Can Wabi-Sabi Save the World?
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| Illustration by Ed Young |
Can what save the world?
Wabi-sabi. You know…, that Japanese aesthetic sense kind of thing. Actually, I
don’t believe I’d ever even heard of wabi-sabi
until a couple of years ago when I was introduced to the concept by a children’s
story about a cat named Wabi Sabi who was trying like the dickens to figure out
the meaning of his name. Of course, the premise of the story relates precisely
to the fact that the wabi-sabi
aesthetic is quite difficult to define. We just sort of know it when we see it
– as soon as we know what we’re looking for, that is! Ah, but are we going to
let the difficulty of defining a concept stand in the way of us utilizing it to
save the world? For the children, for the kittens, for Wabi Sabi’s sake we must
try! Let’s begin with a few recent definitions put forth by various authors:
“Wabi-sabi is the
quintessential Japanese aesthetic. It is a beauty of things imperfect,
impermanent, and incomplete. It is a beauty of things modest and humble. It is
a beauty of things unconventional.” Leonard Koren (1994)
“[W]abi-sabi is
the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection and profundity in nature, of
accepting the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. It’s simple, slow, and
uncluttered – and it reveres authenticity above all.” Robyn Griggs Lawrence
(2004)
“Wabi Sabi is a
way of seeing things that is at the heart of Japanese culture. It finds beauty
and harmony in what is simple, imperfect, natural, modest, and mysterious. It
can be a little dark, but it is also warm and comfortable. It may best be
understood as a feeling, rather than an idea.” Mark Reibstein (2008)
Ah, but what is wabi and what is sabi? To be sure, the distinction between the two is not eminently
clear. They even seem to be used synonymously at times. Indeed, Iwamoto (2008) points
out that “in some ways, ‘Wabi’ is ‘Sabi’ and ‘Sabi is ‘Wabi’” (p. 186).
Notwithstanding this inherent potential for confusion, it also seems to be the
case that even a fumbling attempt at distinguishing the two will go a long way
toward bringing clarity to their hyphenated union. Let’s begin with sabi.
Sabi
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| Door in Egypt |
A close reading of the definitions
above reveals that ‘the beauty to be found in imperfection’ is the only feature
common to them all. According to Suzuki (1959), “When this beauty of
imperfection is accompanied by antiquity or primitive uncouthness, we have a
glimpse of sabi” (p. 24). But sabi should not be construed as
pertaining only to crafted objects. It might be present in nature as well. A
gnarled tree growing out of a rocky outcropping whispers to us of sabi, as does an ancient door. For crafted
objects to possess sabi, however, they
must unpretentiously marry art with utility, all the while conveying a sense of
seemingly effortless creation.
In addition to imperfect,
primitive, and unpretentious, some other adjectives associated with sabi are: asymmetrical, austere, authentic,
desiccated, desolate, incomplete, irregular, modest, obscure, rustic, simple,
uncontrived, unconventional, worn, weathered, and withered. More than merely
pertaining to physical appearances, however, sabi also encompasses the feelings that might be evoked or conveyed
by an object or landscape – feelings such as serenity, tranquility, and
solitude; or perhaps even chilliness, numbness, or loneliness. It is in this
area, by the way, that sabi and wabi begin to become indistinguishable.
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| Bristlecone Pines in California |
Wabi
“Of all the terms
in traditional aesthetics, wabi is the most difficult to define.” Varley (1984)
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| Cottage in France |
The essence of wabi, according to Suzuki (1959), consists of “[not being]
dependent on things worldly – wealth, power, and reputation – and yet to feel
inwardly the presence of something of the highest value, above time and social
position” (p. 23). Suzuki refers to this essence as “poverty” – a rather
unfortunate translation for us Westerners given the fact that we are generally
hard-pressed to find any redeeming qualities in what we consider poverty. The
poverty that is the essence of wabi, on the other hand, involves a shift in
values or outlook – the embrace of a different aesthetic – without which the
poverty that Suzuki refers to would merely amount to indigence and deprivation
(p. 284).
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| Well Bucket in Moldova |
Wabi, Zen, and the Tea Ceremony
Wabi
is closely related to the practice of Zen. Through Zen meditation, and the subsequent
realization of emptiness, aspects of the self such as wealth, power and
reputation become diminished (or fall away altogether, for that matter) and the
sufficiency of our present circumstances becomes realized – without regard to whether
or how another might find those circumstances lacking. It is the cultivation of
Zen practice, then, that leads to the embrace of a different aesthetic spoken
of above, which in turn leads to the truest realization of wabi.
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| Raku Tea Bowl |
Seeing Wabi-Sabi
Let’s put all of this together as we examine the image below. Oh, but first
let me mention one more general distinction between sabi and wabi. Recall
that I already mentioned that the former is generally more objective and the
latter more subjective. Let me also mention here that sabi often relates to the temporal domain whereas wabi relates to the spatial domain
(Koren, 1994)
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| Wind and Waves by Sesson |
At first blush this appears to be a
modest and humble scene – a fishing vessel and a spit of land upon which ocean waves
are crashing. Likewise, the composition might seem somewhat unconventional at
first – especially to the Western eye. The dense form in the lower left corner appears
to be inadequately offset by a tiny and crudely sketched boat seeming to hover in
a sea of emptiness. Rather than being unappealing, however, this asymmetry
actually serves as an intriguing invitation to explore the scene more fully, to
complete with the “minds eye” that which seems incomplete – in this case, the
vastness of the ocean. Worthy of note here is the fact that the composition of
this image might actually seem more conventional to a Japanese or Chinese
viewer – one more familiar with the one-corner
style of painting pioneered by Ma Yuan. If anything, though, the one-corner style is a convention of
unconventional composition!
