FROM CHAPTER 2: "MIND AND BODY CONNECTION"

Use the Body Naturally

e 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.

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 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. 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.

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.