Japanese Ways of Inviting Health And Happiness Into Your Life
- Editor OGN Daily
- Aug 1
- 2 min read
For centuries, the Japanese have been turning everyday activities into powerful practices of self-care and self-cultivation. Here are some of their routines that you may like to adopt into your life.
Kintsugi: This roughly translates as ‘golden joinery’, and is the philosophy that the value of an object is not in its beauty, but in its imperfections, and that these imperfections are something to celebrate, not hide. The art of kintsugi is a technique where broken pottery pieces are repaired with gold, creating an even stronger, more beautiful piece of art. Every break is unique and, instead of repairing an item to make it appear like new, the 400-year-old art form highlights the scars as part of the design. Kintsugi is based on the belief that breakage and imperfections are part of life, and that what is broken can be mended into something uniquely beautiful if treated with the love, care and attention.
Ikebana: The Japanese tradition of arranging flowers. Dating back to ancient Buddhist flower offering ceremonies, ikebana is a centuries-old art form. It’s based on the idea that the process of working with nature to create something beautiful can be meditative and healing.
Shinrin-Yoku: To find peace and recovery, the Japanese practice something called shinrin-yoku, or “forest bathing”. Taking a forest bath means immersing yourself in a forest for several hours and soaking up its sights, smells and sounds. Simply being in a forest and absorbing its atmosphere has a restorative effect on the body and mind.
Omakase: There’s a wonderful Japanese tradition when eating out. Omakase, which means “I’ll leave it up to you”, is a dining tradition in which the selection of dishes is left entirely to the chef and customers eat whatever they are served. A common practice at sushi bars, omakase dining revolves around trust, respect and appreciation.
Ofuro: In Japan, perhaps no daily habit is as sacred as soaking in a steaming bath at the end of a long day. The Japanese bathe daily, whether in their own private bathroom, a public bathhouse or a communal hot spring. They don’t just plunge in - the tradition of Japanese ofuro is carefully crafted to cleanse, heal and relax. Settling into a cradle of soothing warm water and simply experiencing the sensations of the bath - the water, steam, heat and fragrances - bring both the body and mind into a profound state of well-being.
