Touching Stone​​​ Gallery
Santa Fe, New Mexico USA
Touching Stone - A Journey of the Mind Part II
Photography by Tim Wong
Calligraphy by Akiko Hirano
Calligraphy ink on Japanese paper, Akiko Hirano
​
I have always known
that at last I would take this road
But yesterday I did not know
that it would be today
- Arihara-no Narihira (825-880)
"Transcendence No. 1 - 4" silver gelatin prints, Tim Wong
Calligraphy ink on Japanese paper, Akiko Hirano
​
From ancient time to present
there were not two paths
- from Zenrinkushu (Eicho 1429-1504)
"The Path" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Enzo" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Where Spirits Dwell" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
Calligraphy, Akiko Hirano
Seek not to follow
the footsteps of the ancient
Seek what they sought
- Matsuo Basho (1644-1694)
"Renascence" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Waves" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Circle of Stone" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Rising Spirit #2" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Equinox" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
Touching Stone
​
Against the inkstone
the ink stick grinds
setting free my mind
​
Rustling the bamboo leaves
a light breeze plays
in the twilight
A bird takes wings, leading me
on a pilgrimage
to a time long forgotten
An amber light glows
in the dark, illuminating
a new life emerging
Into the warmth of Mother Earth
the open arms of Father Sky
Across canyons and mesas
like waves
Atop the most sacred place
Sun Dagger finds its home
White and blue the dancers' sash
stained a brilliant crimson red
For a thousand years
in a circle of stone
the fiery drums
reverberate
Right and left
forth and back
the Kachinas dance
ne'er touching ground
Over the rock walls
their spirits soar
free at last
as clouds
Returning to earth
the Owner of Fire
transformed
into a gift of beauty
Tonight the wind still blows
the bamboo grove sways
My heart rejoins the inkstone
in perfect harmony
Touching Stone Journey translated
- Akiko Hirano
​
​
"Sun Dagger" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Circle of Stone #2" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Solstice" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
"Revelation" silver gelatin print, Tim Wong
Calligraphy ink on Japanese paper, Akiko Hirano
​​
Over the rock walls their spirits soar
free at last as clouds
Returning to earth the Owner of Fire
transformed into a gift of beauty
"Emergence" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Eulogy" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Communion" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Ethereal" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"The Seeker" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
Calligraphy ink on Japanese paper
Akiko Hirano
​
Immersing myself
deep into the land
A final privilege
I turn to stone
"Final Privilege" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Departure" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
Calligraphy ink on Japanese paper
Akiko Hirano
​
Not even a single bird cries
the mountain is more tranquil
Wang Anshi (1021-1086)
"Remembrance" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Pinnacle" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
Calligrahy ink on Japanese paper
Akiko Hirano
​
A thousand peaks
lead to a single pinnacle
- Zen saying
"Castle in the Sky" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
Calligrahy ink on Japanese paper
Akiko Hirano
​
I occasionally come under some pine trees
Falling asleep on a rock as pillow
No calendar in the mountains
Winter has ended but what year?
- Tang hermit (name/year unknown)
"Hermit's Rock" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"End or Beginning" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
"Temple Gate" calligraphy
ink on Japanese paper, Akiko Hirano
​
Shutting the temple gate
C-r-e-a-k, it goes
an autumn evening
- Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902)
"Return to Harmony" silver gelatin print
Tim Wong
Time past and time future
what might have been and what has been
point to one end, which is always present
― T.S. Eliot (1888-1965)