Today's word is inspired by the personal finance book I've just reviewed over on Just Hungry.
癒す いやす iyasu
It means to comfort or heal. In current vernacular, it's used a lot in with a passive voice:
癒される いやされる iyasareru
- to be comforted by something or someone.
In the Saving Techniques book linked to above, the author uses the passive term 癒される quite a lot. She has a habit of spending money on things that she thinks will comfort her, make her feel better. For example, she is 癒される by a coffee and cake at her favorite 喫茶店 (きっさてん kissaten, coffee/tea shop); a latte at a international coffee-selling chain, the act of buying several bottles of aromatherapy scents (which she plans to use later for to be 癒される some more); a bar of chocolate. Of course, the point she is making is that she's wasting money for that feeling of immediate gratification. So she switches to ways she is 癒される that don't involve spending money, such as cleaning up her cluttered apartment, or just going outdoors and taking a walk.
The term 癒される is used quite a lot in marketing in Japan. All kinds of things are supposed to give you that feeling, from music to food to anime to stuffed plushies to... you get the idea.
By what things or actions are you 癒される？
