By Mubasshira Tabassum
The book “Ikigai” explores the very question of why Japanese people live long and live happily. When I first bought the book and skimmed through some of the pages, I could sense the therapeutic essence of the book. I have read very little books which I can connect to and would want to read again. Contrary to popular belief, I did not resonate with this book only because I live in Japan. The book made me step back and think about a lot of things about my life, my health and about my eating habits too.
I still remember the first time I moved to Japan. The culture shock definitely demanded me to start noticing the visible differences between Bangladesh and Japan. Especially in Beppu, every morning on my way to school I would always come across people in their 70s or 80s taking a morning stroll. To my surprise, they looked more genki (uplifting and happy) at 8 in the morning than me. Seeing them made me question my role as a 20-year-old hard-working student. On a more important note, the Japanese people living their lives like that can definitely make one envious. “What is the secret to their long and happy life?” “What am I doing wrong with my happiness routine?”- these are questions that often crossed my mind.
I think we need to sit back and reflect on our lives sometimes. Happiness does not be chased. Japanese people find meaning in the simplest of things. Some of their Ikigai (reason for waking up in the morning) is to look after their gardens and grow their own food. On the surface, as simple as it may seem, these little habits and finding peace in solitude in small things in our lives might help us find meaning and purpose in our lives.
By the time I finished the book, I found myself incorporating little routines like ‘Radio Taiso’ in my life and my mornings have not been better.
“The people of Japan believe that everyone has an Ikigai - a reason to jump out of bed each morning.”