 |
 |
|
Thursday, May 31, 2007Ninja Kanji |
| (Quick note: Yes, I do realize it's been several months since my last post. Don't worry, more to come soon.) You might have seen the background picture in my Friendster Profile. That's the kanji for Ninja, I was scanning the net and found the origins of the kanji. Personally, I find the art of writing kanji to be very interesting. Evey character has a specific meaning or story. Originally from: http://www.theartofcalligraphy.com/ninja-kanji.html The ninja kanji has two elements: NIN means to hide and JA stands for person. I have brushed the ninja kanji in a semi-cursive script with a beautiful balance between rest and motion to suggest the spirit of a ninja. The most significant character in the ninja kanji is NIN. Its original Chinese meaning is patience, endurance, but in Japan NIN evolved into shinobi, meaning to hide, to sneak in. The kanji NIN gives us an unmistaken picture of what the Chinese and Japanese understand by patience: a blade upon the heart! It requires little effort to imagine how this kanji for patience expanded its meaning to hiding, remaining undiscovered. For the spying samurais of the feudal Japan it was a common reality they faced, that even at the risk of their lives, -a blade upon their heart-, they did not reveal their identity. For the modern ninja, the stress, aggression and violence of our modern world certainly act as a sharp blade on our heart. The kanji NIN has two parts. In the upper part there is the blade; its left element has a long dot, as if it were a drop of blood dripping from the sword. The lower part is a heart. The second kanji is SHA. The SHA kanji, pronounced as JA in NINJA, means person. Although unrecognizable in the actual form of this kanji, the original pictogram of JA, depicts an old person with long hair who walks with a cane. My guess is this was the best way to refer to a wise and respected person, full of experience and knowledge. |
© Timothy James Tupas 2005 All rights reserved
|
||
 |
 |
|
