Yūgen

Sep. 2nd, 2012 04:14 am
[identity profile] theidolhands.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] 1word1day
Yu·gen (yʊˈgeɪn):
origin: ancient China; early translation ref. An Account of my Hut (1212) - further defined through Japanese culture.

noun
An ancient aesthetic (artistic philosophy) referring to that which is mysteriously profound; the beauty that is found to reside in the imagination more than the explicit.

adjective
Of or referring to the principle of yūgen (幽玄).
see also: Mono no aware, Wabi, Sabi, Iki, Miyabi, Shibusa, Kire, and other Shinto-Buddhism aesthetics.


"To watch the sun sink behind a flower clad hill. To wander on in a huge forest without thought of return. To stand upon the shore and gaze after a boat that disappears behind distant islands. To contemplate the flight of wild geese seen and lost among the clouds. And, subtle shadows of bamboo on bamboo." - Zeami Motokiyo


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