The Thoughtful Sensei-Aikido Musings

211. Touching the Tokui

Some ideas for a brief writing come up on a regular basis, almost like it's screaming "write me, write me". Then you have to work to remember if you ever wrote about it before. This can become especially problematic when you've been doing a blog for the last 15 or 20 years and you're over a couple of hundred writings and you are simply not really in the mood to go back and read everything to see if you touched the topic before. Such is the topic of Tokui no Waza which very roughly translates as "Favorite Technique" which came up a few days ago so we'll address it but from a different standpoint, perhaps not normally seen or considered.

 

When we are in a real fight, the kind you write home about (or maybe not if it goes badly) and you are fully adrenalized and functioning out of your subconscious mind, there is no conscious thought process per se that is possible. You fight how you train as they say and automatic reflexes take over in what is the normal fight, flight, or freeze syndrome. You are in action and unable to stop, pause, and consider what comes next. You just have to act and the idea that you can pick and choose what you want like in a slow practice at the dojo (right jab then the arm bar then move then hip throw then ... ) just isn't possible. You need only one set of fast automatic reactions to survive.

 

So, you end up doing what you know or aka, your Tokui no Waza or Favorite Technique because it is what is most deeply ingrained in you subconscious. But the question arises; is it the best choice or is it your preferred choice because you just like it even if it's not the best all around. Do you like it because it's all you know or is the easiest, like a boxer who always falls back on a right cross because he's right handed and it's all he ever practices, even though it may not fit the next opponent.

 

Many martial artists consider Tokui no Waza to be the technique they like the best or that is easier but this is a mistaken notion. It is actually the technique(s) your Subconscious Mind knows the best. Remember, we're talking here about an attack event so fast and furious that you simply don't have time to pause and mentally go, "now lets see, should I pick this favorite techniques or this favorite technique or maybe this one". You have to move and move fast and the subconscious intuitive reflexes are always, always faster to make a decision than the conscious mind is. It has to be automatic otherwise you are literally facing the attackers subconscious (mind) that is faster then your conscious (mind).

 

So how to reach this mark, this auto-pilot (in a sense). Simple but not simple ...... train, train hard and often, train correctly. Embed the basic principles that all the more advanced material is based on. Learn the entire ryu understanding that (the entire ryu) is or was specifically designed to provide the most likely answers for most if not all circumstances of the encounter, and by training you embed and internalize what becomes eventually, your true Tokui no Waza that your subconscious mind picks for you in that moment. The true Tokui no Waza arises from the intuitive understanding of the ryu itself (and the work you put into it) and not the bias of your personal opinion or your conscious mind. it just happens and only your intuitive processes make it so.

 

And, you'll most likely find should the need ever arise that the Tokui no Waza that your subconscious picks is one of the simplest movements in the entire system simply because it has the lowest possibility of failure; unlike the more complicated techniques.

210. Assembling the Parts

Every so often we change the flow of our teaching. It's so easy to fall into a rut spending the entire class doing a handful of techniques again, again, and again by telling ourselves that this handful is important. Well, they are important but the fact of the matter is that all the techniques and drills are important, much like assembling a toy airplane. You have to have the air frame in place before adding the wing struts and the fabric before it can fly. All the parts are needed in order to assemble the whole. So how to deal with the issues of teaching too much or too little and how to move forward in training, abilities, and understanding is always an issue to consider and is a sometimes puzzling question for those running the mat.

 

When we teach we generally (or used to) use the third, a third, and a third method. We recently found that we had fallen back into the rut paradigm and that the boredom derived from doing the same 5 things over and over again had set in for many deshi. So we went back to the way we originally taught years ago; or pre-Covid, pre-oil and gas market collapse, pre-economic issues.

