#ikigai

Summary: You’re desperately in love with a man who already belongs to another.

All you’ve ever wanted was to love and be loved. But as the only person to ever be born without a soulmate, you know nothing about what that really means.

The universe itself cursed you to never know the deepest and truest love there is for a reason. Because you're unworthy. And you should’ve known your poor attempts to pretend to know what it means to be whole wouldn't last. After all, everyone will always choose truth over your lies. Why should Sylus be any different?

Original Blurb | ao3 | Character Masterlist

Act One: Part 1: A Man and His Siren | Part 2: The First Straw

Part 3: Miss Hunter and You | Part 4: Bond Established

Part 5: The End of an Era | Part 6: Your Boys

Part 7: Wrong Impression | Part 8: Making Up

Part 9: Shifting Dynamics | Part 10: A Soulmate's Love

Part 11: This is What You Wanted

Act Two, Part 1: Part 12: Are We Fighting or Flirting and Other Questions | Part 13: Severed Ties

Part 14: You Are Loved | Part 15: An Undertaking of Love and Death

Part 16: A Man of the Sun and Stars | Part 17: Defying Fate

Part 18: For the Entire World Could Be on Fire, and All I'd See is You | Part 19: To Have and to Hold

Part 20: A Fellow Actor | Part 21: The Kerr Family

Part 22: You Know I Would Never Leave You

Act Two, Part 2: Part 23: Let Me Be Your Shelter | Part 24: I Don't Deserve This, You Look Perfect Tonight

Part 25: The Scales of Hope | Part 26: Loving Can Mend Your Soul

Part 27: Remember Me, For Centuries | Part 28: I'm With You

Part 29: Marry Me | Part 30: Princesses Don't Cry

Act Three: Part 31: Let Me Down Slowly | Part 32: I Love You, I'm Sorry

Part 33: Rewrite the Stars | Part 34: It's Always You

Part 35: Piece By Piece They Collected Me | Part 36: All of Me Loves All of You

Part 37: Give Your Heart a Break | Final Part: A Woman and Her God of Death

Possible Epilogues: Sylus' POV, Part 1 | Sylus' POV, Part 2

OCs' POVs, Part 1 | OCs' POVs, Part 2

Little Habits, Big Glow: Japanese & Chinese Traditions That Changed My Life

First off, warm water in the MORNING. I used to roll out of bed and go straight for coffee or cold ass water cuz my throat is DRYYYY , and honestly, my body hated me for it fr. But then I read about how in Chinese medicine, drinking warm water first thing in the morning is seen as a way to wake up your body gently. And let me tell you, IT WORK. No bloating, no sluggishness—just a simple, calming way to start the day. Sometimes I add a slice of lemon, and it feels like I’m doing something kind for my body before I even check my phone

Two Ikigai.( I talked Abt Ikigai and how to achieve this concept click here!) Japanese concept changed the way I see my day-to-day life. It’s basically finding purpose in the little things—like, not waiting for some huge life-changing moment to feel fulfilled. I used to put so much pressure on myself, thinking I needed to achieve these massive goals to be happy. But Ikigai taught me to slow down and find joy in small things, like enjoying my morning tea or journaling. It’s a game-changer for anyone who feels like they’re always chasing something bigger.

Another thing I’ve started doing is Tai Chi or qing gong. I know I know—it looks slow and kind of boring, but hear me out. It’s like moving meditation, and if you’re someone who struggles with anxiety (like meeey), this will center you like nothing else. It’s not about burning calories or anything like that; it’s about connecting your body and mind in the most peaceful way. Even just 10 minutes a day leaves me feeling lighter and more focused. (Click here to watch a video of it) When I first started, I thought, 'This is way too slow for me.' But then something clicked. The slowness is the point. It forces you to focus on your breathing, your posture, and every little movement. It’s like a moving meditation that clears your mind while strengthening your body.

© bloomzone

Now in the Oxford English Dictionary, “Ikigai” is defined as “a motivating force; something or someone that gives a person a sense of purpose or a reason for living”

Whilst this concept has existed in Japanese culture for a long time, it was popularised by a Japanese psychiatrist Mieko Kamiya in the 1960s. 

More recently it has been introduced to the West by various popular psychology books.

What’s your reason for being and to live ?

Ikigai

As you know my love for 5th house, I also have a love for anything that can get close to it especially if it can be a life philosophy and one of them is Ikigai, which also combines my interest for Japan 🌸

A few months ago, I dived quite a bit into the concept of Ikigai, which means your reason of being, your reason to live, what brings meaning, joy, peace and satisfaction in your life. So you see why it has a strong link with 5th house. I looked at it both through the Japanese lense, which is more spiritual and focuses on the personal or whole lifestyle and even in the simplest thing of the daily life, and through the Western lense, which is more career focused.

I discovered the concept through a workshop though I often heard people mention it. And later, I decided to developed my Ikigai through introspection and work to align with that new direction I want to take and then create a road map just like I use astrology as a star map for my life. As I made it, I realised that what I put in my Ikigai was also written in the stars.

Though I’m more for the work being done through introspection regarding Ikigai, I still found the cheat code in a my chart so I thought it might help you to know yours or help understand other’s people Ikigai.

Image by me, you can use it for yourself if you want but I think Tumblr reduces its quality.

So the Ikigai is built around 4 key concepts:

- What you LOVE, what brings you joy, what you're passionate about, what makes your heart sing.

- What you are GIFTED for, what you’re naturally good at, usually if you love to do something you get good at it since passion is a strong motivation,

- What you can be PAID for, what people notice about you and value, the knowledge, hard and soft skills, and know-how that people can pay you for.

- What you can bring to the WORLD, what you value and what would bring meaning, what gives purpose to your Soul.

Somehow sounds a bit like some of the things you can find through the 5th Lord’s nakshatra, doesn’t it ? 🤭

And the meeting point of all those 4 spheres is your Ikigai. If one of them is missing, you won't find fulfillment.

And in a chart, here’s where I found them:

❀ Love aka your heart's compass : the 5th Lord and the 5th House, the Moon and its nakshatra, Venus for what we love and find pleasure in, Mars for the passion that drives us.

❀ Gifts aka your talents : your Atmakaraka and Amatyakaraka, Mercury for skills and intellect, 3rd lord for natural gifts and inner intellect, 5th Lord for creativity, skills and intelligence, Jupiter for wisdom, learning and expansiveness in gifts.

❀ Success aka your financial flow and career : your Amatyakaraka, 2nd Lord for finances, 10th Lord for career and professional businesses, 11th Lord for gains and accomplishments, and Lagnesh for how you project yourself into the world.

❀ World or your Soul's vocation : obviously the Atmakaraka as the Soul’s path or mission, 9th Lord for Dharma and finding a deeper meaning in life, and Rahu* for the karmic direction and inner path and what the soul is aiming for.

*I’m preparing a post about this alongside the 5th lords in different houses and signs.

I’m still all for doing the introspective work instead of ‘cheating’ with the chart as it is good for self development, but I thought it won’t hurt to share 🌸

Soulfully,

Mina