podcasts

Japan is known for its rich culture. Amidst technological advancements, the Japanese people managed to maintain their customs and traditions. One example of this is the idea of kotodama (word spirit); the concept of kotodama encourages people to use the “pure” Japanese language instead of foreign words. How is kotodama used today?

Have you tried living outside your native country?

Living in an unfamiliar country may be exciting as this will lead you to new experiences and learnings. However, it also has some challenges, such as dealing with a new environment and adapting to a different lifestyle. With this, is it possible to find ikigai living as an expat?

Japan is filled with concepts that people can relate to; they have the themes of ikigai, kintsugi, ichigo ichie, and wabi-sabi, which people can apply to their daily lives, and that can
contribute to their well-being. Interestingly, they have this notion that can be considered the core of all these beautiful concepts, the idea of nagomi (harmony). What is nagomi?

One of the essential aspects of ikigai is having meaningful relationships; through these relationships, we can feel a sense of belonging, which leads us to feel ikigai. There are ways in which we can obtain significant relationships, and one can be through information sharing in serious leisure activities. How can we build meaningful relationships through leisure?

Being diagnosed with a critical illness is something that all of us would dread; naturally, we fear the pain, uncertainty, and especially death. However, these are things that we cannot control. It is better to acknowledge these unpleasant feelings and learn to live with them. How do we do that?

Does leisure have an impact on our sources of ikigai? There have been studies on the impact of leisure on well-being, but not much about its influence on various sources of ikigai. Good thing some experts would like to explore more on this subject.

Japan is a group-oriented society and harmony is an important aspect for them; understanding the situation without words is something that is instilled in them at a very young age. They even have this term omoiyari, where people understand the feelings of others while not including the concept of self. But is it something only experienced in Japan?

A lot of Japanese value the culture that they came from; it is something that they give importance to, but that wasn’t always the case for Makoto. It took him several decades to fully embrace his Japanese roots.

With the increasing attention on Japanese culture – all these Japanese psychology and concepts being applied in Western countries, what do the Japanese think about it? What does it really mean to be Japanese, despite how the West interprets their culture? In this episode of the Ikigai Podcast, Nick talks to Saori Okada on what it really means to be Japanese.

Hey, it’s Nick from Ikigai Tribe with my first solo episode. This is actually a relaunch or rerecording of this episode. For both professional and personal reasons I felt it important to do this as the subject of this episode is close to heart and has greatly influenced the life I live now.