Matsuo Bashō wrote: 'Stillness — seeping into the rocks, the voice of the cicada.' Shizukesa (静けさ) is not the absence of sound. It is the presence of silence — a positive, textured, alive quietness that you can almost hear. The silence of a forest after snowfall. The silence of a temple at dawn. The silence between two people who understand each other.

Going Deeper

Explore this concept further in The Beauty of Ma by Takeshi Mori.

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