What is wabi‑sabi? Will this Japanese philosophy make me happy?

Source: Radio New Zealand

The ceramic bowl with an uneven glaze. The teacup mended with gold lacquer.

The images are calming and attractive.

They are said to reflect wabi-sabi – a Japanese aesthetic often summarised in the West as valuing imperfection, impermanence and incompleteness.

Wabi-sabi: things are flawed, things change, and things are never fully finished.

Ketut Subiyanto

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/03/11/what-is-wabi-sabi-will-this-japanese-philosophy-make-me-happy/