The best martial artists have a lethal mind. A lethal mind is not a mind that is focused on killing. To focus on killing means that a person has “lost their mind” and in Japanese this crazed mindset is called sakki (殺氣) or “bloodlust.” Sakki literally translates as “killing energy.” Lethal or chishi (致死) can mean “deadly” but it also means “capable of causing death.” From a martial arts standpoint, a lethal mind can be associated with killing or harming others, but it really means having a mind which is so serious that it can be “capable of causing death.” Interestingly, in the 16th century lethal meant “causing spiritual death.” But who’s spiritual death are we talking about? If we have learned anything from modern PTSD, the spiritual death that we are causing when we take another’s life is our own. Taking a life is a mortal sin and that is why engaging in a martial art which teaches that skill is supposed to be taken seriously. Shotokan Karate 10th Dan, Mikio Yahara Sensei said, “We are here to practice Budo Karate. But what does Budo Karate mean? It means defeating an opponent with a single strike. If the technique is not strong enough, it is not considered Budo.” In Karate, "to annihilate with a single strike" is referred to as ikken hissatsu (一拳必殺). The only way we can develop a strike strong enough to kill in one blow is to train for it. Miyamoto Musashi said, "It takes 1,000 days to forge the spirit and 10,000 to polish it.” Thus, the strike, cut, or technique takes 1,000 days to learn and 10,000 days to perfect. However, along the way to developing this lethality, we realize that the technique that we are developing isn’t to destroy another person but rather to give them mercy. In the first 1,000 days our technique easily becomes deadly, but it takes another 10,000 days to make it merciful. In the past, it was thought to be inhumane to hack or beat someone to death. It was thought to be merciful to kill one’s opponent with just one cut or strike. The reason for this efficiency is because the samurai viewed their opponents very differently than a person does today. In the past, they thought that the person who faced them was the same as them. They both devoted themselves to their craft as a warrior but, at the same time, they both had the unlucky karma to face each other on the battlefield fighting a war because it was their duty. So, if this person is the same as you and you would want mercy and compassion in your last moment, then you should end this person’s life as quickly and as mercifully as possible. Thus, a samurai trains so that they can be lethal but at the same time merciful. Today, most of us don’t fight in battles or engage in duels but the lethalness still has to be there. Lethalness is a mindset that is so serious that it is capable of causing death, but that lethalness has to be balanced out with mercy and compassion. In everything we do, in the dojo and in life, we have to seek a balance between being lethal and being merciful.
Today’s goal: Go forward and be lethal but also be merciful.
Click the picture below to watch Yahara Sensei discussing Budo Karate
