I’m also working on a couple of calligraphy practice projects.
My calligraphy stinks. I’d like it to be better. But frankly, I’m not necessarily interested in doing it perfectly; I’m interested in making a transcription of the Aphorisms of Hermes to Asclepius. I got this from Frater RO’s web course — I’ve been a reader of his site recently, and when he needed a new car, I bought his discounted course as a way of saying thanks. But really, there’s a number of gems in it. I won’t display or publish all of my pieces that I’m creating from his work; that’s not fair to his course or his students. But just as there’s power in copying out a talisman’s lines, there’s value in copying out the texts that you regard as sacred, or that you wish to study in more detail. Making your hand do the work is just as important as sitting in meditation trying to make your brain do the work. In some ways, making your hand do the work is much more important. The text dies when it’s only alive in electronic or printed form — it has a much better chance of affecting the spirit, or of BEING a spirit, when it’s written in ink by your own hand. Take the time to copy out texts that you regard as sacred.
