{"id":3974,"date":"2025-05-14T10:21:40","date_gmt":"2025-05-14T10:21:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/martinemussies.nl\/web\/?p=3974"},"modified":"2025-05-14T10:21:41","modified_gmt":"2025-05-14T10:21:41","slug":"autism-and-collective-meaning-about-ikigai-and-fulfilment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/martinemussies.nl\/web\/autism-and-collective-meaning-about-ikigai-and-fulfilment\/","title":{"rendered":"Autism and collective meaning: about “ikigai” and fulfilment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In an age obsessed with self-reliance and individual success, the Autism<\/a> Moral Circle Project offers me a radically different approach, one rooted in neurodivergent solidarity, collective care, and shared purpose<\/a>. By revisiting the Japanese concept of ikigai<\/a>, last session, we explored what truly makes life worth living for those who think, feel, and connect differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Autism and collective meaning: about “ikigai” and fulfilment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In our increasingly individualistic society, the myth of self-reliance continues to dominate social discourse, particularly affecting autistic and neurodivergent individuals. The Autism<\/a> Moral Circle Project emerged as a direct challenge to this narrative, advocating instead for solidarity, mutual support, and collective empowerment. Our approach fundamentally rejects the notion that individuals\u2014particularly those with different neurological wiring\u2014should navigate complex social systems in isolation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reimagining ikigai: beyond corporate simplification<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At this week’s Autism<\/a> Moral Circle Project gathering, we engaged with the prompt “Create your own ikigai.” The concept of ikigai<\/a> (\u751f\u304d\u7532\u6590), often visualised as a Venn diagram in management literature, purportedly represents the Japanese secret to a fulfilling life\u2014the sweet spot where what you love, what you’re good at, what the world needs, and what you can be paid for converge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, this popular Western corporate interpretation significantly simplifies and distorts the original Japanese concept. For Japanese people, ikigai rarely carries explicit associations with career or financial success. Rather, as documented by anthropologist Gordon Mathews and Japanese psychiatrist Mieko Kamiya, ikigai represents something closer to “that which makes life worth living” or “purpose in life” (Mathews, 1996; Kamiya, 1966). In traditional Japanese communities, particularly among older generations, ikigai often derives from family relationships, community contributions, and simple daily pleasures\u2014not professional achievements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The anthropologist Iza Kaved\u017eija’s extensive fieldwork in Osaka further confirms this distinction, noting that ikigai encompasses “a sense that life is worth living” through daily, often modest experiences. Her research indicates that many elderly Japanese find ikigai in maintaining meaningful social connections and contributing to their communities in small but significant ways (Kaved\u017eija, 2019).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This corporate oversimplification exemplifies how capitalism co-opts and commodifies cultural concepts, reducing rich traditions to productivity tools. Nevertheless, despite these legitimate critiques, I found value in engaging with this framework\u2014even in its Westernised form\u2014as a reflective exercise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finding my “ikigai” \/ confluence: where passion, skill, need and livelihood meet<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The exercise prompted me to examine the intersection of what I love, what I excel at, what the world needs, and what I can be compensated for. This reflection revealed both harmonies and tensions in my current path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Areas of Convergence<\/h3>\n\n\n\n