Kanai Sensei's thoughts on Reigi-saho

I found this article on aikidosphere.com on etiquette or Reigi-saho written by Kanai Sensei.  In the late 1960s Sensei studied with Kanai Sensei in Boston while he was attending Harvard University.  Sensei and Kanai Sensei would become friends and both shared a common interest in Aikido, swords and Iaido.  

A Thought on Reigi Saho by Mitsunari Kanai

Editor’s Note: Kanai Sensei's article on Reigi Saho is a classic, synthesizing an explanation of the philosophy and practice of Aikido's etiquette. It has been reprinted several times, for example in Aikido Forum and the USAF Newsletter, and we are happy to bring it to a new generation of readers.

Fundamental Philosophy of Reigi

The motivating principle of human survival, based upon the instinctual needs of food and sex, is power. The ability to effectively use power is crucial for the sustenance of life itself. The technology of fighting, pre-modern and modern, is an expression of this power, and the human race has survived to this point in history because of the ability to properly use this power. In fact, the development of this technology has given rise to new ideas, scientific advances, civilization, and culture. The basic principle of power is deeply rooted in life itself, and it is still the basis of human society as we know it today.

The student of Aikido, regardless of the reason, has chosen this particular form of martial art as his or her path, seeking to integrate it into daily life and undertaking the practice with dedication and constancy. Some people get enjoyment out of the Aikido training while some others get lost and fall into confusion. Some approach the training selfishly while others approach with modesty. Each person's approach to the training is a personal expression of his or her suffering and conflicts as a human being. Thus, the person applies his or her own judgment to Aikido and tries to give his or her own meaning to Aikido. The significance of Aikido, first of all, is that it is a martial art, but it also has meaning as the manifestation of natural laws and as a psychological, sociological, physiological, ethical, and religious phenomenon. All of these are overlapping, although each has its own unique identity, and together they constitute what we call Aikido.

If we pursue the combative aspect Aikido in our training, we can find extremely lethal and destructive power in Aikido. Therefore, if Aikido is misused, it can become a martial art of incomparable danger. Originally, martial arts meant this dangerous aspect. Aikido is no exception. Thus, any combative art unaccompanied by a strict philosophical discipline of life and death is nothing but a competitive sport.

While sports do not deal directly with life-or-death situations, they nevertheless advocate certain values necessary for building of character, for example, the observance of rules, respect for others, sportsmanship, proper dress and manners. This should be even more true and essential in the art of Aikido because Aikido deals with the question of life or death and insists on the preservation of life. In such an art is it not unquestionably appropriate to emphasize the need of dignified Rei in human interactions? Therefore, it is said that Rei is the origin and final goal of budo.

Some people may react negatively to this emphasis on etiquette as old-fashioned, conservative, and even feudalistic in some societies, and this is quite understandable. But we must never lose sight of the essence of Rei. Students of Aikido are especially required to appreciate the reason for and the meaning of Reigi-saho, for it becomes an important step towards misogi , which is at the heart of Aikido practice. I hope to discuss misogi in a future article.

At any rate, people working in martial arts tend to become attached to technical strength. They become arrogant and boorish, bragging of their accomplishments. They tend to make unpolished statements based on egoism. They immerse themselves in self-satisfaction. They not only fail to contribute anything to society but, as human beings, their attitudes are under-developed and their actions are childish. What is important about Reigi-saho is that it is not simply a matter of bowing properly. The basis of Reigi-saho is the accomplishment of the purified inner self and the personal dignity essential to the martial artist.

If we advance this way of thinking, the matter of Reigi-saho becomes the question of how one should live life itself. It determines what one's mental frame and physical posture should be prior to any conflict situation; the guard-posture must have no openings. Thus, Reigi-saho originates in a sincere and serious confrontation with life and death. Above all, Reigi-saho is an expression of mutual respect in person-to-person encounters, a respect for each other's personalities, a respect which results from the martial artist’s confrontations with life-or-death situations. The culmination of the martial artist's experience is the expression of love for all of humanity. This expression of love for all of humanity is Reigi-saho.

