The Thoughtful Sensei-Aikido Musings

201. Hey! Whats That On Your Shelf?

Once upon a time there was a monk without any eyelids who was sitting in a cave and his arms and legs fell off, and when someone asked him what he was doing he replied, "Listening to the ants scream".

I don't know about you, but I'd be looking for the way out of the cave at that point.

It's a funny story but one repeated often in certain Zen and martial arts circles, the story of Bodhidharma and the basis for the Daruma Doll. On the front of the doll is kanji that literally reads to have “eyes open” -- a subtle nod to the Daruma Doll’s Buddhist roots referencing enlightenment and the person the Daruma Dolls are based on.

Daruma Dolls are based on a monk named Bodhidharma who lived in the 5th-6th century. He was known to be highly dedicated to meditation and austerity, which helped grow his reputation. Like many religious/spiritual figures in history, there is the historical person and the folklore that grows bigger with every repetition.

One story is that Bodhidharma spent 9 years facing a cave wall in deep meditation with his eyes wide open, never blinking. His striving for enlightenment was so intense that his arms, legs, and body atrophied and fell by the wayside but his spirit remained firm. Because of this parable, Bodhidharma grew in popularity through all of Asia and finally in Japan. He’s also credited for introducing Zen Buddhism, Zazen meditation, and green tea. 

The doll has two eyes, both without pupils. The idea is to decide upon a desire or goal, paint in the left eye, and then when the goal has been accomplished paint in the other eye. Once both eyes have been painted in signifying the accomplishment, then the doll is taken to a temple to be burned so that the spirit of the doll may be released. To be honest though, even after I have achieved the goal and paint in the second eye, I keep the doll on my office shelf as a reminder of what perseverance can accomplish; and I have more than more one.

In life, we all tend to set a goal and look up one day, possibly years later, having not only not reached the goal, but maybe not even remembering having set it. A function of the Daruma Doll is to serve as a reminder of the goal and its' eventual attainment.

We have recently adopted the idea of giving a doll to every new deshi with the suggestion of setting as their personal goal that of being promoted to black belt. Then, once they reach 1st degree (Shodan), we give them a second Daruma Doll with the suggestion of reaching the end of the 1st tier of dan ranks and being ready to start work into the 2nd tier. A little known rank organization in Aikido is that Shodan through Yondan is the 1st tier (basically lower ranking black belts) and Godan and up is the 2nd tier or senior instructor/Sensei ranks.

While life is known for getting in the way of our life-goals with some things simply being out of our control (what's that saying .... accept what you can't change) making a personal goal and commitment to yourself is important. It's one thing to break a promise made to someone else but it's entirely different when we break a promise made to ourselves.

Part of training in Bushido and part of becoming a Bushi (warrior) is learning to set goals and develop life organization and personal discipline to reach (that goal). Failure to do so can negatively influence our opinion of ourselves (at a deeper level) and hinder our reaching our full potential in life.

L. F. Wilkinson Kancho

The Aikibudokan

Houston, TX

September 20, 2023

 

200. It Comes With The Job

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