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WORK TITLE: Ikigai
WORK NOTES: with Francesc Miralles
PSEUDONYM(S): Puigcerver, Hector Garcia
BIRTHDATE: 1981
WEBSITE: http://www.ageekinjapan.com/
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY: Japan
NATIONALITY:
https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/hector-garcia/1080583/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born in 1981, in Spain.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Software engineer. CERN, Switzerland, software engineer.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Born in Spain, but currently a citizen of Japan, software engineer Hector Garcia has written international best-selling books about Japanese culture. He has worked at CERN in Switzerland, then in 2004 he moved to Japan where he helped American Silicon Valley software companies enter the Japanese market.
In his 2011 book, A Geek in Japan: Discovering the Land of Manga, Anime, Zen, and the Tea Ceremony, Garcia goes full otaku falling in love with Japanese cultural pursuits, such as comic books, animation, J-pop music, and society. Based on his blog writings, the book offers short articles, stories, observations, photography, and guides to Japanese culture. In addition to debunking some myths about Japan, he describes daily life, the life of the salaryman, tourism, traditional art, sports, and the values of Japanese society. “Each individual subject is presented in brief, easily-digestible paragraphs,” while other topics are categorized by larger themes, noted a writer in Reference & Research Book News.
Garcia next published the 2017, Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life with Francesca Miralles, author of Love in Lowercase. Pronounced ee-key-guy, ikigai means life and purpose, or a reason for living, which is finding a place within you where there is passion, mission, vocation, and profession. The Japanese are the world’s longest-living people with a high quality of life. They remain active throughout their life and find happiness in eating, working, exercise, community, and collaboration.
In an interview with Kashmira Gander on the London Independent Online, Garcia said that people can incorporate ikigai into their lives by first stopping several times through their day and ask themselves, “Why am I doing this?” He further explained: “Then I have to learn how to make changes in my lifestyle to tilt towards more and more meaning. For example I’ve become stronger at my daily job when it comes to saying ‘no’ to things I know [I] dislike and I’m not good at, and putting myself into situations where I’m doing things that I love and I’m good at.”
In the book, Garcia and Miralles provide tips that readers can try right away for a more fulfilling life, such as a plant-based diet, adequate sleep and exercise, stress reduction, meditation, and tai-chi. Commenting that there is little new in the book, a reviewer in Publishers Weekly acknowledged that the authors nevertheless “explain clearly why each recommended action is critical and make it easy for the reader to take immediate steps.” On the Japan Times Online, Iain Maloney was disappointed the book does not connect ikigai with longevity in a convincing way, and rather “the book is a patchwork of platitudes about diet and exercise, broken by interviews with centenarians and discussions of trends in psychotherapy.”
Garcia and Miralles visited the village of Ogimi in Okinawa, which has the longest lived people in Japan, and interviewed centenarians and supercentenarians (age 110 or over) about the ways they keep busy, walk everywhere, and experience less responsibility and stress. In an article in London Guardian Online, Garcia explained: “What happens instead is that Japanese people of retirement age keep engaged with the world around them, moving on to work and activities that demand less responsibility. The idea is to keep mind and body active in order to fill yourself with purpose and ikigai on a daily basis.”
A contributor to the Green Creator Website commented that the book could have included sources to back up some of the longevity and diet claims, and that the interviews with the centenarians could have been longer, but overall “this book is a nice, entertaining book that reads very easily and quickly and can certainly motivate you to live healthier. I’ve learned some nice tips.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Publishers Weekly, June 5, 2017, review of Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life, p. 48.
Reference & Research Book News, February, 2012, review of A Geek in Japan.
ONLINE
Green Creator, http://thegreencreator.com/ (May 20, 2017), review of Ikigai.
Japan Times Online, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/ (November 4, 2017), Iain Maloney, review of Ikigai.
London Guardian Online, https://www.theguardian.com/ (September 3, 2017), Hector Garcia, “Want to live longer? Find your ikigai.”
London Independent Online, https://www.independent.co.uk/ (September 19, 2017), Kashmira Gander, “Is Ikigai the New Hygge? The Japanese Concept of Finding Purpose in Our Lives.”
KASHMIRA GANDER
@kashmiragander
Tuesday 19 September 2017 16:30 BST
We’ve snuggled up in knitted sweaters and filled our rooms with wood-scented candles in the pursuit of hygge - the Danish concept of finding contentment in cosiness. When that didn't work, we turned to the Swedish idea of lagom, or moderate living, and it turns out we’re still not happy. So maybe it’s ikigai, the lifestyle concept from Japan, that will help us live our best lives.