 

In the third, third, third method the first third of class is bow-on, warm-ups, and break fall practice. In the second third of class it is walking (a solo warmup drill), the 8 Releases (a set of forms to release/escape from grabbing attacks) and the 17 basic attack/defense forms. In the last third, we cover a lesson on different ideas or advanced techniques and some tanto work. By covering the basics, then looking at the intermediate level foundation, and throwing in more advance work towards the end of class we both expand everyone's horizons while covering that work which is most important.

 

While a change such as this in the class structure may seem simple, it can bring big benefits in the long run. The deshi can expect a set structure and regular schedule which is more comforting than disorganized random lessons, coverage of the most fundamental and important basic principles and ideas, and a larger view of various areas and advanced lessons thus creating a larger view of the horizon and answering the important question for many, namely, where am I going with all of this.

 

L.F. Wilkinson Kancho

The Aikibudokan

Houston, TX

March 11, 2025

209. Snapping The Shutter

When I was a little tyke cameras were fairly primitive compared to the ones available today. It was simply a black box with a non-adjustable lens and a button on the side. It did have a view port for all the use that was so you could at least aim it. And it took "ok" pictures. If you wanted "good" pictures then that Box Brownie was not what you wanted as the final product could have a wide variety of results which is why in many family photos everyone is guessing whether that's Uncle John or Aunt Lucy. If you wanted the really good photos then you went for a pricey camera and a photographer who wasn't someone with just a box, but instead someone with high end equipment.

 

Years ago my Sensei wrote a book and in his book he wanted photographs that weren't just guys standing around looking good holding bokken and styling in their gi, or posing with their hands stuck in the side splits of their hakama. He wanted "Action" shots (stress on "action") with uke elevated at head level with their feet in the air as they slammed into the mat. Real action shots, the kind only a professional sports photographer could do.

 

Back in those days it was all mirror and mechanical shutter oriented. There was no such thing as digital SLR so the ability to run a camera through 200 frames as the throw occurred and then picking the single best frame out of the 200 simply did not exist. So he went out, did extensive research and found the best sports photographer in the area who was well known for his action shots of pro-football, pro-baseball, and pro-basketball moves.

 

Sensei' rationale was that since you only got a split-second to hit the shutter button he needed someone with the experience and the eye to pick "that" precise moment so that only one to two shots were needed, as opposed to lining up the ukes and pounding them until he had that one shot he was looking for and then having to call the chiropractor for the ukes since plowing into the mat is a bit different from catching a ball. Having that "eye" for the action and intuitively knowing that single precise moment in the midst of high speed action to hit the shutter button was due to years of experience and knowing the moment.

 

Such is true martial arts training. The experience gained from the experience of when and how to "push the button" is what determines the guy with the Box Brownie from the guy with the digital Hasselblad. Repetition, repetition, repetition is the secret whether it's sports photography or high level martial arts.

 

I once read a writing by a koryu martial art Sensei wherein he stated that in order to earn the rank of teacher (in his chosen koryu) it would take 100 days of shugyo to visit all the temples (to pay the proper respect to the kami), and knowing the secrets of the kuji-kiri (to learn the internal work), and having done all the kata and all the work in the ryu at least 1,000 times (to physically intuit the principles).

 

Well history flows forward so visiting a long list of temples in only 100 days (I'd have difficulty in doing 2 or 3 on vacation), and knowing the secrets of esoteric Buddhism (I barely have the initiative to read even a little on a somewhat complex subject) becomes problematic. However, the 1,000 reps is possible and practical and preferable.

 

Only by repeating the work correctly over and over will anyone gain any level of true ability. Too many deshi work hard and then take days or weeks off before coming back and restarting again ... and again. Some train on a regular basis but never seem to make any real progress due to a lack of total focus.

 

It's your choice. Do it half-heartedly and be not-happy with your lack of real progress, or buckle down, focus, and do the work; and sometimes do the extra work too. So put down that Box Brownie, pick up that Hasselblad, and say "Cheese".

