The Japanese Way of the Flower: Ikebana as Moving Meditation (Michi: Japanese Arts and Ways) [Paperback]

H. E. Davey (Author), Ann Kameoka (Author), L.J.C. Shimoda (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2000

This volume of "moving meditations" shows how simple Japanese flower arranging (ikebana) techniques can be used to refresh the body and restore the spirit. Emphasizing that ikebana is first and foremost a "Way"--a spiritual and meditative art--the book offers solid grounding in Japanese aesthetics and philosophy, with references to Zen, tea ceremony, and other traditional Japanese arts. Line drawings and color photographs show step-by-step arrangements especially for beginners and casual practitioners.

The Japanese Way of the Flower is now out of print, but the entire book is included in The Japanese Way of the Artist (Stone Bridge Press), which also contains Brush Meditation and Living the Japanese Arts & Ways. Get three popular books by H. E. Davey for the price of one. Order The Japanese Way of the Artist from Amazon.com and discover the secrets of Japan's ancient arts, crafts, and forms of meditation.

H. E. Davey is Director of the Sennin Foundation Center for Japanese Cultural Arts. He has decades of training in Japanese yoga, healing arts, martial arts, and fine arts. Ann Kameoka is a certified teacher of Ikenobo flower arrangement.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A very welcome addition to students of Japanese culture, interior decorators, florists, and the non-specialist general reader with an interest in floral arrangements, The Japanese Way of the Flower is an impressive, authoritative, and comprehensive introduction."
Internet Book Watch

"There is something for everyone . . . Floral designers in western countries will find it is a very well-grounded, well-organized, helpful guide to the art of ikebana. Those studying Japanese culture and art will see it as a valuable source of information on how aesthetics have become an important part of human psychology. "

BellaOnline

"As artful as a flower arrangement, this succinct, powerful book instructs as well as inspires. From historical overview to stylistic differentiation, and from meditative exercises to basic principles to step-by-step design, this is a wonderful work that will enrich anyone's personal Way of self-cultivation." -Stephen M. Fabian, Ph.D., author of Clearing Away Clouds: Nine Lessons for Life from the Martial Arts -- Review

From the Publisher

The Japanese Way of the Flower: Ikebana as Moving Meditation is part of Stone Bridge Press's MICHI: JAPANESE ARTS AND WAYS series. From chado--"the Way of tea"--to budo--"the martial Way"--Japan has succeeded in spiritualizing a number of classical arts. The names of these skills often end in Do, also pronounced Michi, meaning the "Way." By studying a Way in detail, we discover vital principles that transcend the art and relate more broadly to the art of living itself. Featuring the work of H. E. Davey and other select authors, books in the series MICHI: JAPANESE ARTS AND WAYS focus on these Do forms. They are about discipline and spirituality, about moving from the particular to the universal... to benefit people of any culture.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Stone Bridge Press (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1880656477
• ISBN-13: 978-1880656471
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,363,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

H. E. Davey is the Director of the Sennin Foundation Center for Japanese Cultural Arts (www.senninfoundation.com), which offers instruction in Japanese systems of yoga, martial arts, healing arts, and fine arts. His introduction to the arts of Japan came via traditional martial arts. Since the age of five, he's studied jujutsu extensively in the USA and Japan. He has received the title of Kyoshi from the Kokusai Budoin, a Tokyo-based international federation. Kokusai Budoin defines Kyoshi as comparable to a "Master's Certificate" and equivalent to modern ranks of sixth- to eighth-degree black belt. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Shudokan Martial Arts Association (www.smaa-hq.com).

In middle school, Mr. Davey began Shin-shin-toitsu-do, a system of Japanese yoga and meditation founded by Nakamura Tempu Sensei. He's the only member of Tempu-Kai, an organization established by Mr. Nakamura, who is a full-time professional instructor of Shin-shin-toitsu-do. He's practiced in Japan and the USA under Nakamura Sensei's senior disciples, including Sawai Atsuhiro Sensei and Hashimoto Tetsuichi Sensei.

Mr. Davey's also received extensive instruction in Nakamura Sensei's methods of bodywork and healing with ki ("life energy"), which he teaches. He's furthermore received training in Hatha yoga and Pranayama breathing exercises in the tradition of Indra Devi.

