The gorgeous palladium prints of Taichi Gondaira

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TAKE - Japanese bamboo

Japanese bamboo (take) is a very strong plant. In Japan, the symbolism of the bamboo plant runs deep and wide and offers practical lessons for life and for work. Some of bamboo inspired wisdom: 
Bend but don't break. Be flexible yet firmly rooted;
Remember: What looks weak is strong;
Be always ready;
Find wisdom in emptiness;
Commit to (continuous) growth;
Express usefulness through simplicity.

Simple and unadorned, the bamboo is also symbolic of purity and innocence. "Take o watta youna hito (a man like fresh-split bamboo)" refers to a man with a frank nature.

More here: http://www.photography-match.com/ and http://regex.info/blog/ http://www.presentationzen.com/presentationzen/2010/07/be-like-the-bamboo-trees-lessons-from-the-japanese-forest.html

Bend but don't break. Be flexible yet firmly rooted
One of the most impressive things about the bamboo in the forest is how they sway with even the slightest breeze. Their bodies are hard and firm and yet sway gently in the breeze while their trunks stay rooted firmly in the ground below. Their foundation is solid even though they move and sway harmoniously with the wind, never fighting against it.

Find wisdom in emptiness
It is said that in order to learn, the first step is to empty ourselves of our preconceived notions. One can not fill a cup which is already full. The hollow insides of the bamboo reminds us that we are often too full of ourselves and our own conclusions; we have no space for anything else. When you empty your mind of your prejudices and pride and fear, you become open to the possibilities.

Unleash your power to spring back
In winter the heavy snow bends the bamboo back and back until one day the snow becomes too heavy, begins to fall, and the bamboo snaps back up tall again, brushing aside all the snow. The bamboo endured the heavy burden of the snow, but in the end it had to power to spring back as if to say "I will not be defeated."

Remember: What looks weak is strong
Bamboo may not look impressive at first sight at all. But the plants endure cold winters and extremely hot summers and are sometimes the only trees left standing in the aftermath of a typhoon.

Be always ready
Unlike other types of wood which take a good deal of processing and finishing, bamboo needs little of that. As the great Aikido master Kensho Furuya says in Kodo: Ancient Ways, "The warrior, like bamboo, is ever ready for action."

Express usefulness through simplicity 
Aikido master Kensho Furuya says that "The bamboo in its simplicity expresses its usefulness. Man should do the same." Indeed, we spend a lot of our time trying to show how smart we are, perhaps to convince others — and ourselves — that we are worthy of their attention and praise.Source: http://www.photography-match.com/ and http://regex.info/blog/ http://www.presentationzen.com/presentationzen/2010/07/be-like-the-bamboo-trees-lessons-from-the-japanese-forest.html