Page:Japanese flower arrangement.djvu/66

 (See cut.) Hold this branch in your hand together with Heaven, having it directly in front of Heaven and making its lines correspond with those of Heaven for four inches at the base. Above the four inches it can show more independence and branch off farther from Heaven, but must still hold the same lines, only at a distance from it.

Last of all you bend the Earth branch, which like Man takes the lines of Heaven at the base for four inches. Hold Earth in your hand with the other two branches in order to get the base lines exactly right. The Japanese always first compose an arrangement in their hands before placing it in the vase.



Earth, after following at the base the exact lines of the other two, takes an independent line like this (see cut)—a decidedly lateral tendency that none of the other branches have. It is necessary that this branch should appear very far back of the others. [60]