The "five-finger pen-holding method" is to hold the pen firmly with all five fingers of the right hand by means of "pressing, pressing, hooking, pushing and extending", so that the fingers can perform their respective duties. The specific method of holding the pen is to press one side of the pen holder on the inside of the first book of the thumb, and the thumb is in a slightly horizontal lateral state. Press the pen from the outside to the inside at the first or second joint of the index finger. The middle finger is next to the index finger and hooks the pen. The ring finger is close to the middle finger, and the root of the first nail is close to the pen to resist the pressing force of the index finger and the middle finger. Press the little finger under the inside of the ring finger to help. In this way, the strength of the five fingers evenly surrounds the three sides of the pen, making the pen fixed and the palm empty (see Figure 2). The same is the five-finger pen-holding method, which forms many forms because of the opening and closing of the hand lattice, whether the pen is held at the fingertip or at the second joint of the finger. The ancients called it "phoenix eye", "tiger's mouth" and "goose's head" and so on.
Pillow wrist, hanging wrist, hanging elbow
Pillow wrist? Pillow wrist is a way to write on the desk or on the back of the left hand with the wrist holding the pen. There is also a kind of bamboo called "handrail", which is used to let go and is usually used in summer. Because it is easy to sweat in summer, the sweat on your hands is easy to wet the paper. Because the wrist is smooth on the table, it is suitable for writing small characters or one-inch square middle characters, but it is also difficult to move because the wrist is dead. To write bigger words, you have to write in a hanging bowl.
Hanging your wrist? Wrist hanging is a writing method in which the wrist holding the pen is suspended, leaving the desktop and the elbow (the movable part protruding from the joint between the upper arm and the forearm) is still on the table. This method has a larger range of wrist movement than the pillow wrist method, and the arm and elbow joint are still on the table, which is relatively stable and can be written in block letters of two or three inches. Write couplets or broken Chinese characters by hanging your elbow.
Hang your elbow? Hanging elbow is a method of writing brush characters with all pen holding arms suspended. Because the arm is not on the desk, this method can be used freely, no matter whether it is written in big or small characters. It is the best way to write, and it is also a common method used by calligraphers. Miti, a great calligrapher in the Song Dynasty, even used the elbow hanging method to write fine print, which shows his deep skill. Of course, novices don't have to do this.
When we are practicing brush calligraphy, in the primary stage, because we are completely unfamiliar with the performance of the brush, we can first write two or three inches long regular script by hanging our wrists. After a period of practice, we have a little grasp of brushwork, and our hands are getting used to it, so we can practice hanging our elbows. Of course, suddenly my arms are suspended, and it will be difficult to get up. Hands will be numb and sore, just stick to it and it will be solved. Fast is a week, slow is a month. If you are afraid of pain at first, or see that your handwriting is not as good as when your wrist is resting, and put your arm back on the table, it is likely that your arm will never hang up.
There was a calligrapher in the Qing Dynasty. Because I can't get through hanging my elbow, my wrist has been resting on the table when I write calligraphy, and I can't write big characters. So he hung a rope on the roof beam to form a rope loop and wrote his gloves in the loop. It can be seen that it is very troublesome not to hang your elbow.
The height and compactness of writing
The height of writing refers to the distance from the finger (ring finger) to the pen tip. Long distance means holding high, and vice versa. Hold it high and hold it in the middle or tail of the pen. When writing, if you move your wrist or finger by one minute, the pen will move one inch on the paper, which will easily produce unexpected effects and make the knot interesting. So this method is conducive to writing running script and cursive script. However, due to the height of the pen, the force in the hand is transmitted to the far tip, and the strokes are easy to slip. On the contrary, the pen is low, the pen power is easy to reach the tip, and the pen circle is more stable, which is conducive to writing seal script, official script and regular script. Of course, this is not absolute. Mr Lin Sanzhi still writes cursive with a pen. He did not rely on his fingers to gain unexpected interest in cursive writing, but used the coordinated movements of his wrists and arms to pursue calm and happy brushstrokes.
Beginners should practice block letters and write lower (about 1 inch from the root of the pen) to make the strokes more stable. Writing regular script is difficult to master because of its high writing level and great changes. There is also the problem of tight writing. If you hold it too tightly and exert too much force, your hands will tremble and your fingers will be sore. If you hold it too loosely, the pen will fall off without force. For beginners, they are nervous because they have never held a brush, so they can relax appropriately. Of course, writing is not powerless. The ancients said that "the force lies in the pen tip", which means that the force is transmitted to the pen tip through the hand holding the pen, rather than staying on the arm or finger. Writing is skillful and not fatal. Li Qiao comes from long-term practice, just like riding a bike. You can ride, get used to it, and don't feel like you're exerting yourself. If you don't feel that you are exerting yourself freely, you will pass the writing test.
Finger movement, wrist movement and elbow movement
Writing with a brush is accomplished through the coordinated movement of fingers, wrists or elbows. It is called "finger movement" to complete the writing of stippling purely by finger movement. Wrist movement is called "wrist movement" to complete stroke writing. Stroke writing is completed by the coordinated action of the arm and elbow, which is called "elbow movement".
When writing small or inch characters (one-inch square regular script characters), the wrist (the movable part where the root of the hand is connected with the lower end of the arm) is placed on the table, the thumb and forefinger of the pen stand obliquely beside the pen, and the palm of the hand is also erected as much as possible. The back of the hand forms an angle of 70 degrees or 80 degrees with the desktop, which was called "palm vertical from the horizontal" by the ancients, and an oblate shape similar to "phoenix eye" is formed between the index finger and thumb of the pen.