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.[1]
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.[2]
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,[3][4] as well as being motivated.[5] 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.[6] 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.[7][8][9][10]
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. Socialikigai refers to ikigai that are accepted by society through volunteer activities and circle activities. An asocialikigai is an ikigai that is not directly related to society, such as
faith or
self-discipline. Anti-socialikigai 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.[11]
National Geographic reporter
Dan Buettner suggested ikigai may be one of the reasons for the longevity of the people of
Okinawa.[12][13] 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.[14]
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).[15] 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").[16]
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".[17]
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.[18][19]
^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.
ISSN1871-2576.
S2CID149162906.
^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.
PMID18596247.
S2CID10483513.
^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.
PMID19539820.
External links
Look up ikigai in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.