Books by H. E. Davey
H. E. Davey's writing and Japanese calligraphic art has been featured in a variety of Japanese and American newspapers and magazines. His books have been issued by well-established publishers like McGraw-Hill, Masters Press, and Stone Bridge Press. All of his paperbacks and ebooks are currently offered by Michi Publishing, an independent press.
H. E. Davey received a Best Spiritual Book award from Spirituality & Health magazine for his book Living the Japanese Arts & Ways: 45 Paths to Meditation & Beauty. The same book was one of ForeWord magazine's top five books and a finalist for their Book of the Year Award. His book Brush Meditation: A Japanese Way to Mind & Body Harmony was one of the top ten best selling Stone Bridge Press books of 1999.
Below are the works of H. E. Davey that are presently in print. They are available on Amazon and at your local bookstore.
Secrets of the Brush: Life Lessons from the Art of Japanese Calligraphy
Secrets of the Brush: Life Lessons from the Art of Japanese Calligraphy is the first new book in years from award-winning author, artist, and sensei H. E. Davey. Mr. Davey is the author of The Japanese Way of the Artist, a widely admired how-to book that lets even beginners try Japanese calligraphy.
An internationally acclaimed shodo calligrapher and ink painting expert, his new 2019 work covers the 20 years he studied under a venerated Japanese master, Kobara Ranseki, the late recipient of the Order of the Rising Sun. Expanding on the meditative emphasis of The Japanese Way of the Artist, Secrets of the Brush shifts away from technical instruction to focus on life altering aesthetic and spiritual principles.
It uses an innovative format mingling biography, autobiography, and Japanese art history, with shodo and meditation instruction. Secrets of the Brush explores Zen-like life lessons the author absorbed over two decades. Combining over 50 years of experience in Japanese arts with themes from old Asian texts, cult movies, punk rock, and more, H. E. Davey explains rarely understood Eastern principles that will positively change your life. These concepts increase skill in Asian arts, including calligraphy, painting, martial arts, tea ceremony, and meditation. Even fans of Western art can use this book to transform their craft.
It’s packed with incredible new artwork from one of the Western world’s leading exponents of shodo. Full-page illustrations and a comprehensive glossary complete this guide to life and an ancient Japanese art.
“Demonstrating the Japanese aesthetic of elegance (shibumi), Davey uses words with clarity and simplicity to describe the non-word realm of practicing these arts—calligraphy, martial arts, tea ceremonies, painting—and the spiritual meaning of such practice . . . Davey is thoroughly steeped in Japanese culture and able to respectfully introduce and explain how those sensibilities are inextricably woven through the arts. As an American who has been accepted within traditional Japanese arts realms, he can offer a helpful cross-cultural lens on what terms and behaviors mean.”
Publishers Weekly review of Living the Japanese Arts & Ways
“H. E. Davey combines a remarkable technical facility in the Japanese art of the brush with a deep understanding of its spiritual profundities. His book offers a marvelous practical introduction to Japanese calligraphy as well as insights into the essence of this art. It is a unique and fascinating presentation of a little-known art of self-cultivation.”
Dave Lowry, author of Sword and Brush, on Brush Meditation: A Japanese Way to Mind & Body Harmony
The Japanese Way of the Artist
Ikebana and tea ceremony, karate and calligraphy—all traditional Japanese arts and practices share certain ideals and techniques to achieve the same goals: serenity, mind/body harmony, awareness, and a sense of connection to the universe. This collection of three complete books provides H. E. Davey’s unique insights into the rich universe of these Japanese spiritual, artistic, and martial traditions while introducing the reader to practical examples of two Japanese forms of “moving meditation” that exemplify the union of art and spiritual growth.
Living the Japanese Arts & Ways presents 45 essential principles—like wabi, “immovable mind,” and “stillness in motion”—that are universal in the Japanese classic tradition. Revealing little-known, ancient, and powerful teachings that link all classic Japanese arts, it explains how they can beneficially transform your life. Living the Japanese Arts & Ways was the recipient of the Spirituality & Health magazine Best Spirituality Books Award.