 

Originally Published November 11, 2024

208. 30 Seconds

We all get old. We all gradually age (if we're lucky) and we all eventually reach that stage at which we go grey, wrinkled, and sit in a rocking chair, trying not to spill the gin & tonic, excitedly entertained by the sound of our screeching cat as it sticks its tail under the rocker and yelling "Get off my lawn" at the neighborhood kids.

 

There are some things that my Sensei said that still to this day stick in my mind that pertained to growing old. They pop out once in a while so I consider them, remember their advice, and then put them back. One of them was to pick a martial art that you can train into your old age. I asked him why, in his view, that was important. The response I received puzzled me at first but then I "got it". He said, "Train so that as an old man, you don't have to fear the young man".

 

How many times in your life have you seen a young "punk" bully an old man (or woman). I've seen it and once I intervened. It didn't go physical but the fact that someone (a stranger, me) would walk up and tell the bully to stop, worked. The sad part was that the old man had nothing to fall back on that would have enabled him to stand up for himself; thus, Sensei' recommendation to train into old age so that you can stand up for yourself and through training, not go frail. This is one reason as to why I finally settled on Aikido and Judo and not a tough physical art form such as boxing or karate where my physical limitations would kick in much sooner and at a younger age (than in Aikido).

 

The second lesson he offered was to train such that you become so efficient and skilled that you can last 30 seconds. As you age, your endurance and ability to take pure physical punishment, or to last for a 5 or 10 minute sparring match simply vanishes. Your body just won't take the stress and it is very difficult to continually recondition yourself so that you can last long against a 25 year old with a 45 inch chest and 20 inch biceps who runs 3 miles a day. So his solution was simple. He said "I can't last 5 minutes or even 3 minutes so if you can live through the first 30 seconds of the conflict then you got me. But ....... you have to live through the first 30 seconds". That's the skill level you are looking for. Train into old age so that your skill sets are at such a high level that engaging with you becomes a 30 second nightmare for the other guy that he won't easily live through.

 

So remember Sensei' last teaching; that is, never pick on an old guy until you know what kind of young guy he was.

 

Originally Published October 15, 2024

207. Spannungsbogen

Spannungsbogen - a German word that generally indicates a form of tension created by a sequence of events (or so say some dictionaries) and considering that there are more than one interpretation of the term such as the tension created by drawing the bow, or tension from self-denial. I would prefer to use the term as it is applied in a sci-fi novel recently made into a movie series; that is, the tension created by the self-imposed delay between desire for a thing and the act of reaching out to grasp that thing, or the tension between desire and action.

 

So does this mean that you could have personal issues come up that could hinder progress in your training in Bushido and martial arts? Yes it does and those issues could be severe enough to cause you to even stop training unless a means by which to mitigate the tension is found. Remember ... "self-imposed"; e.g. desire and action.

 

Many prospective deshi come into the dojo eager to learn. They've spent who knows how much time researching what they think will best fit their goals, reading up on the ryu, watching countless videos, talking to friends to sound them out on the idea, and generally working themselves up into a lather over the idea of Yoda-hood and becoming the next Mifune or Musashi (or maybe even Tom Cruise). Once they actually don the keikogi and begin training they come to the realization that, in a phrase, "it just ain't that easy" and suddenly action can't keep up with desire.

 

Building a steady training schedule, dealing with demands on personal (training) time put upon you by girl/boy friend or spouse, family, friends in general, job, household chores, shopping for victuals', (the list sometimes just seems like it never ends) can all get in the way of steady training leading to stress over ideas such as "I need to get ready for that Shodan demo but .... etc. ... etc ... etc. .... keeps getting in the way. What to do, what to do".

 

So looking at how to deal with the stress gives us migraines and flutters in the stomach and maybe makes us a little irritable. The answer is simple, (hah .. simple and who am I kidding). That is, acknowledge the need to deal with other issues outside the dojo, handle the demands, look at it as being just a short training break to catch your breath, and then just get back on the mat, and with some focus and personal self-discipline stop letting it impact your overall attitude and performance (in everything).

