Wabi Sabi

Wabi-Sabi is the art of not only accepting your imperfections but also of appreciating them and making the best of life. It means taking pleasure of the imperfect, impermanent and incomplete. Authenticity is key. It is also closely connected with Zen-Buddhism.

Kintsugi is a good example of Wabi-Sabi: cracked pottery is fixed by filling with gold dusted lacquer as a way to show it's delicate beauty - the fault is not hidden but highlighted.

In Zen philosophy, there are 7 aesthetic principles for achieving Wabi-Sabi:

• Fukinsei (不均斉): asymmetry, irregularity
• Kanso (簡素): simplicity, clean and neat
• Koko (考古): basic, austere, mature, reduction to bare bones
• Shizen (自然): without pretense, natural
• Yugen (幽玄): subtly profound grace, not obvious, simlpe elegance
• Datsuzoku (脱俗): unbounded by convention, free
• Seijaku (静寂): tranquility, silence

Japanese Tea ceremony - The Way of Tea is also referring to Wabi-Sabi. The four principles of the practice are harmony, respect, purity and tranquility, aiming to awaken the senses and unite the mind and body.