The martial artist's respect for the self and for others easily tends to become coarse and unpolished. So the idea of Reigi-saho, that each person is important, functions as a filter to purify and sublimate the martial artist's personality and dignity. Reigi-saho thus melts into a harmonious whole with the personal power and confidence that the martial artist possesses. This coming together establishes a peaceful, secure, and stable inner self which appears externally as the martial artist's personal dignity. Hence, a respectful personality with strength and independence is actualized. Therefore, Reigi-saho is a form of self-expression. The formalized actions of Reigi-saho reveal the total knowledge and personality of the martial artist.

We who are trying to actualize ourselves through Aikido should recognize that we are each independent. Only with such deep awareness of the self, can we carry out a highly polished Rei with confidence.

In short, Reigi-saho is to sit and bow perfectly and with dignity. In this formalized expression of Rei, there exists the martial artist's expression of self-resulting from his or her philosophy of life and death. And, for this reason, the martial artist shows merciful care and concern for those who walk on the same path. The martial artist shows merciful care and concern for all who seek to develop themselves in mind, body, and spirit, with sincere respect for other human lives.

In order for any external, physical act to be complete, it must be an expression of the total person. Abstractly, the external form includes the inside. This is a complete form. For Reigi-saho, that means that the external act was from the deep heart or mind. Also, the heart or mind was using the external act for its expression. This is a complete act. The formalized expression of the inner and outer person harmonized is the Saho of Reigi.

Saho (Formalized expression of Rei)

Reigi-saho thus contains varied implications regarding the inner life, but the observable form is a straightforward expression of respect for others, eliminating all unnecessary motions and leaving no trace of inattention. In the handling of martial art weapons the safest and most rational procedure has been formalized so that injury will not fall upon others as well as on oneself. Ultimately the formalized movements become a natural movement of the martial artist who has become one with the particular weapon. Below is an outline of the basics of Saho which I consider necessary knowledge for the martial artist.

1. Seiza (formal, Japanese-style sitting)

From your natural standing position draw your left leg slightly backwards (in some cases the right leg), kneel down on your left knee while staying on your toes. Then kneel on your right knee, lining up both feet while on your toes. Sit down slowly on both heels, as you straighten your toes, placing them flat on the floor so that you sit on the soles of your feet. Place either your left big toe on the right big toe, or have both big toes lightly touch each other side by side.

Next, place both hands on your thighs with fingers pointing slightly inward. Spread out both elbows very slightly but naturally, dropping the tension in your shoulders into the tanden or the pit of the stomach. Raise your sternum which will naturally straighten your back (do not stiffen your back), look straight ahead of you, and calm your body and mind for proper breathing. The space between the knees on the floor should be about the width of two or three fists.

2. Rei before the Kamiza (front altar)

From the seiza position slide both palms of your hands forward to the floor about a foot in front of you, forming a triangle, and then bow by lowering your face slowly and quietly towards the center of the triangle. Do not raise your hip or round your back as you do so; it is important to bend your body at the waist, keeping the back straight as possible. After a brief pause gradually raise your bowed head, pulling up both hands at the same time. Return both hands to the original seiza position and look straight forward.

3. Rei toward fellow students

From the position of the seiza first slide your left hand forward slowly, followed by the right hand, and place them on the floor about a foot in front of you and form a triangle, identical to the procedures described above. Following the bow, pull back your right hand while raising he body, followed by the left hand, and return to the original seiza position.

4. Rei towards teachers

The same etiquette as above is observed for bowing to your teacher, but the student should remember to lower his or her head in a bow before the teacher does, and to raise his or her own head after the teacher raises his or hers. Please remember that your bow shows your mental readiness. 5. Standing from the seiza position

First get on your toes, then begin to stand as you move your right foot (or left foot) half a step forward. Stand up slowly and quietly and pull back the right foot (or left foot) so that you are standing naturally. 6. Saho when holding sword (applies also to other weapons such as bokken, jo, etc.)

