What are you reading, Ms. Xu?
Tsurezuregusa is a classic Japanese collection of essays written during the late Kamakura to early Muromachi period (also known as the Nanbokuchō era). The title literally means “idle musings” or “writings born of boredom,” and the work consists of 243 short entries, each standing independently, with no fixed structure or sequence.
Yoshida Kenkō (1283-1350) was a court official and poet who eventually took Buddhist vows and withdrew from public life. He lived through a time of significant political instability and shifting social structures. The imperial court was losing power to the emerging warrior class, and cultural values were being renegotiated in the face of war and uncertainty. Against this backdrop, Kenkō chose solitude and reflection.
In this historical and personal context, Tsurezuregusa returns again and again to the theme of impermanence, known in Buddhist philosophy as mujō (無常). It is the idea that all things – whether beauty, relationships, or life itself – are in a constant state of change and decay. Nothing is fixed, and nothing lasts.
But rather than responding to this truth with despair, Kenkō meets it with acceptance and attentiveness. He finds beauty in the ephemeral: in fallen blossoms, broken objects, incomplete forms. His writings invite us to appreciate what is fleeting precisely because it is fleeting.
This distinguishes Tsurezuregusa from other works of its era. Compared to the monono aware aesthetic of earlier Heian literature, which emphasizes gentle sadness in the face of transience, or the somber resignation of Hōjōki (The Ten-Foot Square Hut), a near-contemporary text also focused on impermanence, Kenkō’s reflections often feel more light-hearted, intimate, and open-minded.
He also explores the appropriate distance between people. Kenkō suggests that too much intimacy can spoil relationships, while a little space may preserve their charm.
Elsewhere, he advises readers not to obsess over planning for the future, but to focus instead on the present moment: the sights, sounds, and sensations of daily life. This calm attention to the now becomes a quiet resistance to the anxiety that so often accompanies change.
Living in today’s rapidly shifting world, and facing the everyday stresses of academic life as a PhD student, I find Tsurezuregusa remarkably inspiring. It offers a gentle kind of wisdom: one that helps me stay calm, let go, and enjoy the small moments.
Essays in Idleness: The Tsurezuregusa of Kenko. Penguin
