The simplest things are often the truest.
Richard Bach
These words by American writer Richard Bach may sound simple, but the meaning is far more profound. While the world is in a state of disarray owing to the COVID-19 outbreak, this is perhaps the most ideal time to contemplate life choices and discard the extra, to differentiate between what is necessary and what is a luxury. Leading the world in this regard is Japan, but what and how exactly is this minimalist lifestyle japan practices creating such a huge impact? Let’s find out in this post. Also, in this post, we’ll cover the often-subjective definition of a minimalist lifestyle, discover the minimalist lifestyle meaning and shed light on the minimalist lifestyle India can live while battling this lockdown while recommending to you some minimalist lifestyle tips about minimalist lifestyle books and movies.
Minimalist Lifestyle Meaning:
What exactly is the minimalist lifestyle meaning? Minimalism can be defined as an approach to life wherein you live with all that you need and only all that you need. Desirables, luxuries, and materialistic objects that tend to act as a societal show off are not part of a minimalist lifestyle. Minimalistic lifestyle is all about decluttering your life and discarding off stuff that is not required.
How can you achieve this way of life?
Yesteryear actor Will Rogers once said, “too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like”. What he may have been trying to point out is the urge within that each of us has to please and impress those around us. Family, friends, colleagues, or even your boss – one thing they all have in common is they talk about you. Most of us waste our time hoping and taking steps to ensure that the conversations others have that include you must see you in a very positive, more-than-you-are light. So, the simplest way to achieve the minimalist lifestyle is by letting go of such urges and doing what you do for your own happiness, for your own good mental state of mind. The ideology of minimalism is that less is more and that more only causes greed. You can achieve this through the definition of minimalism that you wish to. For example, some people may choose to go all onboard and sell off or donate the stuff that they don’t need, some may practice meditation and distance themselves from all luxuries in life, some may simply try and lead a life of less show-off and more personal happiness and satisfaction.
Quarantine – The Best Time for A Minimalist Lifestyle:
- Oh no! No parties, clubs, offices, meeting friends, hanging out at spots, nothing? What do I do with all the time now?
- Oh yes! No work, no stress, no peer pressure, no societal judgment! Best time to be me and work on myself!
Which two of the above can you relate to, in this tough period of lockdown? If it’s type 1, you have a long way to go before you can achieve something close to a minimalistic lifestyle. You must work on being type 2 first – a type that believes in self-correction and self-development. Once you have achieved that, we can move on to understanding how we can utilize this time. During this quarantine, there is no peer pressure, no physical connectivity and hence no societal pressure to show-off more than you are can take a break. This is perhaps the best time to take stock of your way of living and identify all that in your life that is surplus to basic requirements. A simplified life is an easy life, a life with fewer attractions to the fancy and a sense of calm to all that you do. Does it mean you must live like a monk? Not at all. You can have hobbies; pursue interests and you don’t have to throw away the life you have or all the things you own. Just the extras, those that are just there, not needed, and not serving any purpose other than helping you partake in a conversation with the words “oh yeah I bought it and own it coz I’m cool and can afford it”. The easiest way to do this is to begin my discarding off the duplicates. Then organize stuff in order from most used to least used and you’ll realize there is so much lying around that you probably don’t even remember, like that expensive vase or those glass plates!
The best example of minimalism is not that of an individual but that of an entire nation. Yes, I’m talking about Japan, and the minimalist lifestyle Japan follows. Japan, inspired by Zen Buddhism, follows a tradition of Danshari – the art of decluttering. The term is translated into three ideograms – ‘refuse’, ‘dispose’ and ‘separate’. Great public figures like Marie Kondo are spreading this concept by preaching one and all to throw away everything, just keep what you need.
Here are some minimalist lifestyle tips about minimalist lifestyle books and movies that can inspire you.
Books for Minimalism:
- The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own, by Joshua Becker highlights the art of being happy with the basic, the less and the necessary.
- Goodbye, things, by Fumio Sasaki is a true story of the author who, stressed out with his life decided to throw away the extra and lead the minimalistic life.
- The Joy of Less: A Minimalist Guide to Declutter, Organize, and Simplify, by Francine Jay is an ideal guide on how you can about the whole process and how it helps simplify your complex, stressed life.
Movies For Minimalism
- No impact man – in which the protagonist takes up minimalism as a challenge
- Minimalism: A Documentary About The Important Things – a documentary released in 2015 that stresses on keeping only what you want, consuming less and get rid of the extra.
- The Clean Bin Project – an eye-opener on how the mentality of ‘more is more and more is never enough’ is generating waste and harming the planet.
So that’s it about the minimalist lifestyle, the minimalist lifestyle meaning and ways to implement it, the minimalist lifestyle Japan practices and the minimalist lifestyle India can lead owing to the lockdown phase. Do you think you can try this approach? Do you think the minimalist lifestyle tips offered can inspire you? Do let us know in your comments section.