Ma: The Japanese Secret to Contemplation and Calm

"Ma—the emptiness in which time, space and thoughts are suspended—is an invitation to awareness."

The traditional Japanese concept of ma refers to a pause or a space, "the moment of no action, the stillness and silence that is filled with more powerful energy than the moments of action" on the classic Noh stage. It also refers to the pauses taken in between notes by a shakuhachi flute player or the spaces between stones in a Zen garden which reveal unexpected vistas and perspectives.

The eigh...