Do you gamble?

Recently, I was watching a martial arts movie called Brotherhood of Blades and there was an interesting line where the hidden villain says to one of the other bad guys, "Those who rely on luck are gamblers."  That was an interesting line in that I felt was relevant to martial artists. Luck implies that there is some part of engaging our opponents which is completely random and out of our hands.  While this might be true, this randomness is something a martial artist cannot afford to rely upon.

A warriors entire training, regardless of level, is spent shoring up holes and closing up openings.  A good martial artist is at least five to ten steps ahead of their opponent while a master is said to be 10 to 20 depending on the martial art.  A confrontation is like a chess game where one is constantly thinking about where their openings are and where their opponents will attack.  For instance, the Norwegian chess player Magnus Carlsen is said to always be 15 to 20 moves ahead of his opponents.  Beginners spends all their time closing their openings while a master is said to be in the business of create openings.

In gambling, there is no such thing as winning all the time which is probably true for martial arts as well.  However, in the martial arts if one loses, they usually lose their life or the life of someone close to them.  Therefore, one can see that any amount of error is unacceptable.

Since as martial artist we are not gamblers then we must be pragmatists in our outlooks.  This practical way of thinking assumes that our challengers are working hard to defeat us and thus we must work harder.  There is no substitute for hard work, planning and preparation.  A saying that I like from Scientific American many years ago that I like is apropos, "You fail to the level of your preparation."  Generally speaking, when one puts in the effort they are successful.  If there is luck, then it is that sliver of an opening between two people who are both thoroughly prepared but most of us will rarely encounter that.

The philosopher Seneca said, "Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity."  Since we cannot afford to gamble then it is best that we get started...

Happy 401st post

"Imagine fish swimming in a shallow pond, just below the lily pads, thinking that their “universe” is only two-dimensional. Our three-dimensional world may be beyond their ken. But there is a way in which they can detect the presence of the third dimension. If it rains, they can clearly see the shadows of ripples traveling along the surface of the pond. Similarly, we cannot see the fifth dimension, but ripples in the fifth dimension appear to us as light." - Michio Kaku Another way to experience this fifth dimension is with love. Things like light, gravity or love just to name a few are nature's laws.  O Sensei understood this and that is why he created Aikido. We are all swimming around in our ponds. Light shines through but it is intangible just as love is but just as with light one mat not be able to understand its origins but we can still feel its affects.

Have a great President's Day.

To catch their timing

 

In life as in Aikido, one must have timing.  A good Aikidoist will have average timing, but a great Aikidoist will have phenomenal timing.  But, what is timing?

Timing is something that is difficult to explain.  Google defines it as, "The choice, judgment, or control of when something should be done."  That definition is something that one can understand but still not know.  Timing can be thought of as just the right point when something extraordinary can happen.  A good metaphor might be the moment when darkness turns into light or when light changes into darkness.  When the day changes over, there is this place and within that place exists a subtle moment when it is neither dark nor light.  If one is aware then one can catch a glimpse of its immense beauty.  To the uninformed, the day just became night or the night just became day.

Every person has some sense of timing - it is innate.  How do I know that?  Does your heart beat?  Then you have timing.

It doesn't matter if one is studying acting,  Aikido or driving - timing is important.  To develop that sense of timing requires training.  Lots and lots of training.  In training, one develops their body first and then their mind second and with these developments comes a sense of awareness.  This awareness enables one to almost see the timing, but it is a feeling thing more than a seeing thing.  Seeing it is too late.  Just as in when the day turns over, you feel it before you see it and then it is gone.  In sports it is called being in the zone.  This "zone" type awareness enables the athlete to almost control the moment because their awareness creates this sense of vastness.  Athletes report things like the ball being 10x larger or the goal being infinitely bigger enabling them to score with ease.

When one's awareness is developed then one is able to seize the moment and that is why people often say, "I caught the timing."

 

The Priest Mongaku at the Waterall of Nachi by Kuniyoshi Utagawa.

