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Structure and Arrangement (Tenchijin) of Models and Props in the Art of

Kinbaku

Article · January 2017

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Luke Paul Crocker

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Structure and Arrangement (Tenchijin) of
Models and Props in the Art of Kinbaku
Written by Luke Crocker

Tenchijin History
“Ikebana developed from an inherent appreciation of nature,
fundamental to the Buddhist tendencies which had reached Japan
around 500-600 BC and the art form grew slowly from the
appreciation of plant life, evolving into a subtle art of manipulation,
geometry and performance. The evolution of Ikebana saw a cultural
practice emerge that specific arrangements of stems and leaves
performed a symbolic representation of the universe, by providing a
visual balance between heaven, earth and man (Tenchijin) to reflect
the harmony of the environment embedded in eastern philosophy.”
(Mortimer)

Those with an eye for it, will quickly recognize that this particular
aesthetic arrangement is very similar in intention to the application of
the golden ratio. Operating on a variation of the rule of thirds, in this
case, the thirds are referred to as the Sansai (the three powers; 三才),
Figure 1 Upright (chokutai) Moribana
categorized as “heaven, earth, and man” (天地人). Though the explicit
reference to the Sansai seems to have developed in the early 1600s, the usage and application of this
aesthetic principle in Ikebana wasn’t established until around 1801 by Shosei Teishosai Yoneichiba.

Dry history aside, this concept managed to form a sort of blue print for a certain measure of pleasing
composition; that is to say, the structure of the flower arrangement looks nice. This was measured
rather precisely by the proportions of each stem (usually three stems or plants), the longest stem
represents heaven, the shortest represents the earth, and the stem of mid-length represents man.
Application of Tenchijin in Shibari
The specific proportions vary slightly
between different traditions of ikebana,
they are all roughly within the same general
comparison, and as such, when I teach the
application of this concept in shibari, I
emphasize recognizing the three stems or
points of reference, and positioning them in
a similar fashion to that of the ikebana
concept of tenchijin to attempt to create a
three-dimensional scene that is interesting
and pleasing to the eyes.
Figure 2 Akira Naka and kawakami Yuu in his performance DVD
One such rope artist that appears to have Kinbaku 1 Kawakami Yuu x Naka Akira (緊縛１川上ゆう×奈加あき
developed in this direction (knowingly or ら).
otherwise), is Akira Naka, a rather well
known practitioner of kinbaku who always seems to create masterful and exceptionally beautiful scenes
in his performances. Though his style is more centered on very challenging and strenuous ties that
encourage sadomasochism to be put on display, even those not drawn to the beauty of suffering can see
the form and composition of his art and appreciate it as such.

To reiterate the composition here: the top stem (usually the models head), is the highest point; heaven.
While the lowest point is often times a leg or foot, or even a prop to draw the attention down; this is
earth. Man exists between heaven and earth, and as such is in between the two points. However, it
would be a dry composition if the middle point were right in the middle, thus it is either slightly closer to
the highest point, or the lowest.

Viewing the ratios discussed thus

far, it is noticed that the ratios of
“ten”, “jin” : “ten” and “chi” : “jin”
resemble each other. It has been
found that this ratio resembles the
“golden section” (1:1.618 = 0.618:1),
which defines the formal beauty of
the architecture of ancient Greece
and Egypt and also that of the
contemporary art design.

The reason why the roles of

heaven, earth and man were
assigned to these basic stems
derives from Buddhism. It originates
from a way of expressing the Figure 3 From “ikebana buntai zushiki” in hte mid Edo period.
universe using two basic stems like
“the sum of things arises between
heaven and earth” which is a doctrine from the Buddhist Mandela. The stem representing man placed
 between those of heaven and earth also derives from the thought of Buddhism, viz., that “man is
precious only because he is a part of all creation existing between heaven and earth.” Many schools
bend the stems and branches with special techniques to deform them to make them more suited to
their roles. (Saito and Furuya)

References:
 Saito, Mika; Furuya, Shigeru. Form Structure of Ikebana.

 Mortimer, Nicholas. Rationalizing the Subjective.

Primary Sources:
 Ikebana buntai zushiki. Unknown date and author.

 Sansai Zue. compiled by Wang Qi (Chinese: 王圻) and his son Wang Siyi (Chinese: 王思义)
completed in 1607 and published in 1609.

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