Hitsuzendo – The Way of the Zen Brush
Hitsuzendo is a name and practice we use for a certain type of Zen brush painting. Many people ask me what techniques I use to paint these paintings. It is not really a technique but a spiritual practice. It is the practice of hitsuzendo. Hitsuzendo is a meditation practice that leaves behind a painting, like footprints on the sand that are soon washed away by the incoming tide. The important thing is not what is done with the hand or the brush, but what is done with the mind. The mind is clear and empty of all thoughts and expectations of past or future. It is open and available to life in this moment. In this openness, the moment unfolds as it does in its natural way. In this case, the moment includes a body, brush, ink, and paper. And that is what unfolds. What remains is a visual representation of that moment. That is hitsuzendo. That is Zen brush painting.
Here is a YouTube video where I demonstrate this practice in action.
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