of time.
It is not about shabbiness or poverty.
It is about simplicity, rusticity, and the dignified elegance of old things, which, though asymmetrical, convey a sense of balance.
This reflects the character of the user or owner, who sees value in the modesty and finds elegance in the simplicity.
Even old things do not seem worn out because the owner never forgets daily diligence.
Wabi-sabi is about feeling unobtrusive kindness in the everyday, unpretentious scenery. This essence is encapsulated in the tea room.
Wabi-sabi is the peace and tranquility found in the unadorned, everyday life.
It speaks of ease and serenity.
It is the functional beauty that comes from stripping away all unnecessary things.
It is the beauty inherent in the object itself, like a natural beauty.
It is the inner beauty and resolve.
It is about finding value in things that seem abandoned.
It requires a discerning eye.
It is like a well-maintained classic car that retains its beauty over the years.
It finds beauty in the passage of time and change, not in completed things.
It is the essence of impermanence and the absence of self.
The rise and fall of fortunes are the way of the world.
Cherish the present moment.
Live and die in the present moment.
Life is fifty years.
Compared to the heavens, it is like a fleeting dream.
Once born, who can escape death?
In a moment, one feels eternity and permanence.
It is the spirit of ichigo ichie (one time, one meeting).
People say ‘Ichigo Ichie,’ which means that the time we spend together now will never come again. Therefore, let’s cherish it. This poignant feeling makes each moment shine brightly. So, I am grateful for our encounter and for you who make this time fruitful. I give thanks to God and nature. Do not think that there will be a tomorrow; give your all to this moment. Each moment is unique. There is no time to mourn the passing moments.
This encounter itself is a miracle. Cherish the meeting with you and give my sincerity to this moment of encounter. That memory will become a precious treasure of the heart. It will become the truth. Do not worry, do not grieve, eternity exists in this moment.
Thus, this world is ultimately an illusion. The truth lies in my feelings for you.
Once, I, Zhuang Zhou, dreamed that I was a butterfly. I was so happy to be a butterfly that I fluttered about joyfully. I had no thought of being Zhuang Zhou. When I suddenly woke up, I was surprised to find that I was Zhuang Zhou. Now, I do not know whether I was Zhuang Zhou who dreamed of being a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming of being Zhuang Zhou. There must be a distinction between Zhuang Zhou and the butterfly. This is what is called the transformation of things.(Zhuangzi, The Butterfly Dream)
In the Sengoku period, there were no mobile phones or advanced communication technologies like today, so once you parted ways, you wouldn’t know where the other person was or what they were doing until they returned. Someone you laughed with in the morning might not return by evening. If you were lucky, you might hear news of them, but often they would simply disappear without a trace.
In the era of Madame Butterfly, people continued to wait for those who would never return. The belief that someone would surely come back to you was a prayer.
Meeting is the beginning of parting. The sorrow for lost times and things. That is why we cherish the present moment. Because life is fleeting, we must live without regrets. Even the cherry blossoms that bloom so beautifully will eventually wither and fall. So, let’s appreciate the cherry blossoms in full bloom.
This sentiment is called ‘mono no aware.’ And it leads to wabi-sabi.
Even the same flower looks different to different people because their thoughts are projected onto it. Previously, someone who didn’t understand abstract art said, ‘It’s because you try to give meaning to the painting.’ The painting itself doesn’t have meaning. The meaning is in the person who feels it. When you see the sunrise and think it’s beautiful, it’s because you have the ability to feel beauty. Trying to find meaning in the sunrise is pointless. Just appreciate it as a beautiful pattern.
Paintings don’t just depict beauty. They can also depict ugliness. If you see a painting depicting the tragedy of war and think it’s beautiful, then the artist’s intention hasn’t been conveyed.
When you see sunlight filtering through the trees or flowers and feel nostalgic, it’s because those things evoke old memories. The same goes for the smell of the sea or fresh greenery. These things don’t have inherent meaning. They just project your own thoughts. This shifting of the heart is called ‘mono no aware.’
Descartes should have delved deeper. Thinking is merely proof of existence. What is proven is existence.
Throw everything into this moment.
Live in the moment.
Wabi-sabi contains a tremendous resolve, quietly hidden.
It is a state of mind like a clear mirror and still water, maintaining a calm heart.
Live each day as if it were the last.
Treat even those you meet for the first time as if you have known them for a long time.
Even if you promise to meet tomorrow, part as if it were the last meeting in this life.
With this resolve, live each day as if nothing happened.
Move a hermitage, weathered by hundreds of years of wind and snow in the mountains, to your garden, polish it, and make it a tea room.
In that room, for example, invite President Trump, President Putin, and General Secretary Xi Jinping for a cup of tea.
I do not think of miracles as events like the parting of the sea or the resurrection of the dead. Rather, I see them as the everyday occurrences that we can believe in, such as the sun rising again tomorrow.
