Chinese 書法 (shū fǎ), calligraphy, is the ancient art of Chinese handwriting. No publication on Chinese culture could ever omit mention of Chinese characters and calligraphy. For foreigners, 漢字 (hàn zì), Chinese characters, are hard to master, and calligraphy is even more difficult.

Calligraphy in France refers to writing with a quill pen (羽毛筆, yǔ máo bǐ), but it has a different connotation in Chinese. 書 (shū) means 寫字 (xiě zì), writing, and its original complex form 書 refers to holding a brush with which to write on rice paper (宣紙, xuān zhǐ). But for me, in 書法 the character 法 (fǎ) is more significant, because it signifies rules and laws. In other words, Chinese calligraphy means to write in a certain way following specific rules. I would like to introduce in this article some vocabulary related to this art form of China.

China's earliest written records are 甲骨文 (jiǎ gǔ wén), inscriptions on animal bones and tortoise shells (刻在龜甲或獸骨之上的文字, kè zài guī jiǎ huò shòu gǔ zhī shàng de wén zì), discovered from the 14th to 11th century BC. They are closely related to 占卜(zhān bǔ), divination. In ancient times the Chinese used tortoise shells or cow shoulder blades to make predictions by heating them over a fire. A 巫師 (wū shī), shaman, would interpret the resultant cracks in the bones as foretelling future events. At that time, writing was regarded as sacred – solely for communication with the gods and as speaking for them, similar to the hieroglyphics (象形文字, xiàng xíng wén zì) of ancient Egypt (古埃及, gǔ āi jí).

For a period in ancient China, only 士 (shì), scholars and officials, could write. Ordinary people were illiterate (文盲, wén máng). The ability to write thus implied authority. The word 士 is still used, for example in higher education, such as in 學(xué)士 (xué shì), bachelor's degree, 碩士 (shuò shì), master's degree, and 博士 (bó shì), doctorate.

In China, families of intellectuals or with intellectual forebears are called 書香門第 (shū xiāng mén dì). 書香 (shū xiāng) originates from the practice of placing the herb Cymbopogon distans between book pages to repel pests. The faint scent permeating the pages made books fragrant. Intellectuals in China have also been called 文人雅士 (wén rén yǎ shì), literati or men of letters with refined taste. As their main tasks are reading and learning, they are also called 讀書人 (dú shū rén), people who read a lot, or 學(xué)者 (xué zhě), scholars.

文房四寶 (wén fáng sì bǎo), the Four Treasures of Study, refer to the four writing tools: 筆 (bǐ), writing brush, 墨 (mò), inkstick, 紙 (zhǐ) rice paper, and 硯 (yàn), inkslab. 筆 is a pictographic character with 竹 (zhú), bamboo, at the top, signifying the material of which the brush is made, and 毛 (máo), the animal hair or fur, below it, representing the brush head. The characters 紙 and 硯 also contain the materials they are made of – 絲 (sī), silk, on the left of the character 紙, and 石 (shí), stone, on the left of the character 硯.

Chinese forefathers held reading and writing in high esteem. This is echoed in several sayings in China. They include 讀書破萬卷, 下筆如有神 (dú shū pò wàn juàn, xià bǐ rú yǒu shén) – If you have read ten thousand books, you will write articles as excellent as if with help from the gods; 腹有詩書氣自華 (fù yǒu shī shū qì zì huá) – reading makes a person graceful; and 讀書千遍其義自見 (dú shū qiān biàn qí yì zì xiàn) – after reading a book a thousand times the meaning reveals itself. Even now, Chinese students and scholars take heed of these sayings, as they believe they provide both methods and inspiration for study.

Using a writing brush (毛筆, máo bǐ) differs from using a ballpoint pen (圓珠筆, yuán zhū bǐ) or typing in that it requires a greater connection between the mind and the body and intimate interlocution between the calligrapher's heart and the world that he presents on paper. Calligraphers regard their works as reshaping the cosmic world. To achieve a state of harmony between nature and human beings, they sketch the rudiments in their mind's eye before they 揮毫潑墨 (huī háo pō mò), wield their brushes to write in ink.

Every calligrapher has his or her own way of 運筆 (yùn bǐ), writing each stroke of a Chinese character. In the long practice of this art form, they may have developed their own distinctive 筆勢 (bǐ shì), writing styles, which evoke different feelings for their works.

In China, there are thousands of ways to describe calligraphic works, such as 龍飛鳳舞 (lóng fēi fèng wǔ), lively and vigorous, 圓潤流暢 (yuán rùn liú chàng), smooth and fluent, and 清和淡雅( qīng hé dàn yǎ), gentle and graceful. There is no lack of Chinese expressions complimenting such works. Chinese calligraphy is a sacred art, and can be a treasured gift.

來源：China Today
編輯：萬月英