One goal of budo or martial arts training is to cultivate unity. Unity in this sense is the unification of one’s body and mind. In Japanese this unity is called reinikuitchi (霊肉一致) which translates as “The spirit and the body doing as one.” In the beginning of a student’s training, they are asked to turn off their minds and forge the basic or kihon-waza techniques into their bodies (aka “The please don’t think stage”). This stage is referred to as shu (守) in budo training. Later, after they have mastered the physical movements, we ask that students begin to delve deeper into the details of the movements and begin to think or understand the movements both physically and mentally (aka “The please think stage”). This stage is called ha (破) or the “breaking” stage as students break up the movements into their most intricate parts. When a student has cultivated the physical knowledge and the mental understanding, then they will have achieved the last stage of learning or ri (離) where they “transcend” the teachings. This transcendence is a result of the unification of one’s mind and body. If students only focus on training their bodies, then they will become too calloused and harsh. They will be defeated because they never cultivated their minds nor the understandings of the deeper meanings of life or the techniques. If a student only seeks to “know” with their minds and not with their bodies, then they will be easily defeated because they will only have a theoretical understanding of the art. Furuya Sensei referred to this balance as, “Saikan Kobai [sic] or the elegant apricot flower and the strong plum blossom. To focus too much on war makes us rough and crude while the emphasis on too much beauty makes us weak.” The best warriors understand the need for balance and that comes from a unity of their minds and bodies. Today, more than ever, we all need unity and balance.
Today’s goal: Have you focused too much on one side and neglected the other? How can you create unity in your life?