Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life

by Héctor García

Only staying active will make you want to live a hundred years. —Japanese proverb

logotherapy,

Viktor Frankl’s logotherapy had gone out of fashion among practicing therapists, who favored other schools of psychology, though people still search for meaning in what they do and how they live.

At some point in our conversation, the mysterious word ikigai came up. This Japanese concept, which translates roughly as “the happiness of always being busy,” is like logotherapy, but it goes a step beyond.

something far more powerful than just these natural resources was at work: an uncommon joy flows from its inhabitants and guides them through the long and pleasurable journey of their lives.

those who discover their ikigai have everything they need for a long and joyful journey through life.

In Okinawa, women in particular live longer and have fewer diseases than anywhere else in the world.

Loma Linda, California. Researchers studied a group of Seventh-day Adventists who are among the longest-living people in the United States.

According to scientists who have studied the five Blue Zones, the keys to longevity are diet, exercise, finding a purpose in life (an ikigai), and forming strong social ties—that is, having a broad circle of friends and good family relations.