The sword is normally placed on the sword stand with the handle to the left of you and the blade facing upward. (The side of the sword thus seen is called the front of the sword.) The placement of the sword is reversed for self-protection in cases of emergencies and when retiring at night.

(a) Rei to the sword (standing)

Take the sword from the sword stand with your right hand grasping the scabbard near the sword guard with the right thumb pressing the sword guard. Then turn up your right hand, placing the handle to your right. Open your right palm holding the sword with the blade turned upwards, while at the same time the thumb of the left hand, palm down, holds the scabbard closer to the tip. The sword should be held up at eye level and the bow show be made slowly from the waist with the back kept straight. The sword is raised slightly during the bow.

(b) Rei to the Kamiza (standing)

From the standing bow to the sword, lower the sword in front of you thus bringing it closer to your body. With your right hand turn the handle upward with the blade facing you. The sword is held vertically with the right hand in front of your center, and the left hand now grasps the scabbard immediately below the right hand. The right hand then is freed, permitting it to grasp the backside of the sword blade from above. The right hand thus grasping the scabbard should have its index finger placed on the back side pointing towards the sword’s tip. Hold the sword close to the right side of your body with the tip turned towards the front at a 35-degree angle with your right hand at your hip bone. Stand erectly and piously make your bow to the Kamiza. The bow should be about 45 degrees and you should pull your chin in while you bow.

(c) Rei in front of the Kamiza (sitting)

Sit in seiza. Place the sword on the floor on the right side of your body with the blade pointing toward you. The sword should be parallel to your body. Slide both hands simultaneously down from your thighs to the floor and bow to the Kamiza.

(d) Rei toward fellow students and teachers (sitting)

The same procedure should be followed as in the case above, except for the different sequence of putting your left hand down on the floor first when bowing and pulling up the right hand first when rising from the bowing position.

This concludes the description of the minimally required basics of Reigi-saho. The brevity of the explanations was intended to avoid possible confusion, but it may also have led to a lack of clarity and thoroughness of explanation concerning certain procedures. If I have not been generous enough in writing my description of Reigi-saho, then I hope that you will forgive me and give to me and others the chance to teach you more in the future.

http://www.aikidosphere.com/mk-e-reigisaho

Dojo Closed 11/27 & 28 for Thanksgiving

The dojo will be closed 11/27 and 11/28 to observe Thanksgiving. There will be class on Saturday and Sunday.

Hinkaku

With passion, focus and care anything is possible.  I came across this video of a 7 year old girl doing Karate.  I was very much impressed by her attention to detail, poise and zanshin, but I was especially impressed by her sense of hin.  Hin or hinkaku 品格 translates in Japanese to mean grace or dignity, but it is more than that.  Hin is the way we carry carry ourselves regardless if we are a 7 year old kid or an 80 year old 8th degree master of Karate.  Whatever this little girl decides to do in life, she will be special. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZlUgkTGeAQ

What is crazy is here she is 2 years earlier at 5 years old.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmVMr0POsE0

Free screening of Kagemusha on Nov. 26

Free Japanese Cinema Screenings

 Every 2nd and 4th Wednesday Evening!!

 JAPANEMA Kurosawa's Masterpiece Samurai Film!

"Kagemusha"

(180mins, 1980)

Directed by Akira Kurosawa

In Japanese with English subtitles

 

Wednesday, November 26 @ 7:00PM

Venue: The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles, Auditorium (5700 Wilshire Blvd. #100, Los Angeles, CA 90036) Admission: Free Reservation is not required.

