Yūgen (幽玄) is a core concept in traditional Japanese aesthetics that captures a profound, mysterious sense of beauty
Part I
It is the word that best describes the essence of olfactory masterpieces- the world’s finest perfumes
Instead of shedding a bright light on beauty Yūgen focuses on what is concealed, the suggestion the understatement
While ‘cheap’ fragrances are loud, linear, uniform, obvious a genius level one:
1 clashes opposing scents like a complex human emotion or memory that is a puzzle the mind strives to decipher, it is non linear in its evolution
2 doesn’t rest on someone’s skin but surrounds him/ her like an aura
3 leaves a powerful sillage, the after taste the scent lingering after the wearer has departed proving that a fragrance achieves its most profound emotional impact through whisper, and absolute absence
4 In Perfume: The Alchemy of Scent, Jean-Claude Ellena emphasizes that true luxury is achieved through omission, creating a “clean space” that allows the scent to act as a unique, non-masking extension of the wearer’s identity. A premium perfume smells differently on different people’s skin
Part II
Life Architecture -Paradox of this duo :
The highest form of presence is achieved through absence
1 You must disappear to be fully felt
2 Sprezzatura
3 You must accept the unknown to truly know
By honoring the hidden layers of reality you shift from wishing to know mechanically everything , being in total control to a state of intuitive awe
This is what Albert Einstein probably meant , at least to an extent, when he said that imagination is more powerful than knowledge or that there are 2 ways to live as if everything or nothing is a miracle
And what is the nature of these miracles and the deepest paradox of life itself?
It is that:
The universe does not require you to decode its miracles; it requires you to build a clean, silent space within your soul where they are allowed to happen.
How the latter applies to the world’s best perfumery is going to be the content of my blog post It is really interesting!
Για τους Ελληνες αναγνώστες θα αναφερθώ στην κολώνια Μυρτω που μπορει να μην ηταν αριστουργημα με τα τεχνικα κριτηρια που ανεφερα παραπάνω αλλά ηταν αδιαμφησσβήτητα μια εμβληματική κολώνια της ελληνικής κοινωνίας που δεν προσποιήθηκε ποτέ ότι είναι παραπάνω από αυτό που είναι και αφήνοντας παρακαταθήκη το sillage της νοσταλγίας -)