Wellbeing
Written By Hugh Asher
4th February 2023
Next week is Children’s Mental Health Week and the theme for this year is ‘Let’s Connect’. For this reason I thought that I would take a slightly different slant and look at ‘Kintsugi’ or the Japanese art of mending or re-connecting broken pottery. Rather than throwing the broken items away or trying to cover up evidence of breaks, the cracks and breaks are highlighted using precious metals and celebrated.
The Japanese Art of Kinsugi
The word ‘kintsugi’ means ‘golden joinery’ in Japanese, and the technique is also known as ‘kintsukuroi’, which means ‘golden repair’. It is a Japanese art form in which broken pottery is repaired with gold or other precious metal, rather than being discarded. The idea behind kintsugi is that the repair itself is part of the pottery's history and should be celebrated, rather than hidden or concealed. The repaired pottery is often considered even more beautiful and valuable for having been broken and repaired.
Mental Health and the Concept of Wabi Sabi
In addition to being a decorative art form, kintsugi is also seen as a metaphor for the concept of wabi sabi. Wabi sabi is a Japanese aesthetic concept that values the imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete. It is often associated with the beauty of natural objects, such as flowers that are wilting or trees that are gnarled and twisted. The idea that flaws should not be hidden but emphasised is a concept fairly unique to Zen practice.
In terms of the benefits that applying the concepts of wabi sabi and kintsugi to our lives can have on our mental health, wabi sabi can be seen as a way of accepting and embracing our imperfections, flaws and vulnerabilities rather than trying to hide them. It is about recognising that life is unpredictable and sometimes difficult, and that it is okay to be imperfect and to make mistakes. Embracing wabi sabi can help us cultivate a sense of acceptance and compassion towards ourselves and others, which can in turn help to reduce stress and improve our overall well-being. It can also help us to focus on the present moment and appreciate the simple pleasures in life, rather than dwelling on the past or worrying about the future.
Wabi sabi is not about ignoring or denying problems or difficulties, but rather about finding a way to deal with them in a healthy and mindful way. It is about finding beauty and meaning in the imperfections and impermanence of life, and learning to appreciate the present moment for what it is.
Wabi Sabi and Nature
Appreciation of nature and the natural beauty that exists that beyond human creation is one of the critical characteristics of wabi sabi. It is about accepting the transience of all things as nature demonstrates on many levels from the annual shedding of leaves to creation of landscapes through wind and water, and the cycles of life.
As Beth Kempton writes in her book ‘Wabi Sabi - Japanese Wisdom for a Perfectly Imperfect Life’, “Wabi is about finding beauty in simplicity, and a spiritual richness and serenity in detaching from the material world. Sabi is more concerned with the passage of time, with the way that all things grow and decay and how ageing alters the visual nature of those things” -
Wabi sabi is an intuitive response to beauty that reflects the true nature of life.
Wabi sabi is an acceptance and appreciation of the impermanent, imperfect and incomplete nature of everything.
Wabi sabi is a recognition of the gifts of simple, slow and natural living.
Forest Bathing can help to foster an appreciation of wabi sabi, through recognising and appreciating the beauty of nature, acknowledging the cycles of life, the imperfections and impermanence displayed in nature, and the importance of viewing ourselves as a part of nature rather than apart from nature (separate from it).
The forest does not care what your hair looks like. The mountains don’t move for any job title. The rivers keep running, regardless of your social media following, your salary or your popularity. The flowers keep on blooming, whether or not you make mistakes. Nature just is, and welcomes you, just as you are.
Nature-Connection Resources
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A Small Book of Silvotherapy
£3.00
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All Four Nature-Connection Booklets
£11.00
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The Gaelic Tree Alphabet
£5.00
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Nature-Connection Journal
£10.00
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Both Greetings Card
£5.00
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Hinoki Cypress Essential Oil (10 ml)
£15.00
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Sit Spot Seat Pads
£10.00
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A Small Book of Forest Bathing Invitations
£3.00
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A Small Book of Sit Spot Invitations
£3.00
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A Small Book of Nature-Connection Ideas
£3.00
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Shinrin Yoku Blend #1 (30ml)
£30.00
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Terracotta Leaves
£3.00
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"The Language of the Leaves and the Wisdom of the Winds" Greetings Card
£3.00
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"Each sunrise is a reminder that with every new day" Greetings Card
£3.00
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A Small Book of Coping With Eco-Anxiety
£4.50
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Mindful Forest Walk Cards
£20.00
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Gaelic Tree Alphabet Tea Towels
£8.00
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21 Things To Do With A Tree
£9.99
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Little Tree and The Wood Wide Web
£9.99
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Deluxe Sized Sit Spot Seat Pads
£15.00
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Douglas Fir Essential Oil (10 ml)
£12.00
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Himalayan Cedar Wood Essential Oil (10 ml)
£10.00
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Eastern Hemlock Essential Oil (10 ml)
£12.00
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Highland Blend #1 Essential Oil (10ml)
£12.00
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Highland Blend #2 Essential Oils (30ml)
£20.00
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Hugh Asher
I’m Hugh and I’m a Certified Forest Bathing Guide and Forest Therapy Practitioner, having trained with the Forest Therapy Institute and the Forest Therapy Hub. My purpose in life is to inspire people to improve their wellbeing, and to help people to help and inspire others to improve their wellbeing. I do this through promoting greater nature connection as I am a passionate believer in the benefits to health and wellbeing that nature and increased connection to nature can bring.
Professionally, I have worked for over twenty years supporting people experiencing: mental health problems; autism; learning disabilities; drug and alcohol problems; school exclusion; experience of the care system; and a history of offending behaviour.
I have a PhD in Therapeutic Relationships, but Dr. Hugh makes me sound too much like a Time Lord.