Read more about the movie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kagemusha

The 7 Ps

Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance A long time ago when Sensei was alive a well meaning white belt volunteered to order some uniforms from Japan.  He notified everyone and diligently took orders by scribbling everyone's  information into a spiral notebook.  Many people ordered uniforms including me and Sensei.  The student called the company in Japan and ordered each order personally.  When the order arrived it was missing items and some of the uniforms were the wrong sizes.  He also realized he was short money because he misjudged the exchange rate and had to go back and ask each person for more money and then he ended up ordering a second time to fulfill the incomplete orders.  In the end he had to put some of his own money in because the order was wrong because it was his error.  I even gave up my uniform so that he could give it to someone else and not pay twice for it.  When it was all said and done Sensei ended up getting mad at him and I am sure he felt dejected.  In the parking lot afterwards, I gave him a reassuring smile and said, "Welcome to the club."

I didn't intend on being condescending, but what I meant was that only a select few get in trouble and receive a direct scolding from Sensei.  The club that I was referring to was the 7Ps club.  What this well meaning student didn't know is that anything and everything concerning the dojo and Sensei had to be executed at the highest level.  This student wasn't through when he researched his project nor did he ask anyone who had done it before.  He also wasn't organized and with Sensei you had to be extremely detail oriented in order to not mess up and he wasn't as evident by his scribblings in a spiral notebook.

One of the main things I learned as student under Sensei was how to be a professional.  I, like this student, got burned and then lectured and after a few hundred times I started to learn.  What I learned was that execution was nothing without through planning and preparation.  Before I would even bring something to Sensei it had to be organized and well thought out or he would pick you apart and/or get mad at you.  Dealing with Sensei, I learned how important the military's 7Ps were (Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance).  In a martial arts sense, how can you go into battle if you don't know what you're supposed to be doing or where you are supposed to go?

Sensei had an unwaveringly sense of quality which led to us strive for quality in our training and eventually in our lives as well.  Today, I scold my own students about their professionalism and how their planning and preparation are almost as and maybe even more important than their execution.  I read a quote in Scientific American that sums up many of the lessons Sensei tried to teach me and what I am trying to teach my own students today: "You fail to the level of your preparation."

Welcome to Fall

Ichi-yo ochite tenka no aki wo shiru. "With the fall of one leaf we know autumn has come."

A couple of years ago we stumbled upon this small temple in the suburbs of Kyoto.  The temple is called Komyo-in.  It is off the beaten path, but well worth the visit.  It is one of the sub temples of Tofukuji which is just down the street.  You can just sit on the veranda for as long as you want and just take in the awesome rock garden that is bordered with Japanese maple trees.  We went in the summer so the maple trees weren't in bloom, but from the vast number of maple trees it must be incredible in the fall.  I just loved sitting there and taking in the quiet while looking at such a serene place.  Whenever I go back to Kyoto again, I will try and spend at least an hour just sitting there.

Here is a link with more pictures and some information about Komyo-in. http://kyoto.asanoxn.com/places/higashiyama_sth/komyoin.htm#photos

Aikido is a personal journey

There is no competition in Aikido.  Despite this maxim, it is still hard for people to accept.  Competition itself is not bad, but what it brings out in us can be detrimental.  It can be harmful  because it has a detrimental affect on the ego. Let's think about the game of golf.  Golf is fun.  Golf is social and the experience can actually be heightened when others play it with you.  There is technically no winning or losing in golf since it is a personal pursuit where the golfer is trying to improve upon a skill.  There is also no such thing as a "perfect" game - nobody ever shoots a 0.  Given that golf is a personal pursuit it can actually make someone a better person because they have to conform to a set of rules which penalizes them if they break them.

However somewhere along the line, golfing became more about winning by beating others than as a means of personal development or sportsmanship.  This has brought about such unsavory things like cheating, performance enhancing drugs and bad behavior.  In a 2002 survey of America's top 400 top business executives who play golf, 82% admitted to cheating.  In a 2011 poll, 54% of the PGA tour caddies said they had witness some form of cheating.  Today with sponsorships and praise, we only care who won or who was the best and we rarely care who is the better person.

