You mayn’t know the meaning of Danshari, but fret not, Sensei is here to help you. I first came across this term via a Japanese TV program with the same namesake. Danshari is a Japanese concept that comprises the three methods of refusing, disposing and separating. Together, they refer to the sophisticated art of decluttering.

I was struck most by the elegance of ideograms and the visual imagery they evoke. Case in point: 没有规划的人生是拼图，有规划的人生才是蓝图。 (A life without a plan is a jigsaw puzzle, but a life with plans is a blueprint.) In English, we will say “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail” but because 图 can give rise to both 拼图 (jigsaw puzzle) and 蓝图 (blueprint), the same life lesson just strikes with more impact. At least to me.

Another example that impressed me was 本能 (innate ability) vs 本事 (true character).

The ability to evoke distinctive visual imagery is also manifested in the four-character idioms so prevalent in Chinese. To talk about attaining a goal, we have 水到渠成 (water will naturally lead to a canal). To talk about saving money successfully, we have 落袋为安 (feel assured when money hits your pocket, presumably never to escape). To talk about being concise, we have 言简意赅 (speak the inner core of a few things). Just so enrapturing!

This book also taught me 诗和远方. Literally translated, it means “poetry and places far away”. But it actually refers to the ideal life. This phrase was popularised because of a hit song that contains the lyric: 生活不止眼前的苟且，还有诗和远方的田野。 (Life is more than just dealing with the tedium before you, but is also about poetry and the distant lands.) This unexpected combination did make me pause and wonder: is there enough poetry in my life?