Mr. Davey also studied shodo, or Japanese brush writing and ink painting, for 20 years under the late Kobara Ranseki Sensei of Kyoto. Mr. Davey holds the top rank in Ranseki Sho Juku shodo and exhibits each year in Japan. He's received numerous honors in these exhibitions, including Jun Taisho ("Associate Grand Prize").

H. E. Davey's articles on Japanese arts and his artwork have appeared in numerous American and Japanese magazines and newspapers. He's the author of Unlocking the Secrets of Aiki-jujutsu (McGraw-Hill), Brush Meditation: A Japanese Way to Mind & Body Harmony (Stone Bridge Press), Japanese Yoga: The Way of Dynamic Meditation (Stone Bridge Press), Living the Japanese Arts & Ways: 45 Paths to Meditation & Beauty (Stone Bridge Press), The Japanese Way of the Artist (Stone Bridge Press), and The Japanese Way of the Flower: Ikebana as Moving Meditation (Stone Bridge Press).

The Japanese Way of the Artist has its own Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TheJapaneseWayOfTheArtist

Japanese Yoga: The Way of Dynamic Meditation also has a Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/JapaneseYoga

H. E. Davey's Sennin Foundation Center for Japanese Cultural Arts is on Facebook, too: http://www.facebook.com/SenninFoundation

Be sure to also check out H. E. Davey's Art of Shodo Facebook page for world class Japanese calligraphic art: http://www.facebook.com/ArtOfShodo

If you're a fan of Mr. Davey's books on Japanese arts and meditation, you may also enjoying becoming a fan of these Facebook pages. Just click the "Like" button.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An impressive, authoritative, and comprehensive introduction, January 30, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Japanese Way of the Flower: Ikebana as Moving Meditation (Michi: Japanese Arts and Ways) (Paperback)

In The Japanese Way Of The Flower, Davey and Kameoka successfully collaborate to instruct the reader in the Japanese art of flower arranging and how it differs from Western floral art. The reader will learn simple meditation exercises to prepare for the process of composition; basic flower arrangements with color photos, diagrams, and step-by-step instructions; important Japanese aesthetic and spiritual concepts; the history of "kado" (The Way of the Flower) and its different stylistic schools; and where to find formal kado instructors and flower arrangement supplies. A very welcome addition to students of Japanese culture, interior decorators, florists, and the non-specialist general reader with an interest in floral arrangements, The Japanese Way Of The Flower is an impressive, authoritative, and comprehensive introduction.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Japanese Way of the Flower, September 17, 2001

By 

Ann H. Kameoka "ahk" (USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Japanese Way of the Flower: Ikebana as Moving Meditation (Michi: Japanese Arts and Ways) (Paperback)

Flowers--not on, but as a spiritual path. This is the principle behind kado--widely known in the West as ikebana--the Japanese art of aesthetic flower arranging. The point is emphatically made that, as with other spiritual art forms, it is not the art itself that leads to awakening and profound realizations; rather, it is how we approach the practice that determines our growth. In kado, the simple meditation exercises prepare for the process of composition; a genuine understanding of harmony of mind and body and of the oneness of nature are essential to success. Fully half of the book is devoted to preparation--a thorough understanding of the concepts, and development of effective meditation techniques. A chapter expands on the fundamental principles of kado--harmony, asymmetrical balance, artlessness, impermanence, and oneness with the universe--and to the classification of arrangements. A final chapter guides the beginner in several simple arrangements, while appendices provide sources for supplies and a glossary. Lovely and elegant line drawings illustrate important points throughout.

5.0 out of 5 stars enjoyable, June 2, 2011

By 

Glorybirdie (Southern, ca) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Japanese Way of the Flower: Ikebana as Moving Meditation (Michi: Japanese Arts and Ways) (Paperback)

Very enjoyable and informative. Anyone who wants to benefit from true relaxation, creativity, and being immersed in beauty will be estactic about this book. This books helps experience beauty, not from standing apart and looking from a frontal position, but from a knowledge that we are in the beauty, the balance, and the peace.

gloria Ruiz