An Ode to ‘The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows…’
A forgotten YouTube channel that articulated some of the most abstract yet familiar feelings. Written by John Koenig. ✏️
It was my sophomore year in University when a Youtube channel called ‘The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows’ was launched and a video called “Onism- The Awareness of how Little of the World You will Experience” appeared on my homepage…it was the most beautifully captured thought described in the best possible way which I will probably remember for the rest of my life. 🌳
John Koenig describes his work as…
A compendium of invented words that aims to fill holes in the language — to give a name to emotions we all feel but don’t have a word for. Book version coming this fall from Simon & Schuster! The author’s mission is to capture the aches, demons, vibes, joys and urges that roam the wilderness of the psychological interior. Each sorrow is bagged, tagged and tranquilized, then released gently back into the subconscious.
Here are some words from the dictionary forever etched in my memory…
Yù Yī : The Desire to Feel Intensely Again
I have realized that a side effect of growing older is the inability to feel things intensely as they first felt. ☁️
From Mandarin Chinese yù yī, literally “jade suit.” Some Han dynasty royals were made to wear ceremonial burial suits made of jade, stitched together in hundreds of pieces threaded together, like a suit of armor made of jade. Literally, it is to be ‘jaded’ in an attempt to protect yourself.
Kenopsia: The Eeriness of Places Left Behind
You can sense it when you are moving out of a house…while taking one last walk around.
kenopsia, n. the eerie, forlorn atmosphere of a place that’s usually bustling with people but is now abandoned and quiet — a school hallway in the evening, an unlit office on a weekend, vacant fairgrounds — an emotional afterimage that makes it seem not just empty but hyper-empty, with a total population in the negative, who are so conspicuously absent they glow like neon signs.
Morii: The Desire to Capture a Fleeting Experience
From ‘memento mori,’ a small reminder of your mortality + ‘torii,’ the traditional Japanese gates that mark the threshold between the profane and the sacred.
Silience: The Brilliant Artistry Hidden All Around You
From silent + brilliance.
Visit: https://www.dictionaryofobscuresorrows.com/THE BOOK IS HERE from Simon & Schuster: https://bit.ly/3z1RYvH Amazon https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS... AUDIOBOOK, read by the author: https://bit.ly/3tTix4N Barnes & Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...
