Ikigai (生き甲斐, lit. 'a reason for being') is a Japanese concept referring to something that gives a person a sense of purpose, a reason for living.

Meaning and etymology

The Oxford English Dictionary defines ikigai as "a motivating force; something or someone that gives a person a sense of purpose or a reason for living". More generally it may refer to something that brings pleasure or fulfilment.[1]

The term compounds two Japanese words: iki (生き, meaning 'life; alive') and kai (甲斐, meaning '(an) effect; (a) result; (a) fruit; (a) worth; (a) use; (a) benefit; (no, little) avail') (sequentially voiced as gai), to arrive at 'a reason for living [being alive]; a meaning for [to] life; what [something that] makes life worth living; a 'raison d'être'.

Overview

Ikigai can describe having a sense of purpose in life,[2][3] as well as being motivated.[4] According to a study by Michiko Kumano, feeling ikigai as described in Japanese usually means the feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment that follows when people pursue their passions.[5] Activities that generate the feeling of ikigai are not forced on an individual; they are perceived as being spontaneous and undertaken willingly, and thus are personal and depend on a person's inner self.[6]

According to psychologist Katsuya Inoue, ikigai is a concept consisting of two aspects: "sources or objects that bring value or meaning to life" and "a feeling that one's life has value or meaning because of the existence of its source or object". Inoue classifies ikigai into three directions – social ikigai, non-social ikigai, and anti-social ikigai – from a social perspective. Social ikigai refers to ikigai that are accepted by society through volunteer activities and circle activities. An asocial ikigai is an ikigai that is not directly related to society, such as faith or self-discipline. Anti-social ikigai refers to ikigai, which is the basic motivation for living through dark emotions, such as the desire to hate someone or something or to continue having a desire for revenge.[7]

National Geographic reporter Dan Buettner suggested ikigai may be one of the reasons for the longevity of the people of Okinawa.[8] According to Buettner, Okinawans have less desire to retire, as people continue to do their favourite job as long as they remain healthy. Moai, a close-knit friend group, is also considered an important reason for the people of Okinawa to live long.[9]

Early popularisation

Although the concept of ikigai has long existed in Japanese culture, it was first popularised by Japanese psychiatrist and academic Mieko Kamiya in her 1966 book "On the Meaning of Life" (生きがいについて, ikigai ni tsuite).[10] The book has not yet been translated into English.

Importance

In the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, ikigai was thought to be experienced towards either the betterment of society ("subordinating one's own desires to others") or improvement of oneself ("following one's own path").[11]

According to anthropologist Chikako Ozawa-de Silva, for an older generation in Japan, their ikigai was to "fit this standard mold of company and family", whereas the younger generation reported their ikigai to be about "dreams of what they might become in the future".[12]

Studies have shown that people who do not feel ikigai are more likely to experience cardiovascular diseases. However, there was no evidence of any correlation with development of malignant tumors.[13][14]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "ikigai". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. Retrieved 24 July 2021. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  2. ↑ Schippers, Michaéla (2017-06-16). IKIGAI: Reflection on Life Goals Optimizes Performance and Happiness. Erasmus Research Institute of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam. ISBN 978-90-5892-484-1. Archived from the original on 2021-02-04. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
  3. ↑ Mathews, Gordon (1996). "The Stuff of Dreams, Fading: Ikigai and "The Japanese Self"". Ethos. 24 (4): 718–747. doi:10.1525/eth.1996.24.4.02a00060. ISSN 0091-2131. JSTOR 640520.
  4. ↑ Schippers, Michaéla C.; Ziegler, Niklas (2019-12-13). "Life Crafting as a Way to Find Purpose and Meaning in Life". Frontiers in Psychology. 10: 2778. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02778. ISSN 1664-1078. PMC 6923189. PMID 31920827.
  5. ↑ Kumano, Michiko (2018-06-01). "On the Concept of Well-Being in Japan: Feeling Shiawase as Hedonic Well-Being and Feeling Ikigai as Eudaimonic Well-Being". Applied Research in Quality of Life. 13 (2): 419–433. doi:10.1007/s11482-017-9532-9. ISSN 1871-2576. S2CID 149162906.
  6. ↑ Nakanishi, N (1999-05-01). "'Ikigai' in older Japanese people". Age and Ageing. 28 (3): 323–324. doi:10.1093/ageing/28.3.323. ISSN 1468-2834. PMID 10475874.
  7. ↑ Inoue, Katsuya (2000). Psychology of Aging. Chuo Hoki Shuppan. pp. 80–99, 144–145. ISBN 978-4805818954.
  8. ↑ Buettner, Dan (September 2009). "How to live to be 100+". TED. Archived from the original on 2019-05-06. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
  9. ↑ García, Héctor; Miralles, Francesc (2017). Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life. Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0143130727.
  10. ↑ Kamiya, Mieko (1980). "『生きがいについて』 ("On the Meaning of Life" in Japanese)". Japan: Misuzu Shobo. ISBN 4622081814.
  11. ↑ Manzenreiter, Wolfram; Holthus, Barbara (2017-03-27). Happiness and the Good Life in Japan. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-317-35273-0. Archived from the original on 2023-03-18. Retrieved 2020-10-04.
  12. ↑ Ozawa-de Silva, Chikako (2020-02-11). "In the eyes of others: Loneliness and relational meaning in life among Japanese college students". Transcultural Psychiatry. 57 (5): 623–634. doi:10.1177/1363461519899757. ISSN 1363-4615. PMID 32041496. S2CID 211078070.
  13. ↑ Sone T.; Nakaya N.; Ohmori K.; Shimazu T.; Higashiguchi M.; Kakizaki M.; Kikuchi N.; Kuriyama S.; Tsuji I. (2008). "Sense of life worth living (ikigai) and mortality in Japan: Ohsaki Study". Psychosomatic Medicine. 70 (6): 709–15. doi:10.1097/PSY.0b013e31817e7e64. PMID 18596247. S2CID 10483513.
  14. ↑ Tanno K.; Sakata K.; Ohsawa M.; Onoda T.; Itai K.; Yaegashi Y.; Tamakoshi A.; et al. (JACC Study Group) (2009). "Associations of ikigai as a positive psychological factor with all-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality among middle-aged and elderly Japanese people: findings from the Japan Collaborative Cohort Study". Journal of Psychosomatic. 67 (1): 67–75. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2008.10.018. PMID 19539820.
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