In some ways, Ikigai is the antithesis of hygge. Instead of encouraging us to slow down, it’s about find striving to find purpose in life, or raison d’etre to use a French equivalent. As such, it is a notion often adopted by those unhappy at work or who have retired. The word is composed in Japanese using the characters iki, or life, and kai, meaning the result of a certain action," explains Hector Garcia, the co-author of Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life.
READ MORE
The age adults are at their happiest, revealed
This all sounds rather fluffy. But studies show that losing one's purpose can have a detrimental effect. For instance, those who lose their raison d'etre when they retire become more prone to contracting illnesses.
But Ikigai isn’t an individualistic concept either focused on self-preservation. The social connections that we form are as important as any sense of inner peace, according Ken dos Remedios of the Hyper Japan cultural festival.
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"Although it is not impossible to have ‘ikigai’ without social connections, it is easier to feel ‘ikigai’ by creating social connections, perhaps because of the ingrained social connections Japanese society promotes and Japanese individuals are conditioned to seek," the Remedios says.
Now we're convinced to try it, how does one go about finding their ikigai? "Flow" is the first step, says Garcia. "When we enter a state of 'flow' we lose the sense of time passing. Have you ever been so absorbed in a task that you forget to drink and eat? What type of task was it? Notice those moments when you enter flow, and your ikigai might be embeded in those moments. If you increase the daily time at flow you will increase your connection with your ikigai.
READ MORE
The world's happiest man says one thing is making him unhappy
"Your Ikigai is at the intersection of what you are good at and what you love doing."
Since incorporating the ideas of ikigai into his life, Garcia says he has become better at appreciating and understanding what he finds joy in.
“I stop several times through the day and I ask myself: why am I doing this?” Which, frankly, sounds exhausting. But Garcia stresses that “noticing is only the first step.” The next is implementing changes - and this is where most of us trip up.
“Then I have to learn how to make changes in my lifestyle to tilt towards more and more meaning. For example I've become stronger at my daily job when it comes to saying ‘no’ to things I know dislike and I'm not good at, and putting myself into situations where I'm doing things that I love and I'm good at.
“I've also put more time and dedication into my hobbies: yoga and photography, and I'm enjoying them more than ever.”
Still, it's hard not to feel that ikigai - like hygge and lagom - is another sticking plaster we've reached for to help patch over the problems in our lives that run deeper than any buzzword word can solve.
“Although the words might be new, I think all the concepts are not really new," says the spokesperson for HyperJapan.
"Just as humans have lusted after objects and money since the dawn of time, other humans have felt dissatisfaction at the relentless pursuit of money and fame and have instead focused on something bigger than their own material wealth. This has over the years been described using many different words and practices, but always hearkening back to the central core of meaningfulness in life.”
Héctor García is a citizen of Japan, where he has lived for third of his life, and of Spain, where he was born. A former software engineer, he worked at CERN in Switzerland before moving to Japan, where he helped Silicon Valley startups to enter the Japanese market. He has written several books about Japanese culture. IKIGAI and A Geek in Japan are international Best Sellers.
Héctor García is a citizen of Japan, where he has lived for over a decade, and of Spain, where he was born. He is the author of several books about Japanese culture, including two worldwide bestsellers, A Geek in Japan and Ikigai. A former software engineer, he worked at CERN in Switzerland before moving to Japan.
I was born in Europe in 1981 and moved to Japan in 2004. I write books about Japan and I’m passionate in learning new things everyday. I love reading and photography. I enjoy more creating things than consuming them and I’m a dreamer.
You can start by reading my blog or learn what I’m doing now
What I’m doing now
I’m at home here in Tokyo, relaxing and creating space in my life after the launch of my new book Ikigai.
This is what I’m doing now:
Writing my next book.
Reading books. I keep the list on Goodreads.
Long walks with family and friends.
Studying biotechnology.
Bodyweight training, fasting, meditation and cold baths.
Last update was December 1st, 2017. This page was based on NowNowNow.
These are my archived Nownownow pages:
January 2017: What I was doing “now” on January 2017
November 2016: What I was doing “now” on November 2016
July 2016: What I was doing “now” on July 2016
A geek in Japan
Reference & Research Book News. 27.1 (Feb. 2012):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2012 Ringgold, Inc.
http://www.ringgold.com/
Full Text:
9784805311295
A geek in Japan.
Garcia, Hector (Kirai).
