I read the blog Be More with Less, which is written by Courtney Carver, who came to minimalism after being given a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis and views the practice as a pathway to love and self-care. I also turned to Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, who call themselves the Minimalists and, under that name, run a blog, publish books, and host a podcast that is downloaded as many as three million times a month. Recently, I spent a few months absorbing the new minimalist gospel, beginning with Marie Kondo, the celebrity decluttering guru, whose book “ The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” has sold more than ten million copies, and whose stance can seem twee but is rooted in Shinto tradition: having fewer possessions allows us to care for those possessions as if they had souls. Think constantly about what will enable you to live the best life possible. Get rid of the things you bought to impress people.

Know that it’s possible to live abundantly with only a hundred possessions. See if you can wear just thirty-three items of clothing for three months. Or wake up early, pick up every item you own, and consider whether or not it sparks joy. Pack up all your possessions, unpack things only as needed, give away everything that’s still packed after a month. The new literature of minimalism is full of stressful advice.

Fumio sasaki minimalism