Ikigai – Purpose in Life!
Finally I read the book Ikigai by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles. What a wonderful reminder to make life simpler and find your purpose in life!
What did I learn?
- Never retire. Be busy as a bee all the time, but not a busybody!
- Eat less. Eat only till your belly is 80% full, eat small meals in small plates.
- Exercise. Moderate exercises are good enough, you do not need to torture yourself every day. (I was happy to read this, as walking is my daily exercise and I do not like running!)
- Stress less. Small amounts of stresses can be helpful to age healthily. One can learn even from unpleasant incidents, “What gave that person the confidence to speak so rudely? How do I make myself more resilient in future?”
- Flow – Find out what makes you forget the world and its problems. As for me, it is music and coaching.
- Vegetarianism – Such a common thing in India, and I am happy to be a vegetarian.
- Friend groups. I have a caveat here. Practising detachment in such groups is important.
- Ichi-go, Ichi-e – One life, one moment. For me it means to learn from the past, live in the present and plan for the future.
Some points I ponder about –
Should one feel unhappy if they have not found the purpose of their life? Or if we do not have what we like, can we like what we have? Would Ikigai apply to a person has to struggle for his next meal?
Finally, I feel that one should not simply obsess about having a long life, but a long, healthy, happy and independent life, helping others as much as one can and taking minimal help from others.