“Mottainai” – The Concept of No Waste in Japan

Mottainai (もったいないor勿体無い) is one of those unique Japanese words that are not easy to find in other languages. Although in Spanish you could translate it as “what a waste!” or something like that, the word “mottainai” expresses its deep connection with Japanese culture.

Many say that the idea of “Mottainai” or the “virtue of not wasting”, has its roots in Shintoism , the indigenous religion of Japan, where one of the teachings is the belief that everything (even non-living things) has a spirit. If you’ve seen the Studio Ghibli movie Spirited Away , which has many Shinto elements, you probably remember the different types of spirits that appear. The existence of spirits was partly inspired by the idea of Mottainai . This is because not appreciating or making the most of things is a lack of respect towards the respective spirits.

The most frequent use of “Mottainai” is by wasting physical things like not finishing the food on your plate or throwing away clothes, furniture and the like that are still usable. Taking the Shinto belief we mentioned earlier, you could say that the word “mottainai” also encompasses not appreciating and “offending” (to some extent) the people who worked to plant and grow the food on your plate, the work it took him to transport it, sell it, etc. In Japanese culture, wasting food is a lack of humility, gratitude, and the feeling that nothing should be taken for granted. “Mottainai” is not giving something a chance to reach its full potential and basically expresses regret, guilt or sadness for something not reaching its full potential.

Although the word “Mottainai” is not only used in wasting physical products, it can also be used when wasting time. There is the phrase “Time is money”, that is, time is important and how you spend or invest it is up to you. Unlike physical things, time is something intangible that you cannot physically dispose of, so “wasting time” usually means that you are not using it well, that you are not letting the full potential of the situation be reached. Using “Mottainai” is a way of expressing how you can better spend your time on something else.

“Mottainai” is so embedded in Japanese culture that you can also see its influence as a word in many Japanese dishes or modes of preservation. For example, sake kasu is the sediment left over from sake production. Instead of being thrown away, it is reused in pickles, condiments, beverages, moisturizers, and many other things. Okara is the soybean pulp left over after making soymilk or tofu, and is often used in cooking and baking.