Y- Yugen!

A to Z challenge 2022 – Nature and I

Yugen (noun)

Yugen is an important concept in traditional Japanese aesthetics. There are moments in life, where words seem inadequate to describe your experience.

Yugen means a profound awareness of the universe that triggered feelings too deep and mysterious for words.

“To watch the sun, sink behind a flower clad hill. To wander on in a huge forest without thought of return. To stand upon the shore and gaze after a boat that disappears behind distant islands. To contemplate the flight of geese seen and lost among the clouds…” Zeami Motokiyo

Today on this penultimate day of the challenge I take you along me on a morning walk in the woods, where I experienced a wondrous feeling of Yugen.

The walk along the muddy trail of the forest was a revelation. An amalgam of verdant tan, the trees breathed an organic scent. The verdure paradise was slowly awakening from its deep mossy slumber into a moist misty morning.  The raw breeze and foggy veil had an mystic allure to it. Their entwined roots and strong embracing boughs were a testimony of their primeval connect.

 The twigs crunched under my feet as I ambled along the wet brown path.  The woody heaven came alive to the sounds of the forest. The chirps of the avian, scuttling rabbits, rustling foliage, scurrying squirrels, hissing reptiles, trill of the insects, sounds of arboreal creatures and the cry of the wild, all playing at their own rhythm yet orchestrating a perfect harmony.

The ambience of the forest stopped the clock. I lost myself into her welcoming arms. Under the canopy of a green palette, I inhaled the freshness of natural wonder, soaked in the beauty of flora and fauna, admired the medley of diversity, and listened to the pure and earthen tales of the wilderness. What started as a mere amble, culminated in an soul stirring experience which was hard to put down in words.

You can read my earlier posts from the challenge here.