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design
September 2009 
word for the day ::: ma
Posted on Jan 1st, 2008
by 
gary
gary
ma
[Japanese] space
space inbetween
in the kanji (picto-grams), we see a gate (space) with the sun (time) coming through*
thus not only space between spaces but also space between times
("we do not hear music, rather intervals")
relational space
Although it rules two things, is not created by compositional elements: it is what takes place in the mind of the person experiencing these elements
"... the simultaneous awareness of form and nonform that derives from an intensification of vision ... "
— from a catalog on Darren Waterston's art
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*also noted by Michael Lazarin, Professor of English at Ryukoku University in Kyoto, Japan:
The kanji character "ma" represents an ingrained principle in Japan's collective cultural history that time is an integral part of the experience of space. In fact, the character means both an interval of time and an interval of space.
In such Japanese arts as Kabuki, Noh, dance, storytelling, music, calligraphy, painting, [haiku], and architecture, "ma" can refer to rhythm and beat, a dramatic pause in spoken lines, [caesura, in English; kireji, Japanese] or the use of empty space to enhance the sense of time and place.
__________________________
... noting in-breath, our out-breath, and the space between ...
— posted in the space inbetween 2007 and 2008:
Access: Public
I am not sure how to say this properly, but I will it give it a try. I was intrigued by your writing, and 'the spaces in between' almost became a riddle. All of a sudden I am very aware of nonform and silence and what it holds. I find it very interesting to explore and I thank you for making me aware of this.
thank you for letting me know i have a reader, ann
that's always very important
since you've taken on writing as a practice you might notice that the times when you write you are utterly alone … in utter silence … and words come
looking deeply i think you might find for yourself how there is no duality between words and silence, or music and silence. silence is like the ocean which supports words and sound, and in which they swim.
there is a profound saying about this that is almost a riddle, as you say:
form is emptiness; emptiness is form
“emptiness” is nonform, not nothingness: empty of any border, thus limitless
taoists speak of this: the empty space in the center of a wheel or a pot, without which the object would not be what it is
i hope you find opportunity to play with theis phenomenon in your life as well as your writings —
— i look forward to our next contact