Kintsugi 金継ぎ
Japanese lesson on imperfection
Kintsugi
This is something I came across last month and I really love what the meaning behind it is.
Kintsugi is the art of repairing broken pottery with gold, silver or platinum. The cracks and gaps are filled with these valuable elements to hold a special meaning.
The philosophy:
The meaning behind this art is that the breaks and repairs are seen as part of the history of the object that are embraced rather than a disguise. This can be applied to basically anything in life.
The cracks and repairs are seen merely as an event that occurred in the ‘life’ of that object, that it has moved on from and is now serving its purpose. Rather than that break being the ‘end’ of that objects ‘life’ or ‘purpose’.
The break is not only repaired, but it is literally highlighted and illuminated by the standout material to catch someones attention.
Do you see where I am going with this? See any hard moment (mental struggle, disease, death of someone, breakup, rejection etc…) in your life as a break, and work on it and repair it, and move on. Don’t let that break define and dictate your life.
Another meaning that I personally took from it is that the object is NOT the same as before. It is not right to think that after a ‘break and repair’ that you or the object are the same as before and nothing has changed. You cannot live in a lie or in denial. The repair stands out to remind you that not only are you still functioning but also that you have been through something and you have made it through it.
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My name is Habib and I am a 5th-year Medical student currently in Cyprus. I grew up in Tanzania (Hakuna Matata is from the local language of my country and the second tallest mountain (Kilimanjaro) is found there).
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