Self in Nature, Nature in the Lifeworld: A Reinterpretation of Watsuji's Concept of Fūdo

Watsuji Tetsurō's concept of fūdo is intended to capture the way in which nature and culture are interwoven in a setting that is partly constitutive of and partly constituted by a group of people inhabiting a particular place. This essay off ers a careful examination of the sense in which the self both constitutes and is constituted by the fūdo in which it is emplaced. It concludes with a brief survey of the prospects and problems posed by the interpretation of fūdo that has been presented.