By chance, I heard someone talking about ma today. It was a conversation about minimalism and architecture. Ma is a Japanese term.
The Unique Japan web site (link) observes:
Ma is something that relates to all aspects of life. It has been described as a pause in time, an interval or emptiness in space. Ma is the fundamental time and space life needs to grow. If we have no time, if our space is restricted, we cannot grow. How we spend our time and shape the space we live in directly impacts our progress. These principles are universal, when applied effectively they enhance the way we think and how we engage with our surroundings.
Ma is “the space between the edges, between the beginning and the end, the space and time in which we experience life” (link).
Another web site defines ma as “the emptiness full of possibilities, like a promise yet to be fulfilled” (link).
In exploring ma, I am mindful of the lack of any equivalent in the English language.
I am attracted to ma, as it helps me make sense of how we might use space and time in game playing to transform our experiences. And perhaps to move to what Yoko Akama (2015) conceptualises as “between-ness as a way of becoming with” (link).
I am keen to explore the pedagogical aspects of this. I sense that this a relationship between coach and athlete, teacher and student that has a profound effect on everyone involved.
Photo Credit
Photo by Caroline Grondin on Unsplash
