Michi Online
Aikiheiho
methods of personal growth as well as the home of perhaps the world's first
electronic journal of the Japanese cultural arts. We're still under heavy
construction, but the first issue of our journal is available for reading. Just
go to:
Thanks to the backing of a number of people whose names you can find throughout
Michi Online, we're off and running. In this first issue, you'll discover a
great article on various Japanese do forms by Mr. Dave Lowry. This piece is
ideal for our inaugural issue, since it focuses on the central concept behind
Michi Online. "Do," means "the way" in a spiritual sense, and it can also be
pronounced "michi." Many of the Japanese cultural arts such as judo, kado
(flower arrangement), and shodo (calligraphy), end in the word "do," which
indicates that they can be practiced as a means of spiritual transformation. In
essence, by studying the mind and body in detail through a particular art, one
can grasp something universal which transcends that specific activity--the art
of living itself. We felt that this was one of the central ideas unifying many
of the time-honored arts of Japan. It's why we named our site Michi Online, and
why we are grateful to Mr. Lowry for his feature article on the Japanese ways.
We also have an excerpt from the newly released book Brush Meditation: A
Japanese Way to Mind & Body Harmony (Stone Bridge Press), which covers
traditional Japanese calligraphy and painting as meditative disciplines.
We hope you'll enjoy the various resource features found at this web site,
which is sponsored by the Sennin Foundation, Inc., a federally tax-exempt,
nonprofit corporation. Be sure to check back with us from time to time to read
the latest issue of the Michi Online Journal of Japanese Cultural Arts.
Alaya
looks good, but it's a bit light on, in the zen department.
I thought I'd repost one of the articles and explain why:
Excerpt from Brush Meditation:
A Japanese Way to Mind
and Body Harmony.
By H.E. Davey
FROM CHAPTER 2: "MIND AND BODY CONNECTION"
Use the Body Naturally
We are born, exist, and die as an element of nature. This is fairly clear,
but many men and women do not think about its real significance or how it
connects directly to their lives. Merely being part of nature is no warranty
that we will behave naturally. Plants or animals seldom conduct themselves
in an unnatural fashion incompatible with their innate makeup. But human
beings have free will and must make the decision not only to be part of
nature, but to conscientiously heed the laws of nature. Being in harmony
with nature vitalizes your ki ("life energy"), because ki amounts to the
animating force of nature itself.
>Ki and it's buildup is a trivality in shodo - the mere accumulation of it
is not really of much concequence. Free will is another conceptual trap, and
is best left alone too.
To relax and pursue your genuine makeup is to be in agreement with nature.
Relaxation is indispensable for learning shodo, and while various
instructors of the Japanese fine arts acknowledge this, they are frequently
at a loss as to how they should communicate it. Without a relaxed state, it
is hard to realize balance, beauty, and power in Japanese ink painting and
brush writing.
>Shodo is not about a relaxed state at all, nor is Zen - this is buji-zen,
not zazen, or sho-do.
Shodo must extend to other aspects of living beyond moving a brush on paper.
(Otherwise you are simply engaging in shuji, or handwriting, not "the way of
sho.") Even if you can effortlessly create one masterpiece after another,
this has slight significance if your body breaks down. When a shodo student
experiences stress-related illnesses such as elevated blood pressure or
persistent headaches, it is clear that he or she has failed to obtain all
the different advantages that come from pursuing the art as a spiritual
path.
>Sho-do and zazen are not done for any gain or benefit at all. Nor is the
quality of the work, simply letting go of such concepts, and allowing the
brush to fufill it's expression is what it is all about. To persue such
things demeans the art, and a teacher who is ignorant of this shouldn't be
writing books until he's checked his understanding with his teachers.
Ultimately, the idea of art in shodo is comprehensive enough to encompass
the study of relaxation and calmness in action as a way of experiencing the
art of living. While few individuals are required to paint every day, many
of us experience daily stress, and shodo (when it is correctly practiced as
a form of meditation) can aid us in discovering the roots of nervousness and
anxiety, as well as showing us how to resolve these problems.
>Sho-do is not a form of meditation either. It might be a type of harmony,
or even relaxing sometimes, but this is not the point of it at all. Sho-do
is a bunch of simple techniques, and the rest is the zazen posture - to say
such a thing as your article has, trivialises it, and displays a lack of
understanding by the author. People grow sick and die all the time; The
greatest calligraphers although many are long lived, are no exception to
this.
If you do not discover how to stay cool during moments of pressure, it is
doubtful that any of the methods you study will be fully realized. If you
freeze mentally in a difficult predicament, you seize up bodily as well, and
will be incapable of executing any competent action or brush stroke.
Stressful moments arise as a matter of course in shodo and ink painting. The
paper used for shodo can bleed easily if you pause too long. It can slip if
too much pressure is applied to the brush, and because the brush hair is
flexible you can never be absolutely certain which way it may twist or bend.
To deal with uncertainty effectively and consistently produce art rather
than pretty characters, you must understand the real nature of relaxation.
>art, relaxation, all these things must be let go of. It is the human heart
in action, and goes beyond such minor and self benefitting ideas. A student
would be better off not having read the book. The author should study
harder, and talk when he really has something to say that will benefit
people.
Alaya
Aikiheiho <aiki...@aol.com> wrote in message
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