A growing number of young Japanese people have emptied their apartment to a point that appears nearly unlivable -- and they love it.

In 1899, Edwin Way Teale wrote, “Reduce the complexity of life by eliminating the needless wants of life, and the labors of life reduce themselves.” This philosophy has taken form in recent years as ‘minimalism,’ a growing movement of young people around the world who want nothing to do with acquiring material possessions, but would rather spend their money, time, and effort on things that they truly enjoy. Gone are the obligations to clean, maintain, and expand constantly one’s collection of items and in its place are opportunities to travel, socialize, relax, and engage in hobbies.

Japan, in particular, has become a hotbed for minimalism. A country that is long familiar with ascetic philosophy in the form of traditional Zen Buddhism, minimalism feels like a good fit. Many young adherents, however, are taking it to extremes, emptying their already tiny apartment to a point that almost appears unlivable by conventional North American standards.

Take Fumio Sasaki, for example (pictured above). The 36-year-old book editor lives in a single-room apartment in Tokyo with three shirts, four pairs of pants, four pairs of socks, and a few other belongings. He wasn’t always like this. The transformation to minimalism occurred two years ago, when Sasaki grew tired of trying to keep up with trends and maintaining his collections of books, CDs, and DVDs. He got rid of it all, which he says isn’t as difficult as it seems, thanks to the sharing economy: