ORIGIN is a unique program in Asian traditional arts. It focuses on physical experience of the traditional arts, as taught by local masters – with the aim of making the deeper spiritual aims and knowledge underlying the arts, the “origins”, accessible to modern people. While students are experiencing the arts “hands on”, we also provide short orientation talks and cultural overview to put the arts into an clear context. ORIGIN has centers in traditional buidings in Kyoto, Japan, and Bangkok and Chiangmai, Thailand. In Japan, participants stand on a Noh stage and learn how to walk holding the Noh fan, grind ink and write calligraphy using a brush, and perform the basics of preparing tea in tea ceremony. By practicing several arts within one program, students see the deep connections between the outer forms and spiritual roots of these arts. In Thailand, participants learn how to sit, walk, and wai (pay respect by raising the hands with palms together), prepare flower offerings by folding banana leaves, draw classical patterns using gold leaf, etc. Most ORIGIN programs run for a brief time – from a half-day to two days - but the effect can be truly transformative. Having physically practiced these arts, with clear explanation, provides a vital “key to understanding.” One cannot afterwards see a dance, look at a painting, or watch encounters between people on the street or in the village, without remembering back to this experience. Link : Origin Thailand, Origin Japan   Copyright © ORIGIN Asia Co. Ltd.