 

Some things in life just need handling and indeed, should be handled as rapidly and as thoroughly as may be needed ... AND .... once handled and out of the way it clears that path back to the mat. They (the issues) are what they are or in other words ..... what is, is and what isn't, isn't. They can't be avoided but they can be handled as may be appropriate.

 

So don't drive yourself crazy over small issues but look to the larger flow of ideas. Work to follow a Stoic idea of dealing with what is necessary and recognizing what is not necessary. After all, if it is necessary then it can't be avoided and should be looked at as just one item in life that should be done and put behind us, and not fretted over.

 

The moral here is to not let your Spannungsbogen (self-induced tension) get in the way of your heiho (strategy) for your keiko (deeper training in Bushido and the martial arts).

 

Originally Published July 5, 2024

206. Come On, You Can Trust Me

Many times over the years the question has arisen of "why reishiki" (why so much emphasis on ritualized manners) as seen in Old School dojo.

When I first began training many (too many it seems sometimes) years ago I and everyone else simply followed along and, I might add, felt very "Samurai-ish" for doing so. Most dojo of all types used some form of courtesy, manners, or ritualized greetings of each other after walking into the dojo to train. Over the years however much of this has been lost other than in the most traditional of dojo.

Most dojo as far back as hundreds of years ago used strictly formed and shaped courtesies (reishiki). This included bowing to the Shinza when entering the dojo, then bowing to the Joseki and the Sensei, then bowing before stepping onto the mat, then bowing into class, then bowing to Sensei when he gave the lesson, then bowing to the training partner both before starting and then ending the keiko, then bowing out of class, bowing off the mat, and bowing out of the dojo when leaving. It also included calm behavior and tone of voice and cooperative attitude and in modern social terms, no discussing of sex, religion, or politics. You are there to train and learn and not debate or argue.

So the question comes up ...... "Why?".

After many years of training and teaching, I finally stumbled across and read old papers out of several books on Bushido that gave and confirmed the answer that I had already arrived at years before ..... that is ..... since we are training in techniques, tactics, and strategies that could if fully applied result in serious injury or death we need to have and to train in what could be termed a "High Trust" environment. This High Trust environment both provides a comfortable atmosphere and also increases learning since stress creates fear which retards the educational process since you spend time looking over your shoulder as it were. Over time, the reishiki becomes a natural part of who you are as a martial artist and a Budoka.

People can get frustrated, angry, (a possible product of a "bad day") or overly stressed and energetic and throwing too fast or hard, or over-applying joint locks so using a highly formalized system of ritualized manners and behaviors is the most effective way in which to keep all those bad ideas at bay. In this fashion our training partner can trust us to protect him, and he in turn protects us. Basically, I can "give" him my body for training and know that he will not deliberately harm me.

In recent years and with the advent of sports martial arts, these ideas have fallen into disuse or forgotten altogether. In some cases no bowing is seen at all or if still used looks somewhat like a kid bobbing for apples at the spring party. Sometimes they might shake hands before slamming their training partner into the center of the earth, winning the match, and then jumping up and down like a kangaroo while screaming "I'm the best"; not a productive attitude in an activity that is often billed as character building. This lack of teaching and using formalized manners that over time creates a better human being has today become one of the differences between Koryu (Old School) martial arts which includes a study of the differences between life and death, and sports martial arts in which trophies may be pursued.

This is a thought to carry forward and to understand in your study. Once you are fully accustomed to the reishiki and understand the rationales, it becomes a welcome part of your keiko (deep and serious training) and is no longer that mysterious Japanese "thing" that it seemed when you first began the journey of Bushido.

Originally Published March 22, 2024

205. Flavor of the Month Club

Many martial artists look at a kata (aka a group of techniques) and only see ......... a group of techniques. This isn't a bad thing because after all ... it really is just that. Unfortunately however, little thought is given by the younger and the relatively inexperienced players that those techniques (and kata sets) might have been placed together for a reason.