I love this woodblock print despite the story behind it which is rather unsavory.  The picture itself reminds me of O Sensei and his misogi or purification training.  The story goes that a warrior named Endo Morito fell in love with a beautiful woman named Kesa Gozen who was already married to a palace guard named Wataru.  Endo relentlessly pursued Kesa and each time she rebuffed his advances until one day she gave in on the condition that Endo kill her husband the next night.  On the night in question, she cut off her hair and laid in Wataru's bed.  Endo quietly entered the room and killed Wataru and cutoff his head.  He only realized that he had killed Kesa as he ran out of the room with the head.  Upon realizing his mistake, he confessed to her husband and mother and begged them to kill him.  However, Wataru was satisfied with his confession and spared his life.

Being spared and grief stricken with his crime, Endo chose to live in exile and entered into the priesthood and took the name Mongaku.  Interestingly, Wataru entered into the monastery as well with Endo.  Everyday he meditated under the icy falls of Nachi to atone for his crime.  For three years, every day he fulfilled his vow meditate under the falls.  One day during winter, he had almost completely frozen over and was about to die as he meditated.  At the moment right before death, Fudo Myo-o and Kannon, the goddess of compassion came down and saved him.  After his rescue he became an adviser to Shogun Yoritomo and would eventually be exiled to Okishima for plotting against the Emperor.

You are not alone...

"People with the same disease share sympathy." - Japanese proverb Martial arts training is one of the most difficult things a person will ever do.

It is difficult because throughout the journey, the training tests and simultaneously forges us physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.  Luckily, it usually doesn't happen all at once even though it sometimes feels that way.

This "suffering" is the first step towards our understanding of compassion.  When we suffer we are better able to see the suffering of others and then we realize what they are talking about in Buddhism when they say, "Everyone suffers."  We are suffering and then we learn that at the same time other people are going through their own stuff too.  It doesn't matter if you are the teacher or if you are the student.  Everyone is suffering to some degree.

Compassion is defined by Google as, "The sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others.  The Buddhist definition of compassion is "Wanting sentient beings to be free from suffering."

We are not alone in our suffering.  Like all people, we are all good and doing the best that we can.  Like all people we are all suffering and going through our own stuff.  When we understand this then every person deserves kindness, compassion and forgiveness - just as we do.

 

In Aikido, the first step is always harmony - harmony with yourself then harmony with your partner.  Calmness is the Aikidoist's greatest asset.  If we don't have the stillness that comes as a result of our inner harmony, we are not doing Aikido.  Turbulence, anxiety, worry, or anger are signs of internal chaos.  Those who cannot be calm will be defeat by the person who can and that is why the first step in Aikido is harmony.

How does one find inner peace?  Training.  It takes a lot of training.

Happy Chinese New Year!

Gong Hey Fat Choy!Happy Chinese New Year!

This year is the Year of the Monkey according to Chinese astrology.  The monkey is a smart and hyperactive animal.  This year we might see just about anything happen.  Supposedly since the monkey is hyperactive and the fact that this is a Fire year, there is no sense in planning, but that doesn't mean that we should not be diligent.  Things will largely be individual pursuits which is good for anyone who is a self-motivator.  If not, one needs to be focused in order to be successful.  Also, since the monkey is an intelligent animal it needs to be balanced with things physically.  So this is good since doing Aikido will keep the monkey's mind in balance.  The Year of the Monkey is supposed to be prosperous so we all should see some success if we can stay diligent and focused in everything that we do in our lives.

The stars need the sky.

Here is a fine piece of calligraphy by Takayama Chogyu who was a writer in the Meiji period.  It reads, "Sky with stars, ground with flowers, and people with love." As human beings our most natural tendency is love, but this concept of true love has been blurred somewhat over the years.  This calligraphy espouses O Sensei's personal philosophy of life which became the basis for Aikido.

To understand Aikido is to understand nature.  With things in their most natural state, the stars need the sky, the flowers need the ground and people need love.

Aikido exists not to go against nature but to follow a way of life that is in harmony with it.

