This term originally referred to troublesome conditions such as poverty or solitude. In medieval times, however, it became to refer to the concept that such superficial troubles should be accepted positively as constituting inner beauty. In the Azuchi-Momoyama period, tea masters such as Sen Rikyū developed this concept to the idea, representative of the tea ceremony, that true refinement exists in simplicity.
Japanese Garden Dictionary: A Glossary for Japanese Gardens and Their History
(C) 2010 by Ono Kenkichi and Walter Edwards. All rights reserved.
