As in my home country of the UK, tea is an important part of Japanese culture and everyday life. The Japanese tea master Sen no Rikyū developed the traditional Japanese tea ceremony, elevating the tea-drinking and the tea room to a philosophy and an art form: “The simplest object, framed by the controlled simplicity ofContinueContinue reading “茶 (cha) “tea””
Tag Archives: Japanese language
まこ “Mako”
I was very honoured to receive a commission to create this artwork. “Mako” is the name of the client’s beloved cat, named after the Japanese actor Makoto Iwamatsu.
夏雲奇峰 (natsu-gumo-ki-hou) “Summer clouds shaped like strange mountains”
Some seasonal calligraphy specially for summertime! The kanji are: 夏 = summer 雲 = cloud(s) 奇 = strange 峰 = peak It references the white fluffy clouds of summer which take many different shapes, including strange mountains! This phrase is a special kind of Japaneses idiom known as a 四字熟語 (よじじゅくご、yo-ji-juku-go), or 4-character idiom. AsContinueContinue reading “夏雲奇峰 (natsu-gumo-ki-hou) “Summer clouds shaped like strange mountains””
星 (hoshi) “star”
Early July is the time of Tanabata, known as the “Star Festival” in English. It celebrates the annual meeting of the stars Vega and Altair. According to East Asian folklore, these stars are separated lovers who are permitted by the gods to meet only once a year.
七夕 (Tanabata) The Japanese star festival
Often translated into English as the “Star Festival”, Tanabata celebrates the annual meeting of the stars Vega and Altair, believed to be separated lovers who are permitted by the gods to meet only once a year, in early July. People celebrate this festival by writing wishes on small coloured pieces of paper and tying themContinueContinue reading “七夕 (Tanabata) The Japanese star festival”
文月 (fumizuki) “July” (archaic)
Like many countries, Japan uses a 12-month calendar. The names are very simple. January is literally “Month One”, February is “Month Two”, etc: 一月 = January 二月 = February However, before the Meiji Restoration (mid-1800s) it was common to use an older 12-month system. These months’ names referenced the weather and the seasons (similar toContinueContinue reading “文月 (fumizuki) “July” (archaic)”
Some more calligraphy practice
Although Japanese calligraphy is usually written in black ink, calligraphy teachers traditionally use an orange-red colour ink when marking their students’ work. The photo is my work from about 8 years ago. The black is my writing and the orange-red is my teacher’s corrections. Circles mean I did a good job 🙂
生き甲斐 (iki-gai) “reason for living”
Now in the Oxford English Dictionary, “Ikigai” is defined as “a motivating force; something or someone that gives a person a sense of purpose or a reason for living” Whilst this concept has existed in Japanese culture for a long time, it was popularised by a Japanese psychiatrist Mieko Kamiya in the 1960s. More recently it hasContinueContinue reading “生き甲斐 (iki-gai) “reason for living””
無心 (mu-shin) “no-mind” or “nothingness mind”
An important concept in meditation and martial arts. If you have mu-shin, your mind is free from thoughts, desires and assumptions. As the Buddhist nun Reverend Jiyu-Kennett once said: “It’s nothing… but it’s the fullest kind of nothing there ever was!” When your mind is clear, and you are free from ego and can actContinueContinue reading “無心 (mu-shin) “no-mind” or “nothingness mind””
龍 (ryū) “dragon”
If you visit a shrine or temple in Japan, make sure to look up at the ceiling of the main room. Often there will be a painting of a dragon. One reason is that dragons represent the virtue of courage. Another, more superstitious reason is that dragons are associated with the element of water, andContinueContinue reading “龍 (ryū) “dragon””
Calligraphy by Vicky 