Just for the fun of it (now entering "mild humor mode") let us refer to that group of techniques as a "Murder" (3 or more items involved and generally used for groupings of crows).  In this case however we are not speaking of crows (specifically) but rather of groupings of principles and techniques needed to excel in whatever martial art suits your fancy. In our case it's Tomiki Ryu Aikido/Aikijutsu, the Aikijutsu coming from our pre-WWII origins.

In our view Tomiki Ryu has two levels of kihon or basic techniques that come before the Murders and that everything coming after is based upon. In Tomiki Ryu these are taught as the walking and the 8 Releases. The walking is done solo and the 8 Releases are done with a training partner. Every hand motion and footstep in Tomiki Ryu are taught within the walking and every off-balance and re-direction of energy and power is explored in the 8 Releases.

Then come the Murders; the groupings of waza (techniques) that are based off the kihon, each with a different underlying theme or "Flavor" if you will.

In Tomiki Ryu the 1st Murder is the 17 Attack Movements teaching the fundamental principles of distance, timing, posture, gaze, off-balance of self and of attacker, foot movement, basic techniques, hand exchanges, and underlying purpose as seen within the idea of "Closing Centers" (centripetal forces) or the application of power as the centers of gravity (of defender and attacker) move towards each other.

The 2nd Murder in Tomiki Ryu is The Big 10 Defensive Movements which uses some of the same techniques as the 17 but within the context of "Separating Centers" (centrifugal forces) or the application of energetic power as the centers of gravity move apart. This 2nd Murder is actually considered to be more powerful (read "dynamic") than the 17 because of the attachment points and flow of energies as tori and uke merge, attach, and then forcefully separate.

The 3rd Murder in Tomiki Ryu is Yon Kata or the 4th of the koryu (old flow) kata groupings where the idea of synchronizing the movements of both the defender and the attacker is developed and then how to "break" that synchronization at the best moment is learned; becoming "one mind" for a brief moment before tori breaks that connection and throws uke.

The 4th Murder is an advanced koryu kata labeled Go Kata. This Murder teaches combative principles via techniques using both closing centers and separating centers. It is done at speed to pressure the defender such that they must intuitively react from the subconscious.

So, the Murders explore and teach centripetal centers, centrifugal centers, synchronizing centers, and then internalizing those 3 fundamental operational principles when working under pressure in Go Kata.

While the kihon and the first 4 most important Murders in Tomiki Ryu are important to actually understanding and being full functional in the ryu (and not just mimicking the Sensei) I would suspect that many other traditional and well-constructed martial arts styles or schools are also organized as such. While more advanced Murders are certainly there for later study, the kihon (basics) and the first Murders are the ones that set up all that come after and therefore are those to be repeated .... often ...... real often .... in order to internalize them. There must be a well-thought reason behind structuring that initial study. It isn't a bunch of "stuff" just thrown together. It's an organized and progressively structured learning system.

When I was a young (very young) player I spent quite some time (years actually) going to class, picking an advanced training partner and going through the kihon (walking & 8 Releases) then the 17 Attack Movements (both right and left), then the Big 10 (again both right and left), then the Yon Kata (again both right and left). The progress made was palpable, immense, and smoothed out many rough spots in how I moved and reacted and set the stage for the advanced work to come and vastly improved my ability at randori. And additionally, it prepared me for Go Kata once I was ready for that study level.

So, practice kata .... correctly .... a lot. Focus on the kihon/basics and those first groups of kata sets. Do them ..... more than a lot .... and do it right. Kihon and the foundations ... and then move up.

L.F. Wilkinson Kancho

The Aikibudokan

Houston, TX

December 27, 2023

204. A Quick Idea Regarding Training Variations

Musashi once said that to be effective in combat you had to see the big issues and also see the small issues. This is paraphrased of course but the general idea here is that you have to be able to intuitively identify everything that the opponent is doing from his general kamae (posture) to where his feet are.