Can you walk on rice paper?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSS9Tg0of1Q https://youtu.be/6p9NTo6BWvs

When I was a kid, my favorite TV show as Kung-fu with David Carradine.  The re-runs were shown everyday on TV and my favorite parts were when they did the flashbacks to Caine's time studying in the temple.  One of my favorite scenes was when Caine would walk on the rice paper.

One of the core tenets of ashi-sabaki or footwork is how to step lightly, but balanced.  If one puts too much weight in their feet then they are unable to move them fluidly and quickly.  If one makes their feet too light then someone can sweep them out from under them.  I asked Watanabe Sensei what the weight distribution should be and he said Furuya Sensei said that the weight distribution should be "50-50 but you should have this concentrated feeling of projecting forward."

We want this fluidity to our movement so that we can use our footwork to manage our partners advances.  Sensei used to say, "If you want to speed up the movement, speed up your footwork."  Ashi-sabaki is the foundation of our movement and thus we should put time into mastering it.

One of the tell-tale signs that one is stepping too heavy is if their step creates an audible sound when the foot lands.  Losing one's balance or this audible sound are a few ways we would know if our steps were too heavy.

Here is a video from the Chinese TV show Kung-fu Quest where a student is going to train at the famed Wudang mountain temple.  Take note of how light the masters step and how light their footwork seems.  Pay particular attention to 25:00 where the Grandmaster describes "light training."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBPzaxP2Cvs&list=PLzcdh8nJSTUKChFfdsFYkS1yvp5hh-Ezu&index=2

Martial Arts IQ: Fumio Demura Sensei

When I think of Karate, I think of Fumio Demura Sensei.  I know there are many great Karate teachers and probably even more practitioners, but to me Demura Sensei epitomizes Karate.  We have all seen him but may not have recognized him.  He was Mr. Miyagi's stunt double in the Karate Kid movies.  I met Demura Sensei around 25 years ago when his dojo used to participate in martial arts demonstrations organized by Furuya Sensei.  Sensei wanted to show the public "real" martial artists so he would always use Demura Sensei to represent Karate.  He and Sensei enjoyed a wonderful friendship that I think began when Sensei worked at Inside Kung-fu Magazine, but I am not sure.  Many people might not know this but Sensei was a copy editor who helped to edit many books written by famous and influential martial arts teachers in the 70s and 80s.  Demura Sensei was someone I knew I could trust and I called several times after Sensei passed away for advice. My favorite Demura Sensei story happened backstage at the Aratani Japan America Theater in the early 1990s.  Sensei organized this huge event with famous martial artists from all over the world.  We represented Aikido and Iaido while Demura Sensei's group represented Karate.  We were all backstage waiting with Demura Sensei's group as they were about to go on.  Demura Sensei and Sensei chit-chatted for what seemed like a few seconds.  We stood behind Sensei and his students stood behind him like some sort of cliched scene from a campy martial arts movie.  Very discreetly Demura Sensei looked at one of his students and with a hushed toned he nodded, "chairs" and his students immediately ran off to get chairs.  Sensei noticed this and motioned the same for us.  It must have looked like a bunch of ants running around searching for chairs.  We all brought back chairs as fast as we could like it was some kind of budo race.  We all set them down and arranged them and motioned for the other students to sit down but nobody did except the senseis.  Sensei and Demura Sensei sat down for just a few seconds as we all stood trying to be humble and not wanting to break protocol trying to get the other students to sit.  A few seconds later they shook hands and parted ways.  Sensei commented after they went to the dressing room, "Man, his students are well trained" which is the greatest compliment anyone can give to another martial arts teacher.

We refer to Morihei Ueshiba as O Sensei not because he created Aikido or because he was good at Aikido. Morihei Ueshiba has the the title of O Sensei because of all the great teachers he created.  Demura Sensei is a true teacher and is someone who fits that criteria too.

