Mono no aware

物の哀れ, the pathos of things, and also translated as , or , is a Japanese idiom for the awareness of impermanence, or transience of things, and both a transient gentle sadness (or wistfulness) at their passing as well as a longer, deeper gentle sadness about this state being the reality of life. The idiom mono no aware comes from Heian period literature, but was picked up and used by 18th century Edo period Japanese cultural scholar Motoori Norinaga in his literary criticism of The Tale of Genji, and later to other germinal Japanese works including the Man'yōshū. It became central to his philosophy of literature; he saw it as the main theme of The Tale of Genji. His articulation was the result of well-established poetic readings of The Tale of Genji and the concept became central to his own; Genji was "instrumental" in the term's establishment. According to Norinaga, to "know" mono no aware is to have a shrewd understanding and consideration of reality and the assortment of occurrences present; to be affected by and appreciate the beauty of cherry blossoms was an example of this knowledge provided by Norinaga. Japanese cultural scholar Kazumitsu Kato wrote that understanding mono no aware in the Heian period was "almost a necessity for a learned man in aristocratic society", a time when it was a prominent concept. Donald Richie wrote that the term has "a near-Buddhistic insistence upon recognition of the eternal flux of life upon this earth. This is the authentic Japanese attitude toward death and disaster". Various other scholars have discussed the term. The phrase is derived from the Japanese word 物, which means , the particle no, which means , and the word 哀れ, which was a Heian period expression of measured surprise (similar to or ), translating roughly as , , , , or . Mono no aware has seen multiple translations, such as and ; the Latin phrase lacrimae rerum has also been invoked. Awareness of the transience of all things heightens appreciation of their beauty, and evokes a gentle sadness at their passing.