Gaman (我慢) is a Japanese term of Zen Buddhist origin which means "enduring the seemingly unbearable with patience and dignity".[1] The term is generally translated as "perseverance", "patience", tolerance, or "self-denial".[2]
It means to do one's best in distressed times and to maintain self-control and discipline.[8][9][10][11][12]
Gaman is a teaching of Zen Buddhism.[13]
Gaman is also used in psychoanalytic studies[19]
and to describe the attitudes of the Japanese. It is often taught to
youth and largely used by older Japanese generations. Showing gaman
is seen as a sign of maturity and strength. Keeping your private
affairs, problems and complaints silent demonstrates strength and
politeness as others have seemingly larger problems as well. If a person
with gaman were to receive help from someone else, they would be compliant; not asking for any additional help and voicing no concerns.[20]
After the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, the resilience, civility, lack of looting and ability of the Japanese to help each other was widely attributed to the gaman spirit.[11] The 50–70 workers that remained at the damaged and radiation-emitting Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant despite the severe danger demonstrated what was regarded as gaman as well.[17] The word gaman is the origin of the corollary concept of ganbaru.[18]
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