Chinese Calligraphy

[Master Vigil]

Well, you all know that I draw and stuff. But I also do chinese calligraphy (kanji).

Here is my favorite passage I've done so far.

It means...

The rules of existence are all governed by a single harmony:
This Way of the great Tao cannot be described.

 

[Lightkeeper]

It's beautiful. Is it on rice paper?

 

[Master Vigil]

Yes it is. I use sumi ink on rice paper.

 

[Unedited]

I've never quite understood calligraphy but I love it anyways!

 

[Master Vigil]

I've never quite understood calligraphy but I love it anyways!

They're pictures. Like Tao, which is the third from the bottom...

It is comprised of two pictures. The squiggly part on the side and the line on the bottom comprise one picture. This picture represents "walking, or moving."

The rest represents "mind, right, or correct."

Thus Tao means right walking, or "the right way."

But it is now just seen as "the way, or the path."

 

[Unedited]

They're pictures. Like Tao, which is the third from the bottom...

It is comprised of two pictures. The squiggly part on the side and the line on the bottom comprise one picture. This picture represents "walking, or moving."

The rest represents "mind, right, or correct."

Thus Tao means right walking, or "the right way."

But it is now just seen as "the way, or the path."

I understand that part from studying Japanese. It's just that calligraphy as an art form has always been somewhat of a mystery to me. I guess I just don't much about it.

 

[Master Vigil]

As an art form? It goes back to ancient chinese culture. Calligraphy was the most highly prized of oriental art forms. In ancient china, it was impossible to pass a civic exam for a government job if you could not create calligraphy proficiently. Throughout the history of the east, great intellectuals, painters, writers, poets, and doctors were often great calligraphers as well. The famous saying in china, "chinese characters reflect the man," explains the long held chinese belief that just a single page of calligraphy reveals the secrets of its writers character.

It is also intermixed with the chinese concept of chi. Calligraphy is an excellent way of self development and achieving inner harmony, with their chi. Calligraphy helps achieve balance. Theres more to it than painting lines and dots. There is meditating while grinding the ink stone, and then gracefully expressing the souls innermost feelings through the tip of the brush. It is a wonderful discipline, and one I suggest any taoist pursue.

 

[Jaymes]

I love looking at kanji and trying to figure out what they mean without seeing the translation first. It's fun to see what you can see in them, laugh at how wrong you were, then look and see why it does (or doesn't) make sense for that kanji to mean that character.

Seeing relationships between kanji is fun, too. I didn't realize until I read about it how alike 'man' and 'great' are.

EDIT: D'oh... I got so caught up in babbling about kanji I forgot to comment on the pic!

It's a very beautiful piece, Master Vigil. How long did it take you to get to that skill level?

 

[Master Vigil]

I love looking at kanji and trying to figure out what they mean without seeing the translation first. It's fun to see what you can see in them, laugh at how wrong you were, then look and see why it does (or doesn't) make sense for that kanji to mean that character.

Seeing relationships between kanji is fun, too. I didn't realize until I read about it how alike 'man' and 'great' are.

EDIT: D'oh... I got so caught up in babbling about kanji I forgot to comment on the pic!

It's a very beautiful piece, Master Vigil. How long did it take you to get to that skill level?

It is fun learning the meanings of the characters. I particularly love the character for chi. Its comprised of 2 characters, one meaning vapor, and the other meaning rice. The early chinese used the picture of steam coming off of hot rice to symbolize chi. So fascinating!!!

Actually, only about a couple years. But I practice alot, thats all it takes. I also practice in sand, which is great fun!!!! (You know, I could do a real nice one of your avatar "ai". For say... $25?, Not sure if I can say that)

Did you know Ai is comprised of 4 pictures? One being a hand reaching down to convey, the second is a covering, the third is the heart, and the fourth is a picture representing stopping and starting. Which gives it a meaning of "convey something to the heart and keep it hidden there." Neat huh?

 

[Jaymes]

It is fun learning the meanings of the characters. I particularly love the character for chi. Its comprised of 2 characters, one meaning vapor, and the other meaning rice. The early chinese used the picture of steam coming off of hot rice to symbolize chi. So fascinating!!!

