Throwback Thursday - One Mind
Furuya Sensei posted this to his Daily Message on March 27, 2003.
The martial arts have always been related to warfare from times past but, in this day and age, as we enter a state of war, we see that it is quite a bit different from what we do on the mats in the dojo. This is a result of the great transformation of Japanese martial arts in the 17th century.
It does not mean that our martial arts are too primitive or outdated, it means that our goals and purposes are so much different now. We practice a martial art to "save lives." Despite the new technology and science of warfare today, it is still a method, however advanced, to “destroy lives." We must always keep this in mind.
I think one must also keep in mind that it is much harder to create life, than it is to destroy life. Destroying life is quite easy - it only requires a little strength and violence. Creating life or preserving life is a much more complex, time-consuming, and continually on-going process which we experience every single day and moment of our lives.
In war, we must prepare ourselves to witness and experience many, many horrible things. This is war, and there is no way to avoid this. It is already happening now as I read the newspapers and listen to the daily news. War will never change, until we change. But this means that it will be in a time when we have all forgotten about the idea of "us and them.” How long do we think it will take until we will all begin to realize this?
Please continue to practice hard. As long as we think of ourselves as “you and yourself" or “me and myself," there will never be an end to war or violence. Please train to realize that you and the world around you are one and the inseparable same entity, integrated and whole and indivisible. I think this is part of O'Sensei's message to us - which we can only discover for ourselves in our practice.