This could happen to Aikido also if there was some form of competition.  What would dojos be like if there was a competition for prize money and sponsorships?  How far would people go to "sell" the competition by speaking disrespectfully about their opponents?  What would people be willing to do or more importantly forgo in order to win?  The answer is that Aikido would then go the way of every other martial art where the emphasis is on who has the best abs.

Aikido is a do or way and like golf it is a singular journey where the only competition we have is with ourselves.  If we are not training for ourselves, we are training for our egos or more importantly other things and other people.  Our ego wants praise, accolades, fame and fortune - everything that exists outside of ourselves.  This "win at any cost" perspective is one of the negative sides of competition and thus why there is no competition in Aikido.   This is why O Sensei said, "Masakatsu, Agatsu" or that the real victory is the one over yourself.

Dojo Christmas Party

 

Dojo Christmas Party

Socialize - Dinner - Gift exchange

When: Saturday, December 6th Time: 6:30-10:30 PM Where: Smokehouse in Burbank Cost: $50.00 adults, $35.00 children

Everyone is invited to attend.  Please sign-up on the sign-up sheet on the bulletin board.

Nakasendo - the road between Tokyo and Kyoto

There are five routes called the Gokaido in Japan that connect the capital of Japan, formerly Edo, with the outlying provinces.  The five routes are: Tokaido, Nakasendo, Koshu Kaido, Oshu Kaido and Nikko Kaido.  Today most of the routes have been replaced by modern day freeways or highways, but there are still some parts that have been preserved.  The Tokaido and Nakasendo have the most notable areas that have been preserved. The Nakasendo is one of National Geographic's 50 tours of a lifetime.  The Nakasendo connected Tokyo (Edo) with Kyoto.  It was the trail through the mountains that supposedly was preferred because you didn't have to cross any rivers.  Originally there were 69 towns that travelers could stay at or get a soak in an onsen or traditional bath.  Today only patches have been preserved and some towns have legal mandates which prohibit change.

I have always wanted to go to these preserved places and maybe I will get around to making the journey.  I found this video of Nakasendo that was  really nice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNwP-umm9h0

Dojo Fundraiser - please help

The Ice House Comedy Club in Pasadena has kindly arranged to help us raise funds by making tickets available for purchase

($20 each).  You can buy a ticket and catch one of their shows, get  some for friends and family, or just get the warm glow that comes from helping out the dojo.

Many thanks to student Jackie for making this possible. Please contact Jackie for tickets or more information.

E-mail: jcgu3ss@yahoo.com

Don't let the outside affect the inside

Don't bring the outside inside. One the hardest concepts for students to grasp as they start their training in a traditional dojo is to maintain a sense of self-restraint.  The dojo is not a place for personal feelings, desires or problems.  The more I study Aikido, the more I realize that what I am really studying is the art of self-restraint.

This idea of self-restraint is at the core of Japanese culture where conformity, humility and restraint are paramount.  Tatemae and honnen are two concepts that embody this idea of restraint.  Tatemae 建 前 is the face you show outwardly and honne 本音 is your true face that you hide inside.  Tatemae and honne enable an overcrowded nation to function as a single unit, but it is what also allows students to grow and foster in an environment designed for not only their well being, but their growth too.

This idea of self-restraint begins with students and teachers leaving the outside world outside.  People's problems or feelings are their own and thus should not be brought into the dojo.  Sensei used to say, "Cut off your head and leave it at the door."  This enables the practice to be without prejudice, worry, anger, or anything else that causes a distraction.  This lack of distraction environment makes the conditions conducive for learning.   From this environment springs the beginnings of not only strong Aikidoists, but better human beings.

So when people come to the dojo they should be ready to learn and help others grow and they can only do this by not bringing the outside inside or as Sensei said, "Leave your head at the door."  Oh and this is also one of the main concept or highest teachings in budo too - don't let the outside affect the inside.

