H. E. Davey explores the close connection between art, meditation, and self-mastery. Here is an excerpt on being present.
"Standard shodo demands that the calligrapher brush every stroke perfectly; expert calligraphers and even beginners never go back to touch up any character or piece of artwork. Each, movement of the brush must be performed with the full force of mind and body There should be no faltering or indecisiveness.
"In Japanese calligraphic art, as in living your life, you cannot go back though in the beginning many novices lack the mental focus to paint the characters decisively. Every stroke must be delivered like the slice of a razor-sharp samurai sword, yet the brush must be handled in a serene manner. Gradually, the student's mental condition is altered through regular training. This transformation of consciousness can be carried over and applied to your daily life as well, even to academic and vocational pursuits.
"Classical shodo demands (and develops) a complete union of mental and physical force. In spite of what most assume, it is surprisingly tough to make the mind and body work together as a unit. A seemingly uncomplicated feat, such as drawing a solid, straight line that tapers to a fine point, requires an unhesitating hand and mind...
"Being capable of executing skillful brush strokes with genuine dexterity and decisiveness is an amazing challenge and can be attained only through the coordination of your mental and physical faculties. . . . A powerfully focused mind commands the brush, and the brush is allowed to act as a perfect reflection of your mental movement. All fine arts, crafts, music, and a multitude of different activities call for this attitude of coordination. However, shodo ideally represents one of the greatest levels of harmony between thought and action: it both serves as a mechanism for depicting this unity and supplies a path for cultivating it. Both psychophysical coordination and the lack of it are unveiled on one's paper.
"To arrive at a condition in which the mind precisely controls the body, and the body reflects this state, requires the growth of earnest concentration."