Charles E. Tuttle
2010
159 pages
$18.95
Paperback
DS812
Working in Japan as a software engineer, the author has been writing the Spanish-language blog, Kirai--A Geek in Japan, since 2004. This volume draws on that material in order to provide a wide-ranging perspective on Japanese society and culture. Although manga (comics) and anime are prominently mentioned in the subtitle, such stereotypically "geeky" subjects actually occupy only a minority of the discussion, which includes explorations of traditional arts and disciplines, the social character and values of Japanese people, society and daily life, workplace issues, and tourism. The blog origins of the book are evident in the way that each individual subject is presented in brief, easily-digestible paragraphs, although the various individual subjects are grouped together by larger themes. The volume is illustrated with a large number of color photographs.
([c]2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"A geek in Japan." Reference & Research Book News, Feb. 2012. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A278664801/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=c8469d13. Accessed 19 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A278664801
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life
Publishers Weekly. 264.23 (June 5, 2017): p48.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles, trans, from the Spanish by Heather Cleary. Penguin, $20 (208p) ISBN 978-0-14-313072-7
This compendium of best practices for a healthy body and mind is loosely organized around the concept of ikigai, a Japanese word Garcia (A Geek in Japan) and Miralles (Love in Lowercase) translate as "the happiness of always being busy." The authors focus on Ogimi, a village in Okinawa reported to have the world's highest life expectancy. They interview villagers who report eating a simple, vegetable-based diet high in antioxidants, engaging in continual physical activity, and participating in a strong network of neighborhood groups. The book also includes wisdom from supercentenarians (age 110 and over) throughout the world. Garcia and Miralles deliver clear, succinct information about diet, exercise, stress, sleep, and meditation. While little here is new, the authors have skillfully compiled key ideas related to physical and mental well-being into an engaging, easily accessible format with lists, charts, and illustrations. They explain clearly why each recommended action is critical and make it easy for the reader to take immediate steps (for example, by providing diagrams for basic tai chi and yoga exercises). Throughout, the book persuasively shows that small changes can help readers find more joy and purpose in their lives. Agent: Sandra Bruna, Sandra Bruna Agenda Liter aria (Spain). (Sept.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life." Publishers Weekly, 5 June 2017, p. 48. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A495538379/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=d1c47246. Accessed 19 Mar. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A495538379
BOOK REVIEW: IKIGAI, THE JAPANESE SECRET FOR A LONG AND HAPPY LIFE
Posted on May 20, 2017
Bookreview Ikigai
After reading the book ”Blue Zones” by Dann Buetner I learned two things: ”Ikigai” and ”Hara hachi bu” (later more on later). These are very interesting terms when it comes to a long and healthy life. Don’t we all want to live a long, healthy and happy life? Frances Miralles and Héctor García did research on the secret of the elderly in Japan. Why do Japanese elderly become so extremely old in certain areas in Japan? What are they eating? What are they doing to stay active? How do they deal with stress? What does their social life look like? All of this is discussed in ‘‘Ikigai, the Japanese secret for a long and happy life”.
” Only those who remain busy want to become hundred ” – Japanese proverb
What is ”Ikigai”?
The term ”ikigai” is explained in various ways. You can describe it briefly as: the reason why you get out of bed in the morning. It is the reason for your existence. The French might say ”raison d’etre”. The book also links to certain Western therapies (such as logotherapy) and may also be a question, such as: ”why don’t you commit suicide?” That’s a harsh question, but it’s forces you to really think what’s important in life. And right there lies the secret to a long and happy life. In the answer to this question you will find your own ikigai. This is one of the reasons why the inhabitants on the Okinawa island are getting so extremely old. On this Japanese island, there are more centenarians than anywhere else in the world. Not only are they old, but they are still active and happy, up until a very high age.
”We find our ikigai by concentrating on what is important, rather than what’s urgent. By constantly keeping an eye on what feels good, we are able to discover what our passion is.”- Mundo Urano
In this book, the term ikigai is translated as the bliss of always being busy. Ikigai is actually a combination of your passion, your mission and your profession. Your ikigai can be very clear, but also something you’re still looking for (which on its own may be your ikigai).
The elderly of Okinawa never retire. The best thing about your ikiga is that once you’ve found it, you don’t want to retire. Some 90 year olds say they have so many plans and don’t think about dying. They always keep having a purpose for which they get out of bed in the morning.
Bookreview Ikigai
Hara hachi bu & Moai
An old Japanese proverb is: hara hachi bu. This means ”eat until you’re eighty percent full”. The Japanese elderly don’t overeat and believe that eating a little less than you need is healthier.
Another beautiful phrase is ”moai”. This represents a group of joined people with the same interests. In this group the elderly are always there for each other when they need help or support. Whether you have financial problems or need help with something at home, you can always count on your moai.
