For us, Mieko Kamiya is a heroine. She also became famous in Japan. The TV channel NHK dedicated its own series to her. An animated film about her life was even developed.

Beyond Japan, she has remained unknown in view of her significant work. Yet she laid the foundations of Ikigai research and Ikigai psychology.

The Ikigai is very fashionable today - due to a confusion with a Venn diagram by the Spaniard Andrés Zuzunaga, many believe that this is the Japanese Ikigai.

In truth, however, the Ikigai is much more complex and in-depth than the famous Venn Diagram. Ken Mogi speaks of a spectrum. The Ikigai is "as complex as life itself".

Why are we discussing Ikigai and Kintsugi at Finde Zukunft?

The Japanese Ikigai philosophy has a connection to Kintsugi.

Kintsugi is a puzzle, life is too,
broken pieces, mended with gold,
each scar tells a story, old
of pain and growth,
of what we've been through.

Ten years ago, we made a short film about the art of Kintsugi in Tokyo and Kyoto. When I first learned about Kintsugi, I discovered that the repaired cups often need to be left in a wooden cabinet to allow the glue to set and for the repair to become strong fully. This process can take some time.

Scars shape us
They ask us to accept ourselves
Scars connect us
They lead us to our inner being
They tell a unique story
They are part of our journey
Scars are precious
Scars heal – us
Living with our scars is living our lives

For us, Mieko Kamiya is a heroine. In Japan and beyond, however, she has remained largely unknown. This is also true of her work in the middle of the last century. Yet she laid the foundations of ikigai research and ikigai psychology.