Brush Meditation introduces beginners and non-artists alike to Japanese calligraphy, and shows how even the most elemental stroke of ink and brush reveals your physical and mental state. It's packed with amazing examples of the author's award-winning Japanese calligraphy.
The Japanese Way of the Flower examines practical methods for looking at nature and leads the reader through simple meditations as a prelude to learning how to create easy ikebana compositions.
This anthology contains an all-new introduction by the author. The entire text is complemented by diagrams, drawings, and photographs, plus information, resources, and glossaries of Japanese terms.
Japanese Yoga: The Way of Dynamic Meditation
Emphasizing gentle stretching and meditation exercises, the ultimate goal of Japanese yoga (Shin-shin-toitsu-do) is enhanced mind/body integration, calmness, and willpower for a healthier and fuller life. Developed by Nakamura Tempu in the early 1900s from Indian Raja yoga, Japanese martial arts and meditation practices, as well as Western medicine and psychotherapy, Japanese yoga offers a new approach to experienced yoga students and a natural methodology that newcomers will find easy to learn.
After a brief history of Shin-shin-toitsu-do, H. E. Davey presents Mr. Nakamura's Four Basic Principles to Unify Mind and Body. These principles relate the meditative experience to the movement of everyday living and thus make it a "dynamic meditation." Each of the Four Basic Principles is illustrated with step-by-step explanations of practical experiments.
Readers are then introduced to different forms of seated and moving meditation, health exercises, and self-healing arts. All these are linked back to the Four Basic Principles and can enhance performance in art, music, business, sports, and other activities. Readers learn to use Japanese yoga techniques throughout the day, without having to sit on the floor or seek out a quiet space.
Included at the end of the book are simple but effective stretching exercises, information about ongoing practice, and a glossary and reference section. Amply illustrated and cogently presented, Japanese Yoga belongs on every mind/body/spirit reading list. It was the first book in English on Nakamura Tempu's revolutionary new approach to ancient truths, and it received top reviews in a variety of publications, including Yoga Journal.
The Teachings of Tempu: Practical Meditation for Daily Life
The Teachings of Tempu: Practical Meditation for Daily Life details the life and meditation techniques of Nakamura Tempu (1876-1968). Mr. Nakamura taught Shin-shin-toitsu-do (“The Way of Mind and Body Unification”) for over 50 years and authored bestselling books. He trained over 100,000 people, including members of the Japanese Imperial Family, government officials, business leaders, top athletes, celebrated actors, martial arts experts, and notable novelists.
The book begins with Mr. Nakamura’s early years and a global quest to cure his tuberculosis. This search took him to the USA, where he studied medicine at Columbia University. Next, he traveled to Europe, where he lived with actress Sarah Bernhardt and researched psychology. In Egypt he encountered Kaliapa, an Indian mystic and yoga master, who brought him to India for a final attempt to save his life. After austere meditation in the Himalayas, Nakamura Tempu attained enlightenment, shook off the bonds of illness, and returned to Japan a changed man.
The Teachings of Tempu uses episodes from Mr. Nakamura’s life to introduce his philosophy of mind and body unification, his forms of meditation, and how these skills can help you attain better health as well as deeper calmness, concentration, and willpower. It contains rare photos from Japan, which chronicle his long life. Also featured are extensive quotes from his books, the first time his writing has been offered in English.
The Teachings of Tempu presents experiments and exercises you can try
at home to understand mind and body unification—the essence of Mr.
Nakamura’s realization and the secret to unlocking human potential. Illustrations of these exercises and forms of meditation are provided, along with an Introduction by Sawai Atsuhiro, a leading teacher of Shin-shin-toitsu-do and a direct student of Mr. Nakamura. Dr. Robert Carter, author and Professor Emeritus of Philosophy for Canada’s Trent University, wrote the Foreword.
