Taken for granted. Have you ever felt taken for granted.
It's completely normal you know. Open a dojo and start holding classes. Over years of operations everyone just gets used to the dojo always being there,and classes being available on a dependable schedule.
Don't want to train 'cause you have to meet the gang at Happy Hour? No problem, the dojo will be there.
Don't want to train 'cause you have to mow the yard. No problem, the dojo will always be there.
Tired and just want to surf the couch tonight. No problem.
Got errands to run. No problem. The dojo is there, will always be there, and I can drop in and train any time I want.
Well, maybe it will .... and maybe it won't ..... be there that is.
Sensei are human and are only here for a while as are we all ... until we (and they) are not. The dojo itself, since it is run by the Sensei, are also here for a while ... and then it is also gone. Old age, illness, creeping decrepitude, sometimes economic issues, and eventually death appear in the picture at some point.
Every Sensei who has been on the mat for a while and who has dedicated some portion of their life to promulgating the system that they teach is acutely aware of these aspects of life in general; especially if they teach an older or specialized form of the ryu or are teaching an actual and recognized koryu. Sport Karate and things such as BJJ or "self-defense classes" are pretty much a dime a dozen and if one dojo closes, a dozen more spring up to replace it since what they teach is fairly common.
However, if a koryu form is involved then it is entirely possible that part/most/all of what is being taught is old, not widely available, and cannot be replaced. That is, it was founded perhaps hundreds of years ago and may include work that is not well known, that originated as part of an other old system and has been subsumed (with that other system now gone and lost) or that has work that includes unique teaching pedagogues (teaching drill sets) that enhance learning and retention of the old forms.
And as regards not replaceable, it is a simple truth that the societal, cultural, economic, and military/law and order conditions that any old ryu was created to deal with no longer exists. As an example, since no one duels with swords on a daily basis, how would Shindo Muso Ryu Jojutsu (or Niten Ichi Ryu Kenjutsu instance) be recreated since the ryu was formed as a response to Musashi (long dead some 400+ years). Or Daito Ryu Aikijujutsu for that matter, especially since BJJ, Kickboxing, and Sport Karate are currently all the rage and the need for a secret court martial art that is privately taught to only a select few by personal transmission is no longer common.
So what is to be done if a Sensei teaches what essentially is an irreplaceable ryu but sees the need to preserve it. How does that happen. How does he save a martial art that was built on the battlefield for one-on-one conflict and that paradoxically is today more practical than carrying around military-style firearms or even a small sidearm with a carry permit that have limited use in most situations.
He trains his replacement in the same fashion as he was trained; by his predecessor, who was trained by his predecessor, who was trained ..... well you get the idea. This is how you (You) ended up studying a 450 year old martial art form or perhaps a slightly more recent (maybe "only" two hundred or so years old) but still a deeply built form every bit as complex and sophisticated (such as Daito Ryu Aikijutsu).
So this links back to the idea of "I can train anytime because Sensei and the dojo will always be there". Maybe.
In a very real sense Sensei is training his replacement at every class. Whether or not you personally are training specifically to be his replacement is immaterial. Remember that no Sensei or Dojo Cho (head of training hall) started out to become the person that runs the shop. Instead, he just got interested in the work and trained and one day looked up, had the seniority and knowledge, and opportunity and simply stepped into the position of either being the #1 guy or, being a support person behind him.
There is an old saying that goes, "Every Sensei out there opened a dojo in order to keep training". That is so very true. At some point you become so high ranked that you can't change dojo because you will likely find that you know more than the other guy and probably outrank him; the issue being that "everyone" seems to take 6 months of classes, buys a DVD, and opens a dojo or refuses to put in the decades of work necessary to honestly reach a Shihan or Hanshi level. So at that point you either retire from martial arts training or completely change art forms (from Aikido to Kick Boxing for example). Then there's the problem of your aging out and wanting to still train but not at a competition dojo against kids in their 20's or 30's.
So the gist of this is that to maximize your opportunity to learn what could be an arcane art form that could disappear one day, you train as often as you can and by doing so you increase the odds that the ryu continues and that one day either you or one of your training partners could be "That Guy" .... the one who continues the ryu and passes it forward, the benefit of which is that you to get to "keep training".
L. F. Wilkinson Kancho
The Aikibudokan
Houston, TX
September 11, 2023
Well said. Thanks.
Posted by: Rick Matz | September 14, 2023 at 10:28 AM