This concept of embracing authenticity instead of striving for perfection is still practiced in Japan today, but you won’t find the word wabi-sabi in the Japanese dictionary. As Julie Pointer Adams explains in her book Wabi-Sabi Welcome, the philosophy is a combination of two different words.
“Wabi means something like simplicity, humility, and living in tune with nature; it describes someone who is content with little and makes the most of whatever he or she has, always moving toward having less,” Adams writes.
“Sabi, on the other hand, refers to what happens with the passage of time; it’s about transience and the beauty and authenticity of age.”