The difficulty here is that at some point the amount of data being observed and the processes seen in action simply becomes overwhelming. Where is his right foot and which direction is it pointed (indicating where he can step). What about his left foot. Where is he looking (high, low, your eyes, your chest). What is his combative kamae. How do you position your kamae in reply. Is his sword blade properly angled. The list of what to look at and for is simply endless. How to handle it?

Kata is designed to teach combative scenarios. Sword takes a kamae. Stick (or sword, or empty hand) takes a kamae based on the attackers' actions and appearance. The attack comes, the defense is met, end of action. Wash, rinse, repeat.

By repeating a properly thought out and structured kata (generally based not on fantasy but on records of historically correct combative actions .... such as the Chudan section of SMR Jojutsu) both participants are able to repetitively see what a correct posture and attack should look like and by observing this, develop an intuitive understanding of everything involved (the "large" issues); and from that develop combatively effective responses. At that point becoming aware of the "small" issues becomes easy because they are fewer in number and easy to see; the "large" issues already being well known and internalized.

An analogy would be that of a professionally serious pianist who gets up every morning and plays their scales, groupings of notes, and has a sequence of graded exercises they are working through. Not one of those is useful by itself and they are largely artificial (sometimes painfully so), but the net effect it has is to make it so there is range, good timing/cadence, understanding of transitions and speed changes, and accuracy. This is how you make your music rock solid and reliable -- and professional musicians swear by it. The difference between a 9th grade high school band and a symphony is millimeters and milliseconds.

An old Judo Sensei many years ago (and once upon a time) said that it was his opinion that all Judo kata came from randori; it being his thought that kata was not necessary, only randori. Most observers who were there disputed that opinion (not to him directly since he was know for his strong opinions) but the Japanese proved that direction of the information flow to be incorrect (but somewhat on point) which is where the kata came from; repetitive practice of combat sequences of attack, defense, counter-attack, counter-defense that were observed, analyzed, and then made into formal kata for practice and eventual understanding of randori.

So, practice kata .... correctly .... a lot ..... more than a lot .... and do it right. Be like Musashi.

L. F. Wilkinson Kancho

The Aikibudon

Houston, TX

December 6, 2023

203. Put Your Nose Into the Wind and Climb

For your consideration ....... training in Bushido and your chosen martial art form (for me that's Tomiki Ryu Aiki-Jujutsu and the koryu combat school of SMR Jojutsu) is a lifetime path. I started in high school in the late 1960's and find myself some 50 years later still training and still running a dojo.

 

Now at age 71 (72 if you count your gestation as an extra year as the Japanese do) I likely have at least another 10 years to go on the mat, maybe 15 or 20, who can know for certain.

 

That means that if my luck holds, I could have a total of 60 to 70 years on the mat. Or put another way, if I consider that a full training phase is about 20 years or so, then I will have passed through 3 full 20-year phases during my life.

 

The 20-year idea is about how long it should take to start training and then reach 6th Dan or 7th Dan or so; that rank being the rank at which you should know every technical aspect and kata for your system, being fully functional in all, and have the beginnings of a complete and deep understanding of the more spiritual, esoteric, and philosophical aspects of it all.

 

20 years is about one-third of the way through that time span of 60 or so years which means that the first third of the journey is to learn the basics (and internalize them) meaning that the journey to learn what Bushido and Aiki-jujutsu is truly about, in a deep philosophical fashion, starts in earnest at about the 20 year point with the important ideas still remaining to be discovered and explored.

 

Climbing a mountain would be an example. Walking towards the highest point (the summit) the climber is able to see further and further out, acquire a feel for how everything changes the closer to the top he gets, such as the forest gradually changing to tundra, and then rocky peaks. As he continues the upward journey he sees more and more and can see further and further and theoretically gain a fuller understanding of the mountain itself.