Actually, only about a couple years. But I practice alot, thats all it takes. I also practice in sand, which is great fun!!!! (You know, I could do a real nice one of your avatar "ai". For say... $25?, Not sure if I can say that)

Did you know Ai is comprised of 4 pictures? One being a hand reaching down to convey, the second is a covering, the third is the heart, and the fourth is a picture representing stopping and starting. Which gives it a meaning of "convey something to the heart and keep it hidden there." Neat huh?

The whole rice steam thing is really interesting. Now I must take a moment to wonder why our alphabet must be so dull.

Since my birthday is coming up in a few months, I'll see if mom will let me commission you then. I'm sure she will, but she's big on not giving presents until the day of something, so unless you need a lot of time in advance she'll probably wait until right before to ask. :areyoucra

And wow, I never knew Ai meant all that! That's very beautiful and poetic. I'm definately going to have to bug mom into letting me get that picture now...

 

[Master Vigil]

I can have it done and shipped within the next week. She doesn't have to give it to you until your birthday though.

 

[Jaymes]

Hee I'll be sure to ask about it once my younger sister gets to sleep.

Augh, I'm already envisioning where I can put it in my room and it's still two months until my birthday... :biglaugh: Waiting for this is going to be torture.

 

[Master Vigil]

And I'm already envisioning the border of bamboo branches and multicolored flowers I'm going to put on it.

 

[Unedited]

As an art form? It goes back to ancient chinese culture. Calligraphy was the most highly prized of oriental art forms. In ancient china, it was impossible to pass a civic exam for a government job if you could not create calligraphy proficiently. Throughout the history of the east, great intellectuals, painters, writers, poets, and doctors were often great calligraphers as well. The famous saying in china, "chinese characters reflect the man," explains the long held chinese belief that just a single page of calligraphy reveals the secrets of its writers character.

It is also intermixed with the chinese concept of chi. Calligraphy is an excellent way of self development and achieving inner harmony, with their chi. Calligraphy helps achieve balance. Theres more to it than painting lines and dots. There is meditating while grinding the ink stone, and then gracefully expressing the souls innermost feelings through the tip of the brush. It is a wonderful discipline, and one I suggest any taoist pursue.

Thanks for taking the time to explain it to me. I hope I didn't offend you or anything, it's always just been something that I could never quite grasp. Like, when I'm writing, for all the hard work I put into it, it's the finished product that matters, and nothing more, but with calligraphy, it seems that the act of creating is more important. It's just so different from what I traditionally see as art. It seems skill is more important than talent in many of the arts. I really admire you for being able to do it, and so beautifully.

 

[Feathers in Hair]

*purrs at the beautiful picture*

I'm horrified to note that, while I've tried and loved sumi-e, I was not able to grind the stone to make the ink well enough to make it at all attractive. I was saddened, since the making of the ink in itself seems like a ritual one could lose oneself in.

I would love to learn kanji. I wonder if charcoal would be an okay medium to write in...

 

[Master Vigil]

Unedited... No offense at all... I love talking about it. It is quite the opposite of most art forms, as is eastern though quite the opposite of western thought. Another contrasting difference, with most art, you do the background first, and work yourself forward. With Chinese brus painting, its the opposite. You start with the foreground, and work yourself backward. Neat huh.

Feathers... It takes a long time to grind the stone to get the ink dark enough. Which is why its such a great ritual, it is a meditation process. The key is to not put too much water in the stone, then it doesn't take too long, and the ink holds in the brush quite long, so alot of ink is not needed.

They do make already made sumi ink, for you to practice with. (I actually use the already made ink when I do large landscapes, shhh... don't tell anyone. )

Not sure if charcoal would work, never tried to make waterbased ink out of it. You could try though.

 

[Feathers in Hair]

*nods* That's exactly why I wanted to be able to blend the ink myself, for the meditation. I'll have to keep practising, and find some 'how to do kanji' sites, if I can.

I don't know if what I do could be called sumi-e, but I enjoy brushing the charcoal directly across the paper, using the lines as if they're ink. For some reason, my critters turn out lovely, but my humans look freakish.

 

[Master Vigil]

There's certain ways you need to use the brush, so I think the charcoal method is indeed a different method, but that doesn't make it any less of a method. It's cool how different bamboo brushes have to be used differently than other kinds of brushes.