IN JAPAN, calligraphy (shodo) has long been a major art form. Originally the art of writing
Chinese characters (kanji) was introduced to Japan, together with Buddhism, by Chinese
priests who came to Japan and by Japanese who had traveled to China to study. The Chinese
writing system was admired not only because it was the vehicle for Buddhist teachings, but
also because it was a manifestation of the powerful, charismatic personalities of the priests.
Some of the greatest of these priests even had tales and legends built up around their prowess
with the brush.
The great Kobo Daishi, a famous monk and scholar in early Japanese history, was said to have on one occasion leapt in the air holding a brush in each hand, a brush gripped in the toes of each foot, and one clenched between his teeth, with which he managed to draw five perfect characters before he touched the ground! Clearly, skill with calligraphy was the stuff of legend.
In some respects, writing developed along similar lines in Europe during the Middle Ages. Writing, as well as other forms of learning, was developed and preserved by monks and scholars. Because there was no printing process available, books were copied by hand. For the scribes who did this work, legibility and precision were
of great importance. Except in the "illuminated" texts of some prayer books, the work of European calligraphers seldom rose to the level of real art. In Japan shodo has always been considered a fine art, akin to painting, a medium through which the artist finds self-expression. Even today calligraphy is exhibited in galleries and displayed in the tokonoma (a room's decorative alcove).
Difficulties in adapting Chinese characters for writing the Japanese language led to the
development of a Japanese writing system eventually two syllabaries of kana symbols. One
of these, hiragana, was originally called onnade, "woman's hand." Nevertheless, virtually all the great Japanese calligraphers have been men. Great importance is placed on expressing the
individual's personality in Japanese calligraphy. In the West, the subject of handwriting analysis
is quite popular, and even computers are used in the analysis of a person's handwriting. But
typically, judgements about one's personality as viewer through his or her handwriting-are
rather negative in tone. By contrast, expressing one's personality in Japanese calligraphy is
seen as a display of skill and refinement.
Japanese study calligraphy to develop their character and to develop a sense of esthetics as well. A foreigner might observe that a Japanese sometimes shows more concern about the appearance than the content of something written. But this attitude fails to appreciate the union of form and content in shodo. A powerful verse can be complemented by forceful strokes of the brush, or a poem about butterflies can be written so that one can almost see them fluttering about on the paper.
The foreigner who tries to study Japanese calligraphy may be discouraged by the difficulty of making even the simplest strokes. Yet the expert calligrapher can use large or small brushes with great subtlety and can use them in more than one style of writing.
1 shoka: professional calligraphy artist 7chumawashi: background
2 suzuri: inkstone 8 honshi: main section
3suzuri-bako: box for inkstone and utensils 9chi: bottom, or lower, area
4sumi: India inkstick 10jiku: sp indle
5suzuri-no-umi: hollow in inkstone 13yamato-hyogu: formal-style scroll
6fude-oki: brush rest 14gasan: verse written on painting
7suiteki (suichu): water dropper 15rakkan: calligrapher's signature or seal
8bunchin: paperweight 16fuchin: decorative scroll-weights
9fude: brush 17byobu: folding screen
10hanshi: call igraphy paper 18sumi-e: monochrome painting
11shita-j iki: pad underneath paper 19tsuitate: low screen
12kakejiku: h anging scroll 20shikishi: square card for calligraphy
1makio: excess hanging string 21ukiyo-e: style of woodblock print
2kakeo: string for h anging kakejiku 22tanzaku: rectangular card for calligraphy
3futai: ornamental strips at top of artwork 23gaku: framed calligraphy or sumi-e
4ten: top, or upper, area 24emaki: illustrated narrative scro ll
5tsuyu: ornamental fringe beneath futai 25maki-gami: ro lled calligraphy paper
6ichimonji: accenting borders
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