In addition to the humble nature of
the subject matter, the apparent simplicity of its artistic execution, and the asymmetrical
incompleteness of the composition (all sabi),
we can almost feel the passage of time – the temporal aspect of sabi that I just referred to. Certainly
this image has the feel of a period of time long past; but even if it were a rendition of a recent event we would still be able to sense the passage of time in the representation
of the wind-shaped tree (is it dead, or has it merely lost its needles?) and in
the sagging roof of the little cottage. You did notice the little cottage, didn’t
you? Perhaps these evoke in you those feelings of sabi mentioned earlier: serenity, tranquility, solitude; or perhaps chilliness,
numbness, or loneliness. Note how these words might also seem to relate to the “poverty”
of wabi. What else do we see that
might be wabi?
Certainly the most moving aspect of
this scene for me is the reality that a fisher-person is separated from his or
her home and loved ones during the height of a storm. The strength of
the storm, by the way, is subtly but unquestionably conveyed by the angle at which the
fishing vessel sits – as if it is rising or falling upon a massive passing wave.
The separation spoken of is represented by the vast undrawn sea – the spatial nature of wabi. Does the cottage represent the fisher-person's
destination – their safe refuge? Is a loved one there, or are the
cottage-dweller and the fisher-person absolute strangers to each other? The
story is incomplete.
We might be concerned for the safety
of the fisher-person. We might be concerned for the cottage-dweller, for that
matter! Perhaps the storm will grow strong enough to totally inundate that
little spit of land. And, yet, there seems to be a feeling of sufficiency to
this scene. The sagging cottage roof will withstand the raging winds. The
fisher-person will use his or her skills and knowledge of the sea in
order to fish another day. In the face of annihilation there is contentment; there
is this moment, and it is enough. This is wabi.
Can Wabi-Sabi Save the World?
So, can wabi-sabi save the world?
In this age of discontent, in this age of disposable everything, in this age in
which material wealth seems to be the measure of all things, can we come to know
the sufficiency of a mended coat, a repaired piece of pottery, or the enjoyment of
a cup of tea with friends in lieu of a night out on the town or sitting in front of the television?
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| African Village |
We are awash in stuff – stuff to
make us feel good, stuff to fill our empty places, stuff to ease our workload,
stuff to give us a workout, stuff to fill the quiet spaces, stuff to facilitate
peace and quiet, stuff to show others the uniqueness of “who we are”, stuff to
be like everyone else, stuff to entertain us. We collect stuff until such time
as we begin to chafe under its weight and clutter, and then we sell it or give
it or throw it away – thereby making way for the acquisition of new stuff. Yes,
it is new stuff that is most enticing
to us. New stuff makes life easier than it was before, and with our newfound
extra time we are able to do more, enjoy more, and have more. Thus, we need
more stuff.
I’ve already written about Voluntary Simplicity – the philosophy of choosing to have fewer things in order to make
room for a richer experience of life. I’ve also coined my own expression, Aspirational Contentment, in order to convey the sense that contentment
is an ideal that we might successfully work towards. However, I am now seeing
with fresh eyes how completely congruent Aspirational Contentment is with the
Wabi-Sabi aesthetic. I’ll say more about this in my next post. For now, though,
I hope I’ve at least provided a glimpse – food for thought, perhaps – as to how
Wabi-Sabi might, indeed, save the world.
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| Earthrise as seen from Apollo 10 |
P.S. My next posting will probably not
be for a couple of weeks. I’ll be away from technology for a spell. However, I do
hope to be filled with a sense of rich sufficiency all the while. I hope that life
will be likewise for all of you! As always, thank you for reading.
References
Iwamoto, H,
(2008). Japanese aesthetic sense through Zen. The World Sacred Text Publishing
Association, Tokyo.
Koren, L.
(1994). Wabi-Sabi: For artists, designers, poets & philosophers. Stone Bridge
Lawrence, R.
G. (2004). The wabi-sabi house: The Japanese art of imperfect beauty. Published
by Clarkson Potter. Excerpt accessed June 12, 2012 via: http://nobleharbor.com/tea/chado/WhatIsWabi-Sabi.htm
and http://www.naturalhomeandgarden.com/nh-living/wabi-sabi-wednesday-simple-slow-uncluttered-beauty.aspx
Munsterberg,
H. (1962). The arts of Japan – An illustrated history. Charles E. Tuttle
Company.
Reibstein,
M., Young, E. (2008). Wabi Sabi. Little, Brown and Company. Hachette Book
Group, USA
Suzuki, D.
T. (1959). Zen and Japanese culture. Published by MJF Books by arrangement with
Princeton University Press.
Varley, H.
P. (1984). Japanese culture: Third edition. University of Hawaii Press.
Image Credits
Wabi Sabi the cat,
illustrated by Ed Young for Wabi Sabi
by Mark Reibstein.
The
Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest of the Inyo National Forest by Jim Gordon via:
Door
in the ruins of an abandoned city outside Dakhla oasis, Egypt, by Crashsystems
via:
Cottage
with stone roof at the cabanes du Breuil, Saint-André-d'Allas, France
Well Bucket in Moldova
Raku ware from the
collection of the Walters Art Gallery ,
Baltimore
Wind and Waves, ink and colour on paper by
Sesson via:
Apollo 10 view of
the Earthrise by NASA via:
Copyright 2012 by Maku Mark Frank
Sometimes, it's nice to know that someone has similar feeling about wabi sabi as mine.
ReplyDeleteWell done ! You spoke my thought.
Thank you for reading! I'm glad you enjoyed the post.
ReplyDelete