• prediction magazine

    Wabi Sabi

    Do you crave the simple life? Would you choose a quirky piece of vintage furniture over a brand new shiny one? Do you always see beauty in unusual places? Then you might already subscribe to the wabi sabi way of life. And if the above doesn’t apply to you, then wabi sabi could enrich your life by making you see the world, and yourself, in a whole new, beautiful light. Wabi sabi is a philosophy that hails from Japan, and was described by the Japanese tea master Sen no Rikyu in the 16th century as “the beauty of things imperfect, impermanent and incomplete”. Wabi sabi is about learning to be satisfied with a simple life once the unnecessary and superfluous is stripped away.

    It works on three basic principles – nothing lasts, nothing is finished and nothing is perfect. Authenticity is key to wabi sabi. The traces of unique cracks, chips, bangs and scratches in furniture and things are admired and cherished. These unique marks or ‘flaws’ are reminiscent of the passing of time, and are considered to symbolise an existence of loving use and service. Another facet to wabi sabi is the idea of the ‘obvious pretty’ versus ‘unique’ or ‘flawed’ beauty. The quirks of wear and tear are what transform things from merely pretty into something treasured and special. To translate the words directly from Japanese is quite complex as their meanings have evolved over time. Wabi can mean natural simplicity and an appreciation of, or humble attitude to, life. Sabi refers to the beauty or peace that comes with age. In modern Japan, wabi sabi is often referred to as the ‘wisdom that comes from natural simplicity’. Robyn Griggs Lawrence, who has written two books on wabi sabi (The Wabi Sabi House and Revisiting the Wabi Sabi Home), describes it as “the Japanese art of imperfect beauty, of accepting the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. Wabi sabi is the art of finding beauty in imperfection and of revering authenticity above all. Broadly speaking it is everything that today’s sleek, mass-produced, technologysaturated culture isn’t. It’s flea markets, not warehouse stores; aged wood, not MDF; rice paper, not glass. Wabi sabi celebrates cracks and crevices and rot, reminding us that we are all transient beings – that our bodies, as well as the material world around us, are in the process of returning to the dust from which we came. Nature’s cycles of growth, decay, and erosion are embodied in liver spots, rust and frayed edges. Through wabisabi, we learn to embrace both the glory and the impersonal sadness of these blemishes, and the march of time they represent.”

    The roots of wabi sabi

    Wabi sabi is not a religion, although its roots can be found in zen buddhism. It was first practiced by Japanese buddhist monks, priests and tea masters, and focused on how the virtues of a simple life could lead to happiness, peace and, of course, enlightenment. In the 12th century, a travelling Japanese monk called Eisai went to China and, on returning to Japan, brought back with him some of the principles of zen. This eastern mode of being teaches us to live in an often austere way. Its philosophy is to turn away from material things, respect the mundanity of everyday life, tasks and thoughts, and live close to nature. The zen buddhist monks often spent long periods of time engaged in intense meditation, and Eisai taught them how to make tea in order to stay awake. This process of tea making evolved into the famous Japanese tea ceremony. By the early 16th century, the tea ceremony was established as the most famous form of zen philosophy, thanks to a monk named Sen no Rikyu.

    Rikyu took care that each of the utensils used to make and serve the tea, and the atmosphere and décor of the teahouse, all refl ected zen philosophy. He used rough earthenware pottery tea cups, which were notably defi ned by their irregularities and imperfections; the tiny tea house was fashioned on a rustic mud hut; wildfl owers were simply arranged rather than painstakingly modeled into impressive displays, and Rikyu conducted the ceremony itself by dim light or moonlight to bring the participants’ focus to the natural world outside.

    Japanese people from noblemen to peasants were enchanted by this new mode of being, and it marked the birth of wabi sabi. Rikyu’s simple tea ceremony was known as wabichado and it is still carried out in teahouses across Japan today – people take time out from their busy lives for a momentary contemplative pause. They prepare and drink the tea just as their zen buddhist predecessors did.