 

The rub here is that if the climber stops at any point, then he is missing what comes next and should he never reach the summit then he will not enjoy the complete vision nor will he be able to savor the joy of all the efforts expended in reaching it, the journey being the important part of it all, more so than the actual goal.

 

Tragically, all too many times during this climb he thinks that he has reached the summit and stops and becomes satisfied with what little he has found. And sometimes he deludes himself into thinking that he has arrived and simply does not know what he does not know.

 

The moral to this story is simply that of never stopping the climb and most especially never assuming the uneducated position of assuming that there is no more hill to climb and no more to learn; which in and of itself can create a form or arrogance (aka "I know it all").

 

Look at the journey as a long-term journey of learning and not a one-time course. After all, it's your life and not a semester at university. Life goes on while that semester will certainly come to an end.

 

L. F. Wilkinson Kancho

The Aikibudon

Houston, TX

October 24,2023

202. A Further and Larger Level of Being

How does anyone grow as a person. How do you become something that you are not. How do you escape from the shoe box that you grew up in and become aware of the larger world outside the bubble that you normally exist and live within. How do you become something you are not (yet).

The answer is reasonably simple but it must become a regular part of your life. You need people in your life that are further along than you, people that have a bigger vision, people that are more experienced in the ups and downs of life, people that are out of your league in terms of knowledge and sophistication, people that are more mature emotionally, intellectually, and experience-wise.

Long story short, you need to be exposed to new levels of knowledge, understanding of life, maturity, and experience so that you can go to your own new levels by being around new sources of knowledge, a broader view of life, and deeper information on new topics.

I came to martial arts from a small country town that when compared to a big city was incredibly backwards. We had lots of BBQ and Tex-Mex food but we didn't even know what a pizza parlor was and something such as Chinese food or sushi was equivalent to an invasion from outer space ...... and philosophy ......... what in the world was that. Buddhism, Taoism, meditation ..... scary stuff to be avoided and belittled.

So I begin training in Aikido & Judo and am immediately exposed to those, and many other new ideas that changed my way of life. New foods, new ideas, new information, new people all of which taken together opened my eyes. My old attitudes about such things as martial arts, even politics, changed and grew larger in scope allowing me to better understand the good and bad points, the strengths and weaknesses of everything around me including different opinions, and new training ideas. In effect, I became a more worldly and sophisticated person open to exploring new ideas.

However, as an interesting side note, I also became more discriminatory in what I did and accepted; that is, greater knowledge can manifest itself by our having a deeper understanding of everything around and what is desirable, or undesirable and what to accept or not accept. In other words, growing up in a small country town had resulted in a lack of depth and accepting (or denying) many things at their face value, also known as naivety.

A dojo is different from other endeavors. People who go to the same church tend to have the same ideas on religion and philosophy. People who belong to the same book club tend to read the same books. People who live in the same area of town tend to go to the same bars and restaurants and eat the same repetitive selections of food.

Martial artists however generally start training with only one thing in common, learning martial arts and maybe getting in shape but they all come from different backgrounds. Everything else you may know (or think you know), believe in, or have experienced is very likely completely different from everybody else on the mat so every day working with others potentially results in new knowledge and information to be exposed to ....... and then there is "Apre's Dojo" or the social hour after practice as you discuss everything and anything over a cup of sake where you go into "being exposed to new ideas" overload.

So, learn from your training partner and the teachers and begin to grow your horizons. Use this idea as just one more reason to train in Bushido (a word, an idea, and a way of life that I didn't even know existed until I put on my gi for the first time and stepped on the mat).

And ..... pay attention to the Sensei at your dojo. The word Sensei after all translates as "One who was born before"; not necessarily by a calendar but instead, one more experienced in life, more broadly educated, and knowledgeable (in all that "new stuff").

L  F. Wilkinson Kancho

The Aikibudokan

Houston, TX

October 4, 2023