“Understanding why and when to apply knowledge is wisdom.” - Takeda Shingen
Students and teachers should always do the techniques correctly but with wisdom. In class, I advocate that students execute the techniques with tadashii (正しい) or as “correctly” as possible. Tadashii doesn’t just mean correctness but also doing something with propriety. With that being said, it is still possible to do the technique completely “correct” but still do it wrong. Takeda Shingen said, “Understanding why and when to apply knowledge is wisdom.” Knowledge, in this sense, is the ability to do a technique or one’s technical aptitude. Wisdom is mindfully knowing when and how to use a technique. Therefore, in addition to doing the technique “correct,” I also want the students to mindfully modify the technique for the person they are working with. Just blasting through every person with the full depth and breadth of one’s ability is mindless and shows a lack of discipline and sophistication. For instance, on my very second day in Aikido training, I was being taught by a brand new shodan or “first degree black belt.” He was assigned to teach me how to roll and help me through the techniques. I wasn’t very coordinated, and I could tell that he was getting frustrated. At a certain point, he just did the techniques at full speed and just kept throwing me down on the mat despite the fact that I didn’t know how to fall. Several times, I got the wind knocked out of me or hit my head. When someone chided him after class, I heard him say with a sheepish grin, “What? Me? I’m always gentle. I was just doing the techniques the way they are supposed to be done.” In this sense, he was knowledgeable but lacked wisdom or patience which showed his true level. Whenever we train with someone, we should always mindfully do the techniques as correctly as possible - that is knowledge. We should also mindfully know how and when to modify a technique for the person we are working with but still maintain its “correctness”- that is wisdom. Our true wisdom and power are displayed by our mindful restraint and what we choose not to do rather than showing what we can do.
Today’s goal: What can you do to be more mindful and show your wisdom?
Watch this video of Dandapani discussing knowledge and wisdom.