Therefore, I believe that the very existence of Jesus is a miracle, regardless of the debate over his resurrection.
The true miracle is that Jesus remained steadfast in his faith.
What did Jesus, Buddha, and Muhammad see and believe in?
What lies beyond what they pointed to?
What did the kamikaze pilots see and believe in as they faced death?
Unfortunately, true faith does not manifest unless one is driven into a corner.
I accept aging but wish to age gracefully.
I accept death but wish to die beautifully.
This is the essence of wabi-sabi.
If living means exposing myself to disgrace, I would rather die with dignity.
This is why Rikyu did not beg for his life and accepted death calmly.
This spirit was also inherited by the kamikaze pilots, who went to their deaths cheerfully.
Faith is a way of life and is often passed down through stories and dialogues.
However, if these stories are absolutized, the essence of faith is lost.
God is God, and we must simply face Him.
It is the people of later generations who glorify heroes and saints.
Many saints and believers were discarded like stray dogs or rags.
Many scientists also died under persecution.
What is important is resolve.
Even if abandoned and forsaken by everyone, the only thing that matters is the resolve not to lose faith. The true miracle is the steadfastness in faith.
The truth of faith lies in the lives of many pioneers.
It is seen in the deaths of Socrates and Rikyu.
I see true, pure faith in them.
It is not about believing in the gods of various religions, but in the world and existence before our eyes.
Therefore, those who face death head-on continue to question the meaning of life.
Thus, viewing the kamikaze pilots as tragic, pitiful, or unfortunate is superficial.
They fulfilled their lives.
If one has received life, there should be something that does not perish.
If death is an unavoidable fate, then dying for a great cause is their true desire.
Is it just a sense of tragedy?
Or is it the world of Nirvana’s tranquility?
I do not know.
But determination.
That determination has been lost by the Japanese people today.
The Yamato spirit. The pride.
I want to restore the pride of the Japanese people.
Is there anyone who, once born, should not perish?
Death is certain.
Many Japanese see the ultimate aesthetics in Oda Nobunaga, who danced and went to the Battle of Okehazama.
Just living as a Japanese person, gracefully.
I have decided to live with that in my heart.
Not ashamed of being unknown to others.
Just believing.
Devoting oneself to sincerity.
Without making a big deal out of it, doing the best at each moment.
That is pride.
Without boasting.
Quietly reflecting on oneself. For that, dignity and pride are necessary.
If, upon reflection, you believe you are right, then even if there are tens of thousands of enemies, I will go alone.
Things to protect with one’s life.
Wabi-sabi is the boundary between life and death.
It means the in-between.
There, there is neither life nor death, and one is freed from time.
It is Nirvana.
Nirvana’s tranquility.
In the Sengoku period, death was also a common occurrence.
Born in the morning, dead by evening.
Therefore, always face life and death.
Live each moment as if it were your last, so that you have no regrets when you die.
A samurai should always wear clean underwear.
So that they do not bring shame upon themselves no matter where they die.
Wearing clean underwear, that is the mindset.
Cleanliness is wabi-sabi.
And so, the kamikaze pilots would say, “I will go with vigor.”
Therefore, it is wabi-sabi.
The Tokushima White Chrysanthemum Squadron.
The White Chrysanthemum (a training aircraft for reconnaissance) has a maximum speed of 180 km/h.
It takes five hours to Okinawa.
The Zero fighter has a speed of 530 km/h, taking two hours to Okinawa.
Flying at low altitude over the sea at 30 meters at night.
For five hours, under the pitch-black starry sky, young men around twenty years old.
It is not a short time.
It is enough time to face the reality of death.
What did they see, what did they believe in?
What was beyond that?
Always face the present moment with the resolve to accept death.
With that resolve, you find peace in the unadorned simplicity of the scenery.
That is the way of the samurai.
Kamo no Chomei, in the opening of “Hojoki,”
The flow of the river is ceaseless, yet the water is never the same.
The bubbles that float on the stagnant pools disappear and form again, never staying for long.
People and their dwellings in this world are just like this.
In the capital of jeweled palaces, the houses stand side by side, their roofs competing for height.
The dwellings of the high and the low continue through the ages, but if you ask whether they are real, the houses of the past are rare.
Some burned down last year and were rebuilt this year.
Some grand houses have fallen and become small houses.
The people living there are the same.
The place does not change, and there are many people, but among the twenty or thirty people I used to see, only one or two remain.
People die in the morning and are born in the evening, just like bubbles on the water.
We do not know where people come from when they are born or where they go when they die. We also do not know for whom we trouble our hearts or what brings joy to our eyes in this temporary lodging.
The way the master and the dwelling compete with impermanence is like the morning glory and the dew. Sometimes the dew falls and the flower remains.
Even if it remains, it withers in the morning sun. Sometimes the flower withers and the dew remains. Even if it remains, it does not wait for the evening.