Form is the basis for speed, power and intuition

The first duty in any student's Aikido career is to master the form as best as they can.  There are two main reasons why you have to master the form first.  The first reason why you have to master the form first is because there are hundreds of minutia that your mind cannot keep track of in order to make the techniques work.  The second reason is that once you have mastered the form, the movement can enter the subconcious which is beginnings of the development of intuition or sixth sense. A long time ago my mom told me a story about a lady she met who had been studying Aikido for a long time.  She told my mom this story about being in a car accident and how Aikido training saved her life.  She said that she was sitting in front passenger seat during a head on collision.  As the car struck another car she felt her body shift to the right and as she looked over her shoulder her friend who was sitting in the back was sailing by as she was ejected through the front windshield.  She doesn't know why she shifted but felt that the ushiro waza (techniques from an attack from behind) in her Aikido training helped her to sense that something was coming from behind and to shift away from it without thinking.

In ushiro waza, I was taught to never look back in order to see which side the attacker was attacking or what attack was to come.  If I waited too long, I got jammed and if I went too early I broke the connection and therefore I had to use my intuition to find the right timing for the right attack.  However, I could only use my intuition if my form was correct.

From this story you can see how the "form" of the movement might have saved this lady's life and that is why I urge all of my students to concentrate on mastering the form of the movement first.  After that you can develop speed, power and intuition.

Nothing is really important unless it is important to you.

Nothing is really important unless it is important to you. I recently read this article (link below) about a house in France where the owners of the house have left one of the rooms untouched since WWI.  Apparently, the original owners were so grief stricken that their son was killed in WWI that they left his room exactly the way he left it before he went off to battle.  When the parents sold the house they put a stipulation that the room go untouched for 500 years.  Oddly enough, despite the fact that the stipulation isn't legal, the room has been kept untouched and the house has changed hands a few times.  The current owner hopes his children keep up the tradition but stated, " I don't give a damn. What happens after me, generally speaking, I don't care.... But I think it would be a shame to get rid of all this."

A couple of years ago, someone broke something that belonged to the dojo.  I saw this thing in the trash and asked everyone what happened to which most replied, "I don't know."  Later that day a new student told me that one of the senior students sat on it and broke it.  The broken item wasn't what upset me, but how the senior students reacted.  Nobody even cared enough to take responsibility and many of them attempted to cover it up.  The item was worth no more than a few hundred dollars, but the significance was that it was one of Sensei's personal belongings.  The item can be replaced, but its sentimental value can never be replaced now that it is gone.

Things are only important to us if we think they are important.  An antique baseball card can fetch 2.1 million dollars or a 13th century Kamakura era sword can be purchased for $400,000, but its only real value or importance is to the person buying it.  I certainly wouldn't buy a sword for $400,000, but I did buy an autographed copy of Kodo for $50.00.  So I guess it is relative.

The point is that in order to find something important we must care.  In Japanese culture they believe that everything has an inherent value and thus should be treated with respect.  The thinking is that to find value and respect for other people or other things is to find value and respect for yourself.  Please take care of your dojo and treat it with the utmost care and respect.  It really is important.

http://news.yahoo.com/france-wwi-soldiers-bedroom-frozen-time-033623350.html

A well trained student

Whenever Sensei met with another martial arts teacher, they would lament about their students and every once in awhile they would talk about some student being, "Well trained."  This always puzzled me because Sensei would comment that someone is well trained, but he never talked about the criteria for what it meant to be well trained. Only after I became a teacher did I realize what Sensei was talking about when he said that someone was, "Well trained."  Generally speaking, being well trained means that one does the right thing at the right time with a sense of spontaneity and seamlessness.  Sensei once told a story about a well trained a student who put a lit cigarette in between this famous sword  teachers fingers just as he brought his fingers up to his lips.  It was so spontaneous and fast that Sensei didn't even see the student light the cigarette.