    Wabi sabi in action

    Today, we can observe wabi sabi principles in the same way that the Japanese monks did hundreds of years ago. Just as they created a wabi sabi environment condusive to refl ection and meditation, so we can apply this approach to our home décor and the way we tackle everyday tasks to create a calm, thoughtful and gentle environment that helps us to live in the present moment and to appreciate the beauty inherent in life’s simplicity. The great thing about wabi sabi is that its principles can be applied to all areas of life, from eating breakfast to deciding what kind of house to live in.

    A wabi sabi enthusiast (called a ‘wabibito’ in Japan) is described as ‘a person who could make something complete out of eight parts when most of us would use ten.’ This could mean living in one rather than a two-bedroom home, driving a smaller car, choosing a quirky table from a fl ea market over a shiny new one from Habitat, or simply opting to eat just enough to be pleasantly satisfi ed at Sunday lunch instead of shovelling in more food than you can stomach!

    Wabi sabi teaches us to appreciate what we have, instead of always being dissatisfied and pining for what we are lacking. Daisetz T Suzuki, who was one of the first scholars to interpret Japanese culture for westerners, described wabi sabi as “an active aesthetical appreciation of poverty,” not referring to poverty as we in the West understand (and fear) it, but in the more romantic sense of shrugging off the huge weight of material concerns from our lives. In the tough economic times that are currently looming over us, we’re starting to look beyond financial means to find happiness. It’s in these situations that wabi sabi comes into its own.

    Simon Brown, author of Practical Wabi Sabi, says that when you create your home and lifestyle using wabi sabi, you are more in tune with nature, which means you are more capable of meeting life’s challenges. He says that wabi sabi has helped him hugely: “I can live more of my life, in the moment through my senses, as result of exploring wabi sabi. This has really helped me enjoy my life as it happens and the practices have greatly enhanced my ability to be creative and create my own insights.” Brown advocates clearing out the clutter from your home as “in a wabi sabi life, less is more” to create space and simplicity in your life.

    He also advocates the use of everyday household items made from natural materials as they will change their appearance over time, and so remind you that life is transient. If you choose natural materials like leather furniture, wooden floors and paper screens, they are subject to the effects of time and will make your home feel dynamic instead of stagnant. The presence of plants and flowers in the home (and obviously the garden) is a simple way of reminding yourself of the process of birth and decay integral to wabi sabi as the plant goes through its natural processes of budding, flowering and fading away in cycles. Committing to eating only regional, seasonal and organic food is another example of wabi sabi in practice as you’re paying attention to what you eat and where it comes from and spending time on the act of preparing and eating a meal. Not only does this attitude to food respect the cycles of nature in a wabi sabi way, but it’s healthier too.

    Wabi sabi can help people in a number of different ways. Robyn Griggs Lawrence says that one of the ways it has helped her has been by teaching her to simply slow down. “In the modern world, where people no longer have time to think and expect things to be done yesterday, it encompasses so many lifestyle elements that are crucial,” she explains. “It has taught me to take time to find beauty in what seems ordinary, to allow myself time for solitude and to live for the moment, secure in knowing that life is cyclical. It has taught me to accept my body’s aging and appreciate my own wisdom. I’ve learned to try to make things myself instead of buying those spit out by a machine, and smile if my work is flawed.”

    In our fast-paced world, where we cling to youth and sink into stress and despondency when things are not immediately perfect, wabi sabi offers a beautiful way of appreciating our life. It allows us to live in harmony with our surroundings and other people, working with them, not fighting against them. Through wabi sabi, we understand that all things, including ourselves, are transient.

    Wabi sabi values

    • Live in the moment – release thoughts of the past and future
    • Simplicity – pay greatest attention to the few things that are most important to you
    • Emptiness – create the space for new things to come into your life
    • Sobriety – retain dignity, self control, common sense and level headedness
    • Intuition – understand without analytical or logical reasoning
    • Transient beauty – nurture an appreciation for changing appearances
    • Nothing is complete – understand that life is a process
    • Acceptance – adapt to changing circumstances and make the best of any situation
    • Imperfection – embrace and love people, things and nature as they are
    • Symmetry – don’t try to make anything symmetrical or inhibit it with forced, regimented patterns
    • Appreciation – cultivate an attitude of boundless appreciation for yourself and the world you live in
    • Tranquillity – be free from all unnecessary noise, clutter and distractions that pull us away from finding inner peace
    • Naturalness – live close to nature, using natural and organic materials
    • Non attachment – be free from doctrines, concepts and beliefs

