The first Japanese approximation of ‘Mark’ is the nearest romaji rendering: maaku. The sound can also be approximated in kana, or even using a set of kanji precursors. But should it be the sound or the meaning that has priority? And should either of these characteristics be given such priority that the overall length, look and consonance of the name be overlooked?
Only two kanji actually have the pronunciation maaku, and neither is well-known. One actually means ‘mark’ too, in the sense of trade mark, symbol, sign, etc. Kanji being symbols, and this particular symbol symbolising ‘symbol’ symbolises the kind of symbolism that I like. Forget that ‘Mark’ doesn’t mean ‘mark’. The fact that this kanji symbolises symbolism is enough! And its right hand element is itself the kanji for ink, an appealing calligraphic connotation, so perhaps I should chose this one as my shodo haimei or gou. The other kanji that is read as maaku has rather negative connotations; it means ‘betrayal’, which I take as a kind of betrayal in itself. In the end I choose neither of these kanji.
For my gou I eventually select the character ma, meaning ‘space’, with connotations of interval, opening, distance, time. This kanji captures many appealing ideas: the emptiness between walls, between characters in a work of calligraphy, Zen enlightenment, the essential Japanese corelessness. Ma is used to describe the long comfortable pauses that take place in conversations between people who know each other well or, more correctly, the harmony that enables such conversation. The synergy that results from a few stones placed in an open garden can be described as ma. It is also used to describe the pared-down minimalism of noh drama, where a mere tilt of a head is used to indicate an emotion. The kanji character for ma combines elements for gate and sun (or the moon, in older forms), clearly suggesting space or light seen through an opening. It’s an empty space – a good symbol for what I feel I am becoming.