Good advice
What I appreciated in the book were the advices that were given (especially in the beginning and at the end of the book). The conversations with the elderly were also interesting and could have been, in my opinion, a bit longer and more comprehensive. Some good advices:
Realize that the only thing that really exists and what we can control is the present. So we should not worry about the past or the future, but appreciate the things that are here right now. Keep in mind that things/persons are not here forever with us, but not in a way that will make you worry about it. The realization that everything/everyone is temporary with us should actually lead to a greater appreciation for life.
Keep resilient. Resilience is the ability to get through a setback and to overcome it positively. You can do this for example by living in the moment, in Japanese this is called: wabi-sabi. This means that you should try to see the beauty of everything that is perishable, changing and imperfect.
“The things we love are like leaves on a tree, they can fall anytime when the wind pops up.” – Emperor Marcus Aurelius
How to get old and stay healthy?
On the island of Okinawa in Japan, the most centenarians live per 100,000 inhabitants. In this book they share their advices on how to stay and get old healthily.
Limit stress consciously: Stress has a negative impact on our health. The writers share some tips on how to better manage stress. Meditation is an example to reduce stress, but also living consciously in the moment during small daily tasks can help.
Stay physically active: The writers explain that a sitting existence is the ”enemy of staying young”. They share a few tips to move more on a daily basis. Walk to work or walk for fun for at least twenty minutes a day. Don’t use an elevator or escalator, but use your legs. The writers say: moderately intensive moving your body equals a longer life.
Sufficient rest and sleep is important.
Nutrition: A healthy diet is of course very important. The diet on Okinawa is also called the ”wonderdiet”. It’s for example important to eat a variety of foods and not to overeat. The centenarians eat hardly any sugar. Often only 1x per week and then they choose cane sugar. They eat a lot of tofu and sweet potatoes and about 300 grams of vegetables per day. They eat a variety of foods and mostly plant-based. They also eat grains on a daily basis and eat small portions of everything several times a day.
Strong social ties with family/friends/neighbors is important. On Okinawa, the moai groups were created to provoide a social network. The elderly in these groups spend a lot of time together by meeting regularly and supporting each other in difficult times.
Stay mentally strong: It’s important to keep using your brains. This can be done by brain training or by looking for new situations.
Go out in the nature, smile and be grateful.
Bookreview Ikigai
What could have been better
What I found a missed opportunity was the fact that the writers didn’t include a resource list in the book with references. Many of their statements can be backed up with books and studies. I think the addition of sources would have made their message even stronger.
Also, it was sometimes difficult to determine whether the book was about how to get old healthily instead of finding your ikigai. I have no problem with the topic ”healthy aging” (it’s my favorite topic), but I can imagine that readers may wonder sometimes: is this a book about finding your inner happiness or about healthy aging? I will explain this with an example. The book contains a great number of pages with explanations and illustrations on how to do certain exercises (such as the sun salutation, qi gong and tai chi). As this is a thin book already, I found this to be a bit unnecessary and too far away from the subject: ikigai/ finding your life purpose.
”All is good” – Jeanne Calment (122 years)
My conclusion is that this book is a nice, entertaining book that reads very easily and quickly and can certainly motivate you to live healthier. I’ve learned some nice tips. However, if you want to read more about the topic of centenarians and if you’re interested in their lifestyle, I can recommend the book ”Blue zone”.
I wouldn’t go so far by saying that this book will help you to find your own ikigai. This is something very personal and this can be something very big or something very small. This book is not really about that. However, it gives you an idea of how it feels once you’ve found it and explains why it’s so healthy. I can also recommend this book if you’re looking for great insights and inspiration to live healthier and more positive. There might have been some more ”ikigai tips” in this book, but nevertheless this book is a great addition if you love self-help books with an emphasis on health.
Microflows & my ikigai
Ikigai is doing something where your heart is and that will get you into a flow. Ikigai can also be a microflow, where you enjoy daily routine tasks like doing the dishes. For this reason, Bill Gates for example does his dishes every night. It helps him to relax and he tries to do it better every day. In a better order for example by rules that he made up himself. Your ikigai does not have to be a big mission to change the world, but something you like, what you do everyday and what gets you into a flow.
My ikigai is without a doubt cooking, writing and photography. If I do this and the doorbell rings I need 5 seconds to get back on earth again. I completely forget about time and sometimes even where I am. I totally get into my flow. That’s clearly my ikigai and I’m grateful that I’ve found it.
And what about you? Are you still looking or have you found your ikigai?
”Ikigai, the Japanese secret for a long and happy life”.
$ 11.75
Publisher: Penguin Books (August 29, 2017)
‘Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life’: Does happiness lie in your purpose in life?
