Learn Japanese Calligraphy as Moving Meditation

Learn Japanese Calligraphy as Moving Meditation
Click on the image above to order your copy of The Japanese Way of the Artist. Including extensive illustrations and an all-new introduction by the author, The Japanese Way of the Artist (Stone Bridge Press, September 2007) anthologizes three complete, out-of-print works by the Director of the Sennin Foundation Center for Japanese Cultural Arts. With penetrating insight into the universe of Japanese spiritual, artistic, and martial traditions, H. E. Davey explores everything from karate to calligraphy, ikebana to tea, demonstrating how all traditional Japanese arts share the same spiritual goals: serenity, mind/body harmony, awareness, and a sense of connection to the universe.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Shodo Terminology


Shodo is Japanese brush writing, and thus it’s intimately tied to the Japanese language. Japanese can be thought of as the universal language of all the Japanese Do forms, or "Ways." (For example, in judo competition, throughout the world, the referee gives all commands in Japanese. This approach can also be seen in European fencing, where French is used internationally.)

A single expression in Japanese can communicate several different shades of significance, in a way that an individual term in English cannot. For instance, the Japanese word kokoro can alternately express "mind," "spirit," "soul," "heart," and even hint at "emotion" or "feeling." For this reason alone, it’s often preferable to use Japanese terminology in the various Japanese arts, rather than attempt an English equivalent.

Japan's arts of painting and calligraphy are not merely graphic skills. They’re Japanese cultural arts and spiritual paths. A modest comprehension of Japanese language can open doors, leading to a deeper awareness of Japan's culture, making the practice of this country's cultural activities more profound. This understanding allows the Western shodo aficionado to more easily interact with both Japanese authorities and genuine Western experts, many of whom have spent time studying in Japan.

It is possible to accurately read and pronounce the Japanese words in the Art of Shodo Blog by following the guidelines below:

A is pronounced "ah" as in father
I is pronounced "ee" as in police
U is pronounced "oo" as in tune
E is pronounced "eh" as in Edward
O is pronounced "oh" as in oats



Double consonants are spoken with a brief break between syllables. In Japanese, r is also pronounced between an "r" and an "l."

Furthermore, it’s traditional when speaking or writing in Japanese to place the family (last) name first and the given (first) name second. This convention has been observed on this website. Sensei, a Japanese appellation of respect, which means "teacher," is placed after a professor's family name. It is used in an identical manner to the honorific word san.

The following glossary of terms should prove useful for reading the text at the Art of Shodo Blog as well as for the study of shodo in general:

Bokuju: Liquid ink
Budo: Lit. "the martial Ways"
Bun-chin: Paper weight
Chado: Lit. "the Way of tea," the tea ceremony
Daho: Lit. "pressing method," a technique of manipulating the brush
Do: Lit. "the Way," used to describe a Japanese art, which is practiced as a means of spiritual realization
Enso: The painted ink circle of Zen
Fude: “Brush”
Fudoshin: Lit. "immovable mind," a state of spiritual and physical stability
Gyosho: Semi-cursive-style script
Haiku: Japanese short poem
Hara: Lit. "abdomen," a natural center in the lower abdomen, which is used as a point of concentration in various meditative disciplines and Japanese arts
Hentaigana: A.k.a., man’yo-gana, an antiquated script that makes use of Chinese characters used phonetically
Hiragana: Japanese phonetic alphabet
Inkan: Japanese seal or stamp
Kado: Lit. "the Way of flowers," flower arrangement
Kaisho: Printed-style script
Kami: “Paper”
Kana: Japanese phonetic script, hiragana and/or katakana
Kanji: Lit. "Chinese characters"
Katakana: Japanese phonetic alphabet
Kasure: Dry brush strokes
Ki: “Life energy”
Nenpo: Lit. "twisting method," a technique of manipulating the brush
Nijimi: Wet, "bleeding" brush strokes
No-tan: Writing with alternating light and dark ink
Sabi: Elegant simplicity, an antique appearance
Seiza: Japanese kneeling posture used for meditation and in various Japanese arts
Sensei: “Teacher”
Shibui: “Elegant”
Shibumi: “Elegance”
Shin-shin-toitsu-do: Lit. "The Way of Mind and Body Unification," a form of Japanese yoga and meditation
Shitajiki: Undercloth of felt for absorbing ink
Shodo: Lit. "The Way of Calligraphy"
Sumi: “Ink, ink stick”
Sumi-e: “Ink painting”
Suzuri: “Ink stone”
Wabi: Unpretentious, simple refinement
Zoho: Lit. "overlapping method," a technique of manipulating the brush