The Abundance of Less

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The Abundance of Less
The Abundance of Less

This book is a series of interviews of Japanese artists, poets, activists, ecologists and new farmers who leave the city to homestead whatever property they can find be it an old farmhouse or spare building. In return they find a life that offers them an abundance of time to pursue their art. Because of the post war migration of rural people to the city there were many such properties ten years ago when this book was first published.

The author brings to his subjects a delicate appreciation of their journey being careful to record their own philosophies as prompted by his questions. You feel him learning from them that there is more to life than doing something efficiently. And often choosing the old hand hewn way of doing something not only makes life simpler but offers time and the slower pace to pause and reflect on why the modern way does not serve the soul.

If that were all it would be enough, but he also delves into their lives as artists which in turn is a reflection of the choice to preserve a craft or skill. So readers learn about Japanese art and craft culture. My eyes were also opened to different perspectives on art which I found quite moving.

The stories are mostly of men with a few women. All are maverick in their thinking and in their choices they point out the pitfalls of Japanese traditions in education, family, marriage and other things we may have wanted to see as a good.

Interestingly a lot of the stories begin with a trip to India where these Japanese seekers discover very different ways of doing things that are so un Japanese. One man travels for years before settling on his life.

This is a book to savor and read slowly for just in the reading of it I was comforted and given fresh perspectives to consider.

After Fukushima Andy Couturier revisited all of the people he interviewed for an update on their lives and brought out this new edition. He also adds his own journey which allowed me to discover his connections to the Bay Area and that in fact I had already met one of his writing students who recently asked me to read through a book he wrote. So already I feel we are somehow connected. And that I am a part of this movement of abundance in living with less. And that is of course quite true.

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Taken on: November 24, 2018
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