Editor's note: This article by David Ito Sensei originally appeared in the Spanish language magazine El Budoka and was translated by Santiago Almaraz Sensei. Read it here in Spanish: Nunca Ser Derrotado
Never be Defeated
In the martial arts, we can fail or lose but we should never allow ourselves to be defeated.
To fail is defined as “being unsuccessful in achieving one's goal” while to lose is “to fail to win.” To be defeated is also defined as “to have been beaten in a battle or other contest” but it also can mean “to be demoralized and overcome by adversity.” On a certain level, failure, losing, and defeat are all the same. However, failure and losing are external but being defeated has this internal quality to it.
In the martial arts, we are all trying to reach a place where we are mukautokorotekinashi (向かう所敵なし) or “undefeatable.” Mukautokorotekinashi literally translates to mean “to go to a place where no opponent exists.” Understanding this, that’s why teachers like Morihei Ueshiba advocated for masakatsu agatsu (正勝吾勝) or that “the true victory is self victory.” To realize the true meaning of undefeatable takes a long time. Only after we have fought virtually every person on Earth, do we realize that the only true opponent is ourselves and thus we realize that to be undefeatable is really just a mindset that we strive for.
Because it is a mindset, one way to look at it is that we are trying to cultivate a certain type of willpower called konjo (根性). In Japanese, konjo is defined as “willpower,” but it is supposed to mean “fighting spirit.” Itzik Zur wrote that “Fighting Spirit is a supreme and revered expression of the human soul’s ability to overcome, transcend, and attain the unattainable.” Fighting spirit is the inner strength or willpower that we draw upon to overcome adversity and never give up.
To be truly undefeatable has three components that we must unify. In swordsmanship, this unification is sometimes referred to as kikentaiichi (氣剣体一致) or “the spirit, sword, and body as one.” In other words, when this unification occurs (body, technique and mind/spirit), a person isn’t easily defeated. This is what people refer to as “having heart.”
The body and sword represent the outer aspects of our fighting spirit. Body refers to the hardening and conditioning of our external bodies and sword alludes to technique. American Army General George Patton once said, “Fatigue makes cowards of us all.” What Patton is referring to is that the outer aspects of one’s fighting spirit are the basis for fighting spirit and are intertwined. If our bodies fatigue, then our technique will soon fail and if we don’t have technique, then our bodies will overwork and soon succumb to fatigue. When the outer aspects of our fighting spirit fail then we have to rely on our minds or spirits.
The spiritual part is last and truest aspect of fighting spirit which is also the most difficult to cultivate. True fighting spirit is a spiritual type of willpower where one is so determined to win that even if they are on the verge of death, they will still try to defeat you. We’ve all seen it in movies as the hero who is beaten half to death still stands back up, wipes the blood from his brow and dives into the fray one last time. We also see this understanding written in the Hagakure where Yamamoto Tsunetomo wrote: “Even if a samurai’s head were to be suddenly cut off, he should still be able to perform one more action with certainty. With martial valor in his life; if he can make himself to be like a revengeful ghost and show great determination, though his head be cut off, he should not die.”
Some people think that fighting spirit is something that we either have or we don’t. I don’t think that is entirely true. I believe that every person has fighting spirit but most don’t know how to activate it or cultivate it. In Japanese, it is said that young people have iji (意地) or “willfulness” and that it is the job of the teacher to channel that obstinacy and transform it into the konjo or “fighting spirit.”
The teachers of old believed that the key to fighting spirit is in the body and likened its development to the sword. In the beginning the sword is too heavy to pick up let alone to wield. Later, with time and conditioning, we are able to pick it up and swing it. Once we are able to wield it with ease, we use it to make inroads into our minds and spirits. As we forge ourselves outwardly and inwardly, the sword ceases to be and the only thing left is the warrior who’s mind and spirit are the weapon.
Some believe that fighting spirit is in the body and has to be let out. The way we let it loose begins with physical training. The easiest way to do this is by following Judo legend Masahiko Kimura’s san bai no do ryoku (三倍努力) or “Tripling one's effort.” Kimura was renowned for his incredible work ethic of outworking his opponents and he never wanted to be outdone. He is widely remembered as the person who would regularly give out 10 concussions a training session. Kimura also won the All-Japan Judo Championships three times in a row and didn’t lose a judo match from 1936 to 1950. During his competitive era, he would train 10 and a half hours every day and in his retirement, he cut it down to eight. Kimura famous training mantra was “Tripling effort!” He once said, “If my opponent trains for one hour, I will train for three.” He was known for his brutal workouts which included 1000 push-ups a day and practicing 3,000 foot sweeps per leg every training session. Kimura’s training prowess is so prolific that there is a saying in Judo: “No one before Kimura, no one after.” Kimura’s tripling effort first began as a competition with others as he never wanted to be outdone. However, to truly put in triple the effort takes willpower and that’s how Kimura knowingly or unknowingly taught himself fighting spirit and became the greatest Judoka that ever lived.
Every good martial artist is supposed to have toushimanman (闘志満々) or “a strong will to fight.” However, the will we are talking about is the will to not be overtaken by by the demoralization of defeat. I truly believe that every person has fighting spirit - some just need to find it. Morihei Ueshiba said, “The purpose of training is to tighten up the slack, toughen the body, and polish the spirit.” Thus, every person has the power to cultivate fighting spirit and martial arts training is the vehicle we use to find it, develop it, and use it. The best martial artists may fail or even lose, but they never allow themselves to fall victim to defeat.