Ikigai - The Berlin Session

A workshop about the meaning of life

The meaning of life

This is 2024 - and while the world is perceived to be in more of a predicament than ever before, the enjoyment of beauty and meaning has become a difficult burden to many. How can we enjoy a meaningful life - when what we are witnessing in the world around us is no longer violence, but extreme violence, "enacted on a scale that brings humanity so close to inhumanity that for many it shakes the very sense of what we, as humans, actually are." (words by the British novelist Isabella Hammad). 

If unacceptable violence seems to be essence of everything that we humans are accountable for, among each other as well as in relationship to the planet and the universe, then how shall we find meaning and happiness?

And yet, we feel that we must. For beauty and meaning are always worth sharing - and the dissemination of meaning, even in the smallest of things, has a unique healing power.

Ikigai is a rather mystical Japanese word, vaguely meaning something as the meaning of life (from 生, life with がい, reason, meaning). The word was coined in 1966 by Kamiya Mieko, who in that year published 生きがいについて (Ikigai ni-Tsuite, About meaning in life), which became a classic in Japanese motivational literature. Kamiya Mieko (1914-1979) was a prolific writer and translator, and an educationist and psychiatrist, who treated patients with Hansen's Disease (leprosy) living on an offshore island in the Setouchi Inland Sea.

At the same time, it's okay not to look for the meaning of life

We don't have to strive to lead a meaningful life or a life worth living. People can live happily enough without searching all the time. (Jikisai Minami, 2017)

It is certainly okay to live contentedly, on a lightly vibrating happiness scale, and come across meaning and beauty as we go (look for the "A" line) - in stark contrast with obsessive goal-setting and constant pursuit of the grand-scale stuff that might provide you a sense of meaning (as represented by situation "B").

What this is

This is a half-day collaborative workshop, hosted by Sebastian Wolf Siebzehnruebl and facilitated by Francis Laleman.
(click for bio)

Francis Laleman is a Singapore-based Asia Studies specialist, Sanskrit and Pali teacher, and non-conventional educationist, who moved from academics (pursuing a doctorate in historical Buddhism in India) to being an apprentice monk, and from there to social work and non-conventional education. Further to travels and retreats in Japan, Francis came across the work of Kamiya Mieko - and started developing methodologies and activities to teach her unique theory and practice of meaning. During the Covid lockdowns, he met online with Stephanie Fehr, a Mallorca-based German therapist who had acquired the translation rights of Kamiya Mieko's Japanese writings. Together, Francis and Stephanie undertook to co-author a book on Ikigai, its sources and its methodology, with (for the first time) extensive direct translations from the Japanese, and an Ikigai DIY section based on collective workshop try-outs. The book is due to appear in Germany in the course of 2024 (Buechergilde).

The Program

• The cadence of life: working in fours and in threes
• Introducing Kamiya Mieko
• Erich Fromm, Eckhart Tolle, and other sources
• Storytelling with placeholders
• Ikigai activities (sneak preview of the forthcoming book)
• The Meaning of Life

Who this is for

This workshop is for everyone who isn't afraid to discuss things that matter.

Where

The workshop takes place at The Atelier Gardens, an iconic 6-acre film campus overlooking Berlin’s famous Tempelhof airport. Known as “UFA Studios Tempelhof” and later as “Berliner Union-Film” or “BUFA”, it has been home to the pioneers of film, and is steeped in more than 100 years of film and TV. Redesigned by MVRDV, Atelier Gardens now serves as a hub for connectivity, fostering collaboration among diverse tenants, and providing communal spaces for work, relaxation, and idea-sharing.

How to attend

Ensure your place by booking your ticket in advance. Click the "register here" button, choose your ticket (full price or reduced) and pay in Euros (Paypal or Bank Transfer). Thank you considering a donation and helping us make this work accessible  to the less-privileged.

Alternatively, be at the venue at least 15 minutes early and pay for your ticket (cash or online with QR code).