I found the TedTalk I referred to re 'open circle'. Without more ado, go to it direct below. Or, how I’m using chinese characters in All Moments. Your first introduction is on page 4: 我们舞蹈无翼 无耻 This expression, which I built from my exploration of characters, says - We dance wingless without shame. (It may mean other things to native chinese speakers, I’m a ‘beginner’ in this language) In pinyin it is : Wǒmen wǔdǎo wúyì wúchǐ Lit: We 我们 dance 舞蹈 without wings 无翼 无耻 without shame In Forms 29 and 43 when I removed the ‘we’ I got 舞蹈无翼 无耻 dance wingless without shame. I should probably have put a ‘to’ in front of it making it 跳舞蹈无翼 无耻 I thought about it, but I was aiming for suggesting the reader embrace an affirmation of the act of dancing rather than giving them an instruction ‘to’ dance. But why that phrase anyway? Forms 4 and 45 Deals with its ‘construction’ as follows: I was exploring fluidity of ‘meaning’ and the idea for the phrase came from the characters. I wasn’t trying to ‘create’ that phrase, it came out of the characters as they emerged. It was while I was trying to work out the many variants of ‘wu’ (before I understood the how tones related to characters in the Chinese written language.) Essentially the idea and the ‘sentence’ emerged from the characters. 舞 池 (dance floor) 无 耻 (Without any sense of shame) 无 持 (wingless) There are many other characters (tone dependent) which can subtly change the meaning of this, or perhaps express it better - If you know Chinese, please indulge me. If you don’t please go with me. It’s the ‘meaning’ beneath the words/characters which are most importance/interest to me. For example, my dictionary tells me that ‘to dance,’ (verb) is tiaowǔ 跳舞 whereas dance (noun) (a dance) is wǔdǎo 舞蹈 and (the dance) is wǔhui 舞会 Consistent is the ‘dance’ character wǔ and this interested me because wú is also 无 when it means ‘without’ ( the difference is from tone 3 to tone 2 if you're interested) Going back to the headings sections: Open Circle 开圆圈 I came across a great video explaining this (which of course I can’t find again just now) but basically I’m taking it to mean as the guy demonstrated, how if you don’t close the circle you’re able to embrace multidimensions. It’s tied up with Wuji.. I shall keep looking for the reference and insert it when/if I find it (which will be when I stop looking!) [nb - paradox accepted] WUXING 无形 The five element theory. (Also sometimes found as wuxin) I first came to this through The book QiGong and the Tai Chi Axis: And Dr Paul Lam’s Qigong for Health. WUJI
无极 Is best described as the ‘empty circle’ (the infinite emptiness) and as such related to the ‘open circle’ Suffice it to say that there seems (to me) a lot of inconsistency in sources as to many of the Anglicised versions of Chinese - which is the reason I started learning Chinese, to gain greater insight, but you’ll appreciate it’s not something that can be achieved in weeks or even months - it’s a journey! OTHER CHARACTERS... At various points in the text you may come across 是不是 The purpose of this Is not is - is to break the narrative space The character Is 是 shi And Not 不 bu Are put together this way when one asks a question such as Are you [ ] or not? So are you well or not? is You are not are well? 你是不是好吗? As below: Ni(you) 你 shi (are/is) 是 bu (not) 不 shi (are/is) 是 hao (good/well) 好 ma [ma makes the statement a question, it’s known as a question particle] 吗 While Do you like this book? Would be You like not like the book? With [like not like] instead of is not is So I put IS NOT IS 是不是 To represent the change of dimensions in the narrative. The question being asked is: Is this one place/space/time or another? It’s not a complete sentence intentionally because it’s breaking the two parts of the narrative. In Forms 15 and 44 there is a section dealing with language and thought Rendered in characters as follows: Words and ideas 言 和 思想 言 words (lit speech) 和 and 思想 ideas (lit thought) 'If you step over them into the cave which houses the walls of discourse on the nature of linguistic meaning, you may find that the only reality of linguistic science is the word. Its embodiment is its reality.' 书不尽 言 shūbùjìnyán Writing cannot fully express words or (endless books) 言 不尽 以 yánbùjìnyì Words cannot fully express what is in my heart or (endless words) I break it down as follows: 不Not 尽 Fully express 书 writing 言 words 以 heart But again, don’t quote me for purposes of accurate Chinese! Then in Forms 16 and 51 there is: 精神 舞 by which I mean Mind dance Jīng 精 and shén 神 Have many meanings even with the same tone, depending on what characters go before/after them, including ‘fine’ and ‘God’ so it can be translated as ‘spiritual dancing’ or as ‘fine God Dance’ but in my dictionary 精神 Jīngshén together is defined as ‘mind’ Hence ‘mind dance’ (not a standard phrase in any language that I know of!) And that’s how I used Chinese characters, given my knowledge and understanding at the point in the perspective at which I was working on the text. Another month or year it might have come out entirely different. But understanding what it means to dance wingless without shame, I remain shameless! 我无 耻 |
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