Spontaneity and speed can only be achieved after the student has achieved ishin-denshin.  Ishin-denshin refers to the connection between two people.  The teacher's mind thinks it, the student's intuition perceives it.

How does the student develop intuition?  Intuition is nothing more than a heightened sense of awareness that is only developed through experience.  A good student reads all the clues then lets his intuition take over acting.

Training intuition in Aikido is no different.  You have to do the techniques over and over ad nauseam before you can develop an intuition about what is coming next.  Once you can do that then you try and take your training to the next level and spend time with the teacher trying to further develop this awareness and intuition.  If one can successfully read the teacher and know what he wants before he wants it, you will have something truly special and there won't be anything you can't learn or eventually do.

Martial arts IQ: Takeshi Mitsuzuka Sensei

Here is a video of one of Sensei's iaido teachers.  His name is Takeshi Mitsuzuka.  Surprisingly, there are very few videos of him doing Iaido.  Sensei studied under him in the early 1980s and this video is right around the time.  Mitsuzuka Sensei was a student of Nakayama Hakudo who founded Muso Shinden Ryu Iaido. He passed away in 2008 at the age of 88 almost exactly one year after Sensei. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mp55f34JPY&app=desktop

My 100th post

Hmm.  What should I post about today for this auspicious occasion? I have thought about this long and hard.  To be perfectly honest, I don't consider myself much of a teacher and in fact I feel like I don't know anything.  So many today are white belts in skill but 10th dan in self-promotion.  Nothing makes me sadder than when I read someone's bio and there are obvious exaggerations.  I know from my own experience that it is very difficult to live one's life with integrity, humility and truthfulness.

I have re-posted something Sensei posted on September 27, 2005 to his Daily Message that I thought might be appropriate for my 100th post.  Please enjoy!

To live for one's self is most probably the most practical, realistic way to live.

To live for others is most definitely the most beautiful way to live.

To live with a caring heart for others will influence you every second of every day of your life.

To live to throw others down or defeat them will probably effect you only for a few seconds only once in your entire lifetime.

It is useless to be strong and skillful without a caring heart for others.

To lose or win is only chance and the way of the world - it is typical to desire to win, it is realistic to know that you will lose.  It is wiser not to waste your time with such trivial matters when you can use your life and energies for much more worthy efforts.

After teaching my students for so many years, I have realized that there is much more to teaching than making someone strong and skilled.  It all has to do with heart and life and righteousness . . . . . if our lives are not directed towards finding a peaceful way to live, we can never understand what O'Sensei's teachings are nor what is the spirit and true meaning of Aikido.  However, we can never separate ourselves from the correct practice of Aikido itself. . . .

Whether we are walking, riding a fancy car, crawling on our hands and knees, or being pushed or carried along on the shoulders of others, the road must still be correct. . . . In this way, we can never separate ourselves from correct training or a correct understanding of Aikido. . . . .

When you think you can do anything you want in this world, you are only being silly. Think of your mother, your father, your sisters and brothers, those you work with, those you practice with, your friends and loved ones, your neighbors. . . . what you have to do in this world is very clearly in front of you. . . . all you can choose for yourself in the Path you take - luckily you have chosen Aikido, I think it is a kind of Karma that you are blessed like this to enter O'Sensei's world. . . . Please don't miss this opportunity and apply yourself well to your practice and support the dojo.

The serenity of a splash

 

Furu ike ya!                               The old pond, ah! Kawazu tobikomu,                    A frog jumps in: Mizu no oto.                             The water's sound.

This poem is by Basho (1644-1694) and is probably the most well known haiku ever written.  I was blown away by this haiku when I first read this in D.T. Suzuki's Zen and Japanese Culture.  For some reason it always makes me think about fall and a cool morning sitting by a pond.  Upon reading this, I find myself transported to another place that is hard to explain.  In this place I can actually feel Basho's emotion as he is caught up in the moment.