    Try it yourself

    Wabi sabi your life with Robyn Griggs Lawrence’s guide:

    • Rage against the machines. Wash dishes by hand rather than pressing the dishwasher button, and take 10 minutes to sweep the floor instead of savaging your space with the roar of the vacuum
    • Get crafty. Making and growing things yourself is a gentle rebellion against global mass production. Spinning wool, making pottery and weaving baskets also provides a tactile meditation
    • Cleanliness is key. An ancient tea master described wabisuki (a taste for all things wabi) as “putting one’s whole heart to cleaning and repeating it several times.” Every time you sweep, dust or wash sheets, you’re creating clean, sacred space
    • Cultivate sabi. Antique doorknobs and radiator grates give your home character. Building with salvage gives a new house depth and history
    • Enjoy imperfection. Real people leave piles of post in the hall and let the fl owers grow a little too long. It’s ok to allow the dog on the bed and have cheeky or unpredictable cats
    • Choose handmade things. A piece made by hand holds the steady, solid vibrations of its maker rather than of a jarring, impersonal machine

     

  • prediction magazine

    PLANT MEDICINE – SAN PEDRO

    Our Deputy Editor Gemma Birss didn’t have far to travel for the journey of a lifetime, thanks to a shamanic San Pedro cactus ceremony in Essex…

    Everyone who knows their paracetamol from their plant medicine was full of anticipation when word hit the street that Lesley La Gringa was flying in from Peru with her precious cargo of San Pedro cactus, or Wachuma. San Pedro is used throughout the Andes as a medicine to cure all ailments; physical, mental, emotional or spiritual. It contains the hallucinogen Mescaline, eye-opening experiences of which are documented by Carlos Castaneda in his cult classic The Teachings of Don Juan and in Aldous Huxley’s The Doors of Perception.

    By ingesting this sacred plant medicine, you invite its spirit to guide you on a journey of healing. Not only can the chemical compounds of this cactus shed light on your life path, spiritual questions, fears and relationships, but Lesley has known it to cure cancer, alopecia and paralysis, saying that it “reconnects us to ourselves and also to Mother Earth. The plant is a master teacher. It helps us to heal, to grow, to learn and awaken, and assists us in reaching higher states of truth and consciousness.”

    Feeling the fear

    I have heard about the benefi ts of plant medicine for a good few years, with many swearing by lessons learnt on San Pedro, so when I heard that plant medicine guru Lesley was holding a ceremony in Essex, I instantly signed up. Needless to say, I was nervous. A San Pedro session can be a turbulent ride of facing your demons and coming to terms with the gnarly truth of your past. What it teaches you, confirms Lesley, is that essentially no experience is ‘bad’, just as long as you learn from it. San Pedro shows you what you needed to learn from any given experience so you can heal and move forward. Equally, San Pedro can guide you to a profound understanding of your interconnected relationship with the Universe.

    When I tell Lesley I’m hesitant, she reassures me that whatever you experience with San Pedro is absolutely perfect for that time and you will never be faced with more than you can handle. That said, the main ingredient that you need to bring to the table is a good dose of trust in the spirit of San Pedro. My fears are slightly allayed, especially as the ceremony is being hosted by esteemed shamanic practitioner Skie Hummingbird, who is also assisting. I’m in very capable hands.

    Before the San Pedro ceremony, we are told to follow a diet of no spices, fatty food, citrus, meat or alcohol, and we must fast on the morning before (although water and herbal tea are allowed) There is a possibility of vomiting while on San Pedro, which is considered to be a healthy purging of outdated, stuck emotions and fears.

