unawares; before one is aware; unconsciously
Literary phrase meaning something happens without one realizing it. Usually used as 冥々のうちに, often in written or formal contexts.
Time had passed without my noticing.
He unconsciously picked up a bad habit.
Standard kanji spelling for this phrase.
Variant using 裡 instead of うち; less common.
Variant using 冥冥 instead of 冥々 and 裡 instead of うち; rare.
冥々 (meimei) means 'dark' or 'invisible', and うち means 'inside' or 'within'. Together, the phrase literally means 'in the dark/invisible interior', figuratively referring to something happening outside of one's conscious awareness.