Take lessons at a calligraphy school

If succeeding in blackening a sheet of paper with a beautiful ideogram makes you dream, then you should push the doors of a calligraphy school that offers introductory courses. Shodô , the art of writing in Japanese , is considered one of the essential arts of the archipelago. However, this art is not strictly reserved for the Japanese or those who already know how to speak the language.

An art inherited from China

The Shimada Kousyu Calligraphy School , located in the city of Marugame in Kagawa Prefecture, north of the island of Shikoku, offers introductory courses for children and adults alike. The idea being to handle the brush correctly and to try to reproduce movements , it is not necessary to know how to write Japanese to be able to reproduce and follow the teachings of the teachers.

Calligraphy was imported to Japan around the 7th century by Chinese calligraphers. But it wasn't until hiragana and katakana developed that a Japanese calligraphic style emerged.

Compulsory school education

Shodô is, still today, a compulsory education in elementary school in the archipelago. Thus, all students have their calligraphy kit. This is made up of brushes of various sizes and textures, ink, called sumi , in the form of a stick, and a stone on which they rub it to extract powder which will then be dipped in water.

In this school, you will learn that there are different styles of calligraphy, from easy to more complicated. Kaisho is for beginners. Very close to print writing, everyone can read them. The gyosho , which, with its round strokes, tends towards cursive writing. And finally the sosho , where style and beauty take precedence over meaning. It is then more difficult to recognize the ideogram.

To read: Japanese calligraphy

An almost meditative course

But it is nevertheless important to specify that during a calligraphy course the main thing does not lie in the performance. It is not a question of wanting to succeed at all costs and to be able, in an hour, to do as well as a teacher who has been practicing daily for many years.

Rather, it is about capturing the meditative side of calligraphy . Succeed in living this moment while being fully aware of the moment and being devoid of an imperative to master technique. It is a hobby and above all, an art deeply linked to the Zen school . So let go and let your brush go on the sheet of paper.

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