    When I first meet Lesley, I am blown away by her humility. Rather than acknowledging her role as the international queen of plant medicine that she is, Lesley describes herself as “San Pedro’s humble assistant”. With a shock of long blonde hair and sparkling sky-blue eyes, Lesley is originally from South Africa. She now lives in Peru where she grows, nurtures and brews her own cacti while also running a travel business, hostel and boutique hotel. She juggles these ventures with travelling the world administering San Pedro medicine to all who are open to receiving it.

    The journey begins

    At 10am, after tea and loo breaks, the 17 participants gather in a marquee in the garden. There is an altar at one end of the marquee upon which we are invited to place something that is close to our hearts. We then sit in a large circle with blankets, cushions and water in preparation for our journey.

    Although there are two 12-year-old girls drinking with us (San Pedro is suitable for most children), the group is a friendly mix of men and women aged between 20 and 60. Some have ducked out of hectic careers in the city for a day of healing, while others are housewives, artists and alternative therapists. Many have drunk plant medicine before, both San Pedro and its fi ercer cousin Ayahuasca, but I’m certainly not alone in being a first-timer.

    Lesley doles out our doses of bright green dehydrated cactus powder, which we have to mix well in a glass of water using a fork before downing it. It tastes foul, but you’re given a boiled sweet to take the vile edge off.

    Once we have all drunk, a talking stick is passed around the group. This is our opportunity to introduce ourselves and vocalise our intention for the healing we would like to receive. Once we’ve gone around all 17 people, the San Pedro is starting to kick in. We each fi nd a comfortable place to start our journey. Some lie back in the marquee, while others fi nd a space in the sunny garden or in the house. Lesley and Skie are on hand to keep a close eye on us as San Pedro launches us each into our own psychedelic Universe.

    My first impression is nausea; a sickly, unsettled feeling. Nevertheless, I close my eyes, pull my sleeping bag around me and wait for the journey to begin. Beautiful but strange visuals pour across my eyelids, interspersed with some unpleasant reminders of my past. I slip in and out of consciousness, a number of journeys seeming to happen simultaneously; one into my past, forcing me to look at things I’d rather forget, one into a beautiful kaleidoscope of other worldly visuals and one acutely sensitive to my immediate environment.

    Some individuals are crying, screaming, keening, thrashing about and retching as they wrestle with their demons. Lesley and Skie rush to assist anyone who appears to be struggling. Others are happily drifting off into their own journeys without any trauma or distress. One woman hugs a tree, another man meditates on the grass, while another sings and practises yoga.

    I spend about four hours in the marquee fl oating in nauseous visuals before I get up. Although I can walk, it’s not easy to keep my balance. I make myself a cup of tea and chat to Lesley and Skie before moving into the garden to lie in the Sun. I am fully conscious of my actions, but everything has a strange, otherworldly feel to it.

    The day passes quickly and, before I know it, a campfi re has been lit and a hearty stew is simmering on the stove. The last thing I feel like doing is eating. My stomach still feels a little unsettled, but I haven’t eaten all day so I manage a couple of spoonfuls. I chat to the others as they slowly come to. They are glowing with happiness (including those who had seemed to struggle with some pretty feisty demons earlier) and there is a sense that a great healing has taken place for most. The 12-year-old girls are quite blasé about their experiences, saying that it was no big deal (quickly adding that they wanted to drink again). The thought of leaving Skie’s safe haven while I’m still tingling with the sensation of San Pedro doesn’t fill me with joy, but I have to catch the last train to the bright lights, big city of London at 11pm – a scary prospect!

    I enjoyed my journey with San Pedro, but more than this, I learnt that I simply appreciate being me as I am, openhearted and feeling my way through life’s incredible lessons in my own way. I have huge respect for what this sacred medicine can do for people. There are many paths to liberation and San Pedro is a legitimate and very beautiful one.

    Find out more about San Pedro plant medicine Visit Lesley La Gringa in Peru for a San Pedro journey. You can stay at her hostel, www.casadelagringa.com, or at her boutique hotel, www.andeanwingshotel.com, both in Cusco, Peru. Find out about Lesley’s tour company at www.anotherplanetperu.net For further shamanic workshops in the UK, visitwww.shamanicskie.co.uk

prediction magazineprediction magazineprediction magazineprediction magazine