Japanese calligraphy, called shodo in Japanese, is the calligraphy brushed in Japanese. As many different artistic forms in Japan, Japanese calligraphy has its origins in Chinese calligraphy. For many centuries one of the most praised calligraphers in Japan was Chinese Wang Xizhi from the 4th century.
Still, since the Hiragana and Katakana syllabaries were added to the Japanese writing practice, Japanese calligraphers started to shape their own Japanese approaches of calligraphy.
Different Kinds of Japanese Calligraphy
The classic styles are approximately the same in Chinese calligraphy as in Japanese calligraphy. They are the following:
1. Seal Script, tensho in Japanese, an ancient type of calligraphy
2. Regular Script, kaisho in Japanese, at times named Standard Script in English
3. Clerical Script, reisho in Japanese language
4. Semi-Cursive, gyosho in Japanese language
5. Cursive, sosho in Japanese, at times called Running Script in English
The Four Treasures of Asian Calligraphy
The four essential tools you need for traditional Japanese calligraphy are the 4 Treasures and they are: the brush, inkstick, rice paper – also known as mulberry paper in the West- and the ink stone to liquefy the ink.
Chinese Calligraphy Beginnings and Outset in Japan
Chinese calligraphy goes back three thousand years, when pictorial symbols or pictographs were engraved on bones usually with religious purposed. In time, during the Qin dynasty, the writing was systematized as it had became a crucial tool for governing the Chinese state.
The Chinese way of calligraphy was brought to Japan around AD 600. Since then, in Japan calligraphy has been practiced unbrokenly. It has developed its own style particularly in the Zen tradition.
Today in Japan pupils learn the art of Japanese calligraphy and it can be practiced in high school or universities along with other art disciplines such as painting or music.
Finally, the emergence of performance calligraphy has made it a popular activity practiced together in groups by the young. Performance calligraphy has also been presented to the Western countries and it appears to captivate many people.
Japanese Calligraphy and Zen Buddhism
Zen Buddhism has had a remarkable effect in Japanese calligraphy. The most popular symbol of the Zen school of Japanese calligraphy is the enso circle. The calligrapher brushes the enso circle of enlightenment in one free-flowing stroke that is never modified or corrected.
Japanese Zen calligraphy, the Way of the Brush, is a form of meditation in action.