I have never been one for poetry and in fact I have always thought of it as an unmanly pursuit but something about haiku really touches me.  For me, good haiku encapsulates the Way and what it means to follow it.  Good haiku is like Aikido - simple yet sophisticated.  The writer is able to be present in the moment but yet convey a sense of feeling within that present moment.  When you are attacked, being in the moment dictates that you only observe and don't react - true Budo is nothing more than this.

What does each rank mean?

People always ask me about the criteria that I use to determine rank.  This question comes with a large set of subjective answers that varies from teacher to teacher.  The knowledge or skills set is different between kyu ranks or mudansha and black belts or yudansha. For me, mudansha students are evaluated on what I like to call their Aikido conditioning.  Their Aikido conditioning refers to things the student needs to get into shape such as their ukemi skills, rolling ability, and basic technique differentiation as both uke and nage.  At the mudansha level, technical nuance isn't that important as long as they can perform the movement in a fairly competent manner and perform the right ukemi with each technique.

For yudansha at each level, the precision becomes greater and the student will be required to demonstrate everything they have learned up to that point.  At shodan, the student will need to show general knowledge of the technical form and display the Aikido conditioning they have built up.  Since shodan is the proverbial beginning, technical differentiation is more important than technical nuance while serving as both the nage and the uke.  Being able to do the techniques being called out and the proper ukemi is enough to pass the shodan exam, but not enough for subsequent black belts.  At each level of black belt, the student is evaluated on their technical precision, grasp of timing and spacing, breathe control, and mental awareness or basically where they are supposed to be and what they are supposed to be doing.

The last and most important at all levels is the candidate's character.  A student with no athletic gifts and a great attitude will go farther than an athletically gifted student with a bad attitude and I would promote the former a 100 times over the latter.  I personally will not promote anyone with a bad attitude or corrupt character.

Be a mindful of yourself

Under promise and over produce.  Over the 24 years I have been practicing Aikido, this is the one shortcoming that students always seem to succumb to.  I am well acquainted with this lesson myself because I have I suffered through it numerous times.  For instance, I once asked Sensei if I could wash his car once a week in trade for dues.  He agreed and we made a deal that I would wash his car every Saturday after class.  Easy enough and for months it went great and I thought I was making out like a bandit until one day it rained.  I was about to leave and Sensei stopped me and said, "Hey, aren't you going to wash my car?"  I said, "But, it's raining."  Sensei went to lunch and I had to wash the car in the pouring rain and I did it because I thought he was going to check it when he came back.  When he returned, I just got yelled at for an hour about my follow through and personal character. This was a hard concept to for me to grasp.  I didn't understand that to be a warrior means to be someone of character and one of elements of character is ichigon or more specifically bushi no ichigon in marital arts.  Bushi no ichigon specifically translates as a warrior says one thing, but it really means that a warrior is person of character and hence that person says what they mean and only means what they say.

As a young man growing up I got a warriors education from Sensei.  He didn't just teach me the martial arts but more about what it meant to be a person of character.  A person of character is someone you can trust and respect and who lives his life with honor and integrity.  Therefore to start this journey be mindful of what you not only say and do, but also what you think - it really does matter.

So my suggestion to everyone is that they should under promise and over produce.  This is the best way to stay off the radar.

Learn by doing

"What we have to learn to do, we learn by doing." - Aristotle Aikido is unfortunately an experiential thing which means you have to do it to not only learn it but someday understand it.  There are many schools of Aikido and numerous ways to teach Aikido.  Our school takes the hands on approach.  In order to advance the first think you need is a good attitude, but after that you need to come to class.  Sorry no way around it.

A picture is worth a 1000 words, but actually doing it speaks volumes.  The concepts and theories of Aikido are so verbose and difficult that words and talking about it just get in the way.  Aikido is one of those things you can't truly learn until you experience it.  So you have to learn to do Aikido by coming to class.  Please have a regular training schedule.