Throwback Thursday - Become Familiar

Throwback Thursday - Become Familiar

Furuya Sensei posted this to his Daily Message on May 27, 2003.

The Japanese have so many words for "learning," which somewhat illustrates how important this concept is to their culture. For a while now, I have been talking about the Japanese term, "mi-narau" (見習う) or “to learn by observation." In Japanese traditional arts, it is best to learn by observation and practice with the emphasis on seeing and imitating the movement until one begins to understand it. I think this is especially important in learning Aikido and Iaido at the beginning level.

Now I would like to introduce another word Japanese use for learning,”nareru" (慣れる). This literally means "to become accustomed to” or "become familiar with." This is one aspect of the art which is often neglected. I see, in this world, that when we do the technique just a few times, we think we have caught on to it! "Nareru" means to work with something until it becomes second nature. I notice that many students sometimes cannot catch on to the technique - not because of any inability or lack of talent - it is simply that they have not worked with it enough. Again, this emphasizes the importance of regular and continued training in the art. To "nareru" also means that we have “mastered" it. Once we have become totally accustomed to something it then becomes a form of mastery as it has become "second nature" and is now really a part of us. So until you "nareru" the art, please keep up your training.

Photo: Furuya Sensei demonstrating at the Cherry Blossom Festival in Little Tokyo with uke Ken Watanabe