Shodo: the Quiet Art of Japanese Zen Calligraphy

In this beautiful and extraordinary book, Shozo Sato, an internationally recognized master of traditional Zen arts, teaches the Japanese art of calligraphy through the power and wisdom of Zen poetry. Single-line Zen Buddhist koan aphorisms or zengo are one of the most common subjects for the traditional Japanese brush calligraphy known as shodo. Regarded as one of the key disciplines in fostering the focused, meditative state of mind so essential to Zen, shodo is practiced regularly by all students of Zen Buddhism in Japan. After providing a brief history of Japanese calligraphy and its close r.;Cover; Copyright; Contents; Foreword by Gengo Akiba Roshi; Preface; INTRODUCTION; Bokki: The Spirit of the Brush; The Chinese Roots of Shodo; The Artistry and Philosophy of Bokuseki; CHAPTER 1 The Art of Kanji; What Is Kanji?; Writing Styles; CHAPTER 2 The Four Treasures in Shodo; The Four Treasures; Mastering the Brush; Useful Information for Basic Brush Strokes; CHAPTER 3 One Ideogram Zengo; Mu ("Nothingness"); Mu or Yume ("Dream"); Hanatsu ("Release"); CHAPTER 4 Two Ideogram Zengo; Nyoze ("As It Is"); Fu Metsu ("Immortal" or "Indestructible"); Sen Shin ("Purify the Soul").