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Given the unique nature of our business, we are frequently asked about it. These questions get at the very heart of who we are and what make us different from other businesses. Here are the three most asked questions:
| What Does Our Name Mean? |
| The 5 Rings are the 5 elements of ancient Japan:
- CHI is the Earth element, representing all of our education, social norms, etc. and sets the ground work to understand the Way
- MIZU is the Water element, meaning to know yourself
- KAZE is the wind element, signifying your understanding of others
- HI is the Fire element. Fire combines the Earth, Water and Wind elements, returning them into the Air
- KU is the Air (or emptiness) element. The final key to understanding: a bottle only provides structure; what you put inside the bottle gives it ultimate value. If you are the vessel, what you put inside yourself makes you the person you have become.
Understanding the 5 Rings will lead to enlightenment. Our western culture makes little distinction between wind and air, other than the fact that wind is air in motion. To get at the heart of it, we Westerners must dig deeper into what is meant by "air" as the 5th element.
- Before we understood that the air is made of millions of different gas molecules mixed together, the ancients simply regarded it as nothingness. It would be similar to what we consider "space" - an unquantified gap between objects with no real properties of its own. If you think of physical objects as "form", the space between them is the Ku.
- For example, when we draw a square on a piece of paper, geometry allows us to calculate the area in relation to the lengths of the sides. In geometry, the sides, lines, points, etc. are the focus and become the self-appointed focus of this mathematic arena. The space itself assumes little relevance of its own in the West.
- When traveling, the KU is the "fly-over country" if you have an East-coast / West-coast mentality. Robert Piersig said in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, "It is better to travel than arrive." Piersig discovered what it is to live in the Ku.
- It's the mountain between the base and the summit. "Because it's there" is more Zen than we know.
- When your opponent extends an arm or leg to attack in the form of a punch, grab or kick, consider what they have left exposed to counter-attack. This indefensible area is KU.
- Because this Nothingness was left unquantified, it assumed a quasi-divine status. The more we make an area "ours" by filling it up with our bodies, objects, etc., the less divine (KU) it becomes. The more we are filled with our Selves, the less room we have in our Selves for the divine. There are many touch points shared by East and West:
- In meditation, we strip away our Selves one piece at a time until we eventually arrive at Nothingness, or the divine - this is the enlightenment sought by many. In prayer, Westerners subjugate their will and directly communicate with the divine.
- Eastern architecture form seems plain with a few elegant lines, leaving room for KU in the design. Western Christian churches (especially older European ones) curiously house an incredible amount of "Air' with the lofty ceilings, long naives, and broad walls. Even though these churches have ornate form, they contain a fantastic amount of KU, even when people fill them to capacity.
The Studio
of 5 Rings is a tribute to and an extension of the works of Miyamoto
Musashi, who detailed his philosophy and strategies in his Book of 5 Rings. My vision for uniting visual arts with martial arts
may seem unorthodox by today's standards; in 17th century Japan,
however, Musashi devoted his life to his Way which included constant
practice of swordsmanship tempered with devotion to the arts.
Inventor
of the two-sword technique, Musashi was an accomplished artist in
several media: calligraphy, ink & brush (see examples below),
carving and sculpture. Treating brush and sword alike, each
brush stroke adds meaning to the painting. This creates work
that appears minimal at first glance, but invites the audience to
study how each stroke tells a small part of the story. Understanding
one thing allows us to understand ten thousand things.
Rather
than operating simply as a merchant, I created this special venue
hoping to bring new meaning to the lives of those who are open to
personal growth through art in its many forms. You may fill
your vessel here and become the person whom you aspire to become.
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| What Does Our Logo Mean? |
The imperfect circle around the number 5 in our logo is called a Zen Enso (also seen as Enzo or Ensu). Japanese for "circle", the Enso
is a brushed-ink painting of a Zen circle.
Some Enso's are drawn complete, and some have an opening; the opening signifies that the Enso is part of something greater. The symbol itself has many meanings:
- The "circle of life" - the brush makes one stroke with a distinct beginning and ending. Yet the beginning, ending and all points between create something greater than the sum of the points into a circle that continues and transcends beginnings and endings.
- Infinity, the All, the Void and Enlightenment itself
- Expression of the Moment
- In my karate class, I tell my students, "Once you understand how long a moment is, you are on the threshold of becoming an advanced martial artist." Time, or at least our perception of time, is malleable and plastic. Master your perception of time in a sequence of events, and you will begin to understand how long a moment is.
- Seeking the truth This interpretation is interesting and is very Zen.
- The ultimate goal of Zen is to achieve a state that is never seeking, desiring or striving. Yet new practitioners spend hours meditating, reflecting, etc. to reach a state in which there is no more seeking. Like a Zen Koan, this is seemingly paradoxical to our Western minds.
- In the book, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, the question is asked, "Is it better to travel or to arrive?" On our path to seeking an ultimate truth, do we get more value from the answer itself or the process and paths we used to arrive at the answer?
- Dr. Schindler, a former Philosophy professor of mine, asked this question - "Does asking a question pre-suppose an answer?" For example, does the fact that we seek an ultimate truth necessitate the existence of that truth? For without the existence of that truth, how would we know to seek it?
- When the circle is complete, it is empty.
- In Zen meditation, one empties the self. When the self is emptied, we are ready to be made whole by enlightenment.
- In martial arts, we need to train to learn a technique until it becomes automatic. The mantra is learn it and forget it. We fill the brain then empty it. Once the circle is complete, it's empty.
- It is believed by many that the character of the artist is fully exposed in how he draws Enso, and that only one who is mentally and spiritually whole can draw a true Enso. Some artists will draw Enso daily, as a kind of spiritual diary.
We are not promoting alternate faith options in our business. At its core, Zen is not a religion or a philosophy per se. It is a state of being. Just as Zen helps us to experience ordinary life in an extraordinary way, I hope this venue helps you to experience art in a new way.
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| What Is the Connection Between Art, Wine and Martial Arts? |
The Studio of 5 Rings is a first and foremost a venue to enrich the lives of others with meaning. Admittedly the combination of art gallery, winery and martial arts studio is counter-intuitive to our Western ways of thinking. There is one critical point, however, at which all three intersect, and it is this point that I find missing from the lives of most people I know. This critical intersection is the Present and the Now. We perceive Time as being made up of three components: Past, Present and Future. We understand when the Past and Future are - events that have already happened and events that have not yet happened. When exactly do we define the point in between Past and Future? Is it Now, or Now, or Right Now? The instant we think we have it, it becomes part of the Past. Perhaps the key is not to define it, but to experience the Present. Unload the baggage of the past, jettison all fears and eliminate abject focus on events that have yet to transpire. Step out of your own life for a moment, and experience your life.
- To fully appreciate works of art, it requires us to step out of our busy lives and enjoy the moment of observing it, treasuring it.
- To fully appreciate wine, one must clear oneself of preconceived notions of what we like in wine. Only then can we proceed with a wine sampling and enjoy the moment.
- To overcome an adversary (whether it is another person or one's very self), we must definitively know who we are and who we are about to become. There is no yesterday or tomorrow. There is only the present opportunity to resolve the conflict. How we control that sense of Present will often determine the outcome.
- Click Here for writings on Martial Strategy
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This web site was designed by Matt Cook © 2004 Studio of 5 Rings, LLC. |
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