Ikigai is a Japanese term that relates to finding “your reason for being.” It’s the thing that gets you bounding out of bed in the morning, ready to devour your day.
“Iki” means ‘life’ and “gai” means ‘value’ or ‘worth’ on a superficial or surface level and at a deeper level it is one’s true nature or purpose.
Your “ikigai” is your true purpose or bliss. It is the thing that lights you up. It is what fills you with joy, what inspires you and is the fulfillment of your heart’s desire.
When you experience stress, trauma or go through a major life change, this can lead to despair, overwhelm and depression, especially if you believe that your life is going to be the same drudgery day in and day out. Ikigai is a key component for navigating yourself out of the funk and getting your zest for life back.
How do you find it?
Go back to discovering “wonder” in your life. As a child, we all spent time being in awe and wonder with the world and also at how we interrelated to the world around us.
We went on adventures in our imagination and out in Nature taking in everything as if we were discovering it for the first time.
The first time you felt rain drops land on your face and head and splashed in the puddles it created on the ground. The first time a ladybug landed on your hand and then flew off. The first time you lay on your back watching clouds create paintings in the sky, continuously morphing into new shapes and creatures. The first time you went to the beach and frolicked in the waves, collecting shells and building sandcastles. The first time you tasted ice cream. The first time you went running with a long string tied to a kite and watched it dance in the air. The first time you swam underwater.
Whatever it was when you were younger, take a moment to ask yourself now, “What do I love? What lights me up? What brings me joy and makes me smile?” Give yourself a moment to turn inward and connect with your heart and from your heart what answer or answers do you receive? Come from a place of being in innocence like a child and notice what comes to you via your intuition.
It may be something faint at first, perhaps like the smell of pine trees, or a few notes of your favorite music or song. It might be a smile on the face of someone that you love. As you notice what’s obvious about whatever is coming to you, more and more will become apparent.
The more you get a glimmer of what’s in your heart, the more you get to enjoy not knowing what each day will bring. Instead of being stuck in a rut, perpetuating that your life is over, you get to be in anticipation of what each day will bring.
You begin to cultivate gratitude for the blessings that are in your life and for what comes to you each day. Instead of asking, “What do I need to do today?” you ask a different question, “What do I get to do today?” This brings anticipation and joy, like a child opening up a present on Christmas morning.
“I did not ask for success, I asked for wonder.” – Abraham Joshua Heschel
When you experience life through “wonder” it becomes blissful.
Life is not about how hard you work, how much you have achieved, how far you have climbed up the ladder of success. It’s about discovering why you are here, what talents and skills do you bring and how can you share them with others by being what you love and fulfilling your heart’s desire.
Fulfilling your heart’s desire is your true nature and purpose. Ikigai is the art of living your true nature and purpose.
When you live in the beauty and wonder of not knowing how your day will unfold but rather, relishing the surprises and gifts that it brings to you, life becomes truly magical.
Life becomes ikigai.