BY IAIN MALONEY
NOV 4, 2017
ARTICLE HISTORY PRINT SHARE
Ikigai is the idea that having a purpose in your life is key to happiness. Curious whether ikigai and longevity have a causal connection, software engineer Hector Garcia and writer/translator Francesc Miralles set out to interview the residents of Ogimi, Okinawa, the so-called Village of Longevity. Their resulting book claims that ikigai is “The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life.”
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life, by Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles.
208 pages
PENGUIN, Nonfiction.
It’s an assertion the book fails to live up to: They don’t connect ikigai with longevity in any convincing way. Instead the book is a patchwork of platitudes about diet and exercise, broken by interviews with centenarians and discussions of trends in psychotherapy. Their conclusion is correlation passed off as causation; the book is self-help painted as pseudo-philosophy.
It’s frustrating because there are many uncertainties about the aging process, and the lifestyles and psychological make up of centenarians are as much part of the conversation as genes and cell division. There is laudable scientific inquiry in the questions the authors ask but little evidence of anything more than journalistic exploration in their search for the answers.
For a self-help guide there is useful stuff here, but it’s nothing you can’t get from the “Tao Te Ching,” a personal trainer or Einstein’s famous quote about relativity and spending time with a beautiful woman. This may prove as popular as Marie Kondo’s book on the ancient Japanese art of tidying up, but as a contribution to the science of aging, it offers little.
Want to live longer? Find your ikigai
In Japan, people over retirement age don’t put their feet up. They harness their ikigai
Héctor García
Sun 3 Sep 2017 06.00 BST Last modified on Wed 14 Feb 2018 21.10 GMT
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Animated characters pensioner Carl Fredricksen and a boy, Russell, flying through the air holding onto a giant bird in the film Up
You are never too old: elderly widower Carl Fredricksen sets out to fulfil his dreams in Up (2009). Photograph: Alamy
It is now known that working for longer may help you live longer. This may not sound all that appealing, but staying in the workplace for just one year more than another retired and healthy counterpart has been shown to be associated with an 11% lower risk of death from all causes. But perhaps there’s another way to gain these extra years without commuting for any longer than necessary.
The people of Japan know this intuitively, which is one of the key reasons they have the longest life expectancy in the world.
In Japanese culture, retiring and not keeping your mind and body busy is seen as being bad for your health since it disconnects your soul from your ikigai. Ikigai can be translated as “a reason for being” – the thing that gets you out of bed each morning. Finding your ikigai is felt to be crucial to longevity and a life full of meaning. The people of Japan keep doing what they love, what they are good at, and what the world needs even after they have left the office for the last time.
After more than 13 years of living in Japan, I am still pondering the meaning of “retirement” here. There is, in fact, no word in Japanese that means “retire” in the sense of “leaving the workforce for good”. Retirement as we see it is not looked upon favourably since it implies that once you retire you will cease to do anything at all, become a burden on society and stop following your passions.
We should do less when we feel overwhelmed, but keep busy when we feel like doing nothing
What happens instead is that Japanese people of retirement age keep engaged with the world around them, moving on to work and activities that demand less responsibility. The idea is to keep mind and body active in order to fill yourself with purpose and ikigai on a daily basis.
In the course of researching our book, my co-author Francesc Miralles and I visited Ogimi, a village on the Japanese island of Okinawa, which is a three-hour flight from Tokyo. With a population of 3,000, this “village of longevity” enjoys the highest life expectancy in the world: the longest living people in a country of long-lived men and women.
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When we asked the elders when and how they retired they refused to answer us directly, not talking about or defining themselves by what they had done throughout their working life. Instead, they spoke to us in detail about all the things they are doing now in their 80s and 90s. “Every day I wake up and go to the fields to grow tomatoes. Later I walk to the grocery store next to the beach and sell them. In the afternoon I go to the community centre and prepare green tea for all my family and friends,” says 92-year-old Akira.
During our week in Ogimi, we didn’t see anyone idling, but neither did the villagers seem rushed or overburdened. They always had something to do, but not tasks that would bring the people here to a state of stress. In the west, our modern urban lives are generally ruled by bursts of intense hard work, followed by burnout or, at the very least, a TV or social media binge on the sofa as we tell ourselves: “I deserve this after so much work.”
The lesson we can draw from the people of Japan – and specifically the residents of Okinawa – is that we should do less when we are feeling overwhelmed, but keep busy when we feel like doing nothing. Don’t overwork, but don’t fritter those hours away either. The answer to longevity may well rely on a balance between the two.
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles is published by Hutchinson on 7 September at £12.99. To order a copy for £11.04, go to bookshop.theguardian.com