Philosophy Chinese calligraphy has long been associated with spiritual communication and a writer's spiritual attunement. This as well as the Taoist and Zen Buddhist philosophical traditions came to deeply influence sumi-e. As the sea meets the land, there is generative harmony at the shoreline where the two remain separate yet mix a little. For example, unlike Western painting, the white background of the page is always an integral part of the image in oriental painting. In practice, therefore, much of sumi-e is meditation.
Nature plays an important role in sumi-e.
Sumi-e expresses the need for humans to understand the patterns of the world and to live in accordance with them. There are many different symbols present in traditional Chinese and Japanese painting. Materials Sumi-e requires relatively few materials, and they can be inexpensive. Most commonly these include goat, wolf, and deer hairs, although badger and horse hairs are also occasionally used. It is most important for a brush to be able to make lines with different nuances.