Mono No Aware (3)

If you follow my blog, you know that I have previously posted on the philosophy and esthetic of

Mono No Aware

...sometimes described as the "aaaahh-ness' of things", the concept celebrates the ephemeral, passing nature of all that surrounds us and the bitter-sweet feelings which accompany the realization that nothing is permanent.

I identify very closely with this philosophy. Observing flowers, and their faces as they morph over time, gives me a chance to experience the esthetic and the feelings which accompany it in an accelerated state - the several days which represent the life-span of a cut flower...

 

I must admit that I have always had a very difficult time throwing away faded flowers - to me, they are still very beautiful (if a little smelly)....but returning them to nature is part of the process and I accept that. When the weather outside is warm, I often lay my faded flowers in the corner of the garden so they rest in a place they came from....

The photos you see here, all taken by me, are of tulips in the later stages of their cut life....

I think they are still very beautiful, in a mature, ephemeral way, don't you agree?

I think it's important that, from time to time, we look at the details, we bring our eyes and noses closer to the objects around us, that we experience the 'aaaahh-ness" of things....

All photos by AJJ

Mono No Aware (2)*

I seldom blog twice a day but I wanted to share with you, as soon as I could, this photo I took today of a fading tulip....
~"the 'aahh-ness' of things"......

Photo by AJ

Mono No Aware

Mono no aware (物の哀れ) has been translated as:


"the pathos of things"

"an empathy toward things,"

"a sensitivity of ephemera,"

“the ‘ahh-ness’ of things….”

It is a Japanese term, central to the culture and aesthetic of Japan, denoting awareness of mujo or the transience of things and a bittersweet sadness at their passing.


The term was coined in the 18th century by the Edo-period Japanese cultural scholar, Motoori Norinaga, and used in his literary criticism of The Tale of Genji, a seminal, 11th-century Japanese epic tale. Norinaga noted that mono no aware is a crucial emotion which moves readers and while not limited to Japanese literature, it has come to be symbolic of Japan’s very essence.

The term derives from the Japanese words mono, which means "things", and aware, which was a Heian period expression of measured surprise (similar to "ah" or "oh"), translating roughly as "pathos," "poignancy," "deep feeling," or "sensitivity." Thus, mono no aware has frequently been translated as
"the 'ahh-ness' of things."


In Japan, the concept of mono no aware is perhaps best embodied in the Sakura, the Japanese flowering cherry, an enduring metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life. The flowers bloom each year for no more than two weeks and the Japanese weather service tracks the blooming periods (including “best viewing periods”) for the entire country. Picnics of entire families under the blooming cherry trees are a common sight. The fleeting nature of the phenomenon is celebrated, if not revered.
Cherry blossom is an omen of good fortune and further symbolizes love, affection and re-birth.

Mono no aware teaches observation and sensitive thought. The concept also celebrates the mixed emotions of happinness at the existence of an object or process and the bittersweet sadness at its passing nature.

Mono no aware aesthetic considers beautiful not just a flower in full bloom but especially a flower which is fading and whose fleeting life can be appreciated and celebrated...

credits: Flickr - yumi, florian hoeltje, nonoCaptures
japantravelinfo.com
telegraph.co.uk