Youtube is filled with Demura Sensei's videos.  His students recently made a documentary about his life (something I wish we have done) that is coming out soon.  Here is the trailer and another video about his life.

https://youtu.be/mppluZO5zDA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlFzfAm7heQ

Ip Man 3

The third installment of Ip Man has come out in the theaters.  I haven't seen it yet, but I have looked at the trailer and the "making of" video blogs they have been putting up on the internet.  It looks pretty good. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jckXscMwIOI

Great video of O Sensei

Why do I do Aikido?  I am not really sure.  Aikido is something that intrigues me.  I teach a lot of classes and on a regular basis I see something new or different.  When this happens, it peaks my interest and pushes me to study more.  I don't know why or how I became interested in Aikido so I can't tell you if it was some sort of nature/nurture thing from my past.  I can tell you that Aikido has been something that was around me but unknown to me as a child.  Here are a few things that make me think, "Hmm" and that perhaps Aikido was something that I was always supposed to do.  When I was a small child my grandfather suggested my mom take my brother to Aikido lessons.  People in Furuya Sensei's family were close to people in my family, but we had never met.  Interestingly, when going through Sensei's stuff after he had died, I found a funeral program for my great grandmother's funeral. Are things pre-destined?  I am not sure, but the signs and synchronicities are all around us.

Here is a great video of O Sensei doing Aikido.  Look at how he uses the angles and how he is constantly moving.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sJ6FmlGaXM&feature=youtu.be

Can someone become an expert in a year?

“It takes 1,000 days to forge the spirit and 10,000 days to polish it.” – Miyamoto Musashi

What do you want?  Who do you want to be?  What do you want to do?  What do you want to accomplish?  All these questions arise sometime in our lives and are sometimes difficult to answer.  When you find something you want to do, it is amazing but that leads to another set of questions.  Mainly, "How do I do it?"

Author Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers theorized that it takes roughly 10,000 hours for someone to master a skill.  I think this number is on the right track in that it takes 10,000 hours to gain competence and confidence which is the basis of "mastery."

How long does it take to truly master something?  The funny thing about the word "mastery" implies that there is a some destination that one arrives at, but true mastery exists in the pursuit and not in the destination.  Furuya Sensei used to talk about how, "If one could master Aikido then they could master anything," but this was not original in that Miyamoto Musashi also talked about in the Book of Five Rings.  What they were talking about is the process to master one thing is the same process to master another.

How does one then attain mastery?  Whatever we want to accomplish whether it be Aikido or cooking requires the 3 Ds: diligence, dedication and discipline.  One has to be diligent and put in the work, dedicate themselves to the pursuit and be disciplined enough to actually do the work.  Once one can be diligent, dedicated and disciplined all that requires then is time.  Put in the time to improve.  Sensei used to say, "Aikido is egalitarian - those that put in the work will get good.

When I was in college, all of my friends played billiards or pool.  Before this time, I had never played pool so I always lost.  Then one summer, my best friend Steve and I played for an hour everyday at a local pool hall.  In the beginning, I lost every game and it got to the point that even the waitresses and bouncers started to feel sorry for me.  As we left, they would ask, "Did you win one?"  To which I would answer, "no."  By the end of summer, I started to win a few games here and there and by the next summer when we came back to play, I started to win half the games.  It only took about a year and a half and then I started to play people in bars and at pool halls.  People even started asking me to be their doubles partner.

I found this video about a guy who played or practiced table tennis everyday for a year in the hopes of going from beginner to expert and breaking into the top 250 players in England.  It was quite an interesting story and similar to my pool story.  They even created a website dedicated to encouraging "you to start your own deliberate practice project and begin your quest to skill mastery."

Can one become an expert in a year?  Sure, but that requires that one actually puts in the work.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4y21uwFUgkE

Martial arts IQ: Rare footage of Mochida Moriji Sensei

Mochida Moriji is considered one of few great swordsman of the 20th century and was thus dubbed the "Master Swordsman of the Showa period" by many of his peers.  He was the last person to have ever been awarded the rank of 10th Dan.  Mochida Sensei was the Kendo teacher at the famed Noma Dojo that hosted so many famous martial artist over the years and even O Sensei demonstrated there. Mochida Sensei was well known for his kizeme which is one of the highest level techniques in martial arts where one uses ki to either lead or disrupt their opponents.

In the first video below you can see how strong Mochida Sensei is in Kendo.  In the second video you can see a little about Kendo and some quotes by him.

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

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmLfnWwP0g0

When you are here, be here.

"The concept of always being reachable makes us present nowhere." - Peter Arvai

This quote is quite apropos for the martial arts of today.  The minute our cellphones come out we are not here, but everywhere.  I find it interesting when people "check-in," post videos or picture of themselves at the dojo or anything else social media-like.  When we are doing this, we are not "there."  For the 70ish minutes we are at the dojo, let's be there and only there.  That way we can truly have ichinen or single-mindedness which exists in very few places today and an opportunity to develop ourselves.

How far will you go?

I recently read an article about the how despite the blizzard like conditions hitting the East coast, the tomb of the Unknown Soldier still continues to be guarded by the Sentinels.  Reading this article made me smile and gave me a sense of hope that the spirit of budo still survives.

It bummed me out when I read some of the people's remarks criticizing this practice in the comments section.  The people who criticize this time honored tradition don't understand budo.

In Izao Nitobe's book Bushido, he outlines what he believes are the seven virtues of bushido or the way of samurai.  The seven virtues are: integrity, respect, courage, honor, compassion, sincerity and loyalty.  It is within these virtues that we can see why it is necessary to honor those who have sacrificed their lives for us.

Interestingly, it is by no accident that the seven virtues begin with integrity and end with loyalty.  One business leadership author called integrity, "The trait that ensures all others."  With that being said, integrity calls us to have ichinen or single minded purpose.  If we say we are going to do it, we do it regardless of weather conditions or whatever else comes up that might make it difficult.  The blizzard conditions are nothing compared to the Unknown Soldier's sacrifice and thus the Sentinels post guard to honor that sacrifice.

It is also by no accident that loyalty comes last.  Loyalty is the final exam of all the traits.  Will we be who we say we are when we are tested?  When one's loyalty is tested it shows their true colors or what is really in their hearts.  It is kind of a final exam because what is truly in our hearts is only really tested when the teacher dies, when nobody is looking or sometime long after anyone really cares and that is why Furuya Sensei used to say, "Always act as if your teacher is watching."  If we do that then we will always act appropriately.

Integrity dictates that a warrior does what they say they will do.  A warrior has respect for not only themselves, but other people and traditions too.  Warriors have courage to do what needs to be done regardless if nobody else thinks so.  Warriors are people of honor which means that they live the Way and thus hold themselves to a higher standard.  A warrior has compassion which enables them to stand up for others.  Sincerity enables the warriors to do things with passion.  Loyalty is the demonstration of all the traits and is the highest ideal of the warrior.

To be a warrior is to live a path that and live by set of rules that normal people cannot understand.  Anyone can guard the tomb of the Unknown Soldier on a day when it is bright and sunny with a cool breeze.  Only a true warrior can step out in a blizzard and do their duty.  How many years will the Sentinels continue to guard the tomb of the Unknown Soldier?  It depends, how long is forever?

Source: https://www.yahoo.com/celebrity/news/soldiers-continue-guarding-tomb-unknown-185500579.html?ref=gs

Having kids will change you.

It is said, "Having children will change you."  I never thought that this would be true for me.  I thought it was one of those things that people just said to scare or caution you about having kids. I can tell you today that this is one of those true-isms.  I can tell you that having children has changed me as a person, an Aikidoist and as a teacher.  I am also sure it is different for everyone.

How did it change me?  It made me come to truly understand O Sensei's philosophy non-violence.  Every person is somebody's baby.

Upon having children I came to know fear as I worry constantly about my children's welfare.  I wonder almost obsessively about their welfare and their future.  This constant worry is how I came to know attachment.

From a Buddhist or martial arts perspective, attachment is bad.  One should not let their mind abide on any one thing.  But on the other hand, as Aikido teacher has said, "Attachment is power."  Attachment is one of those things that makes life worth living.  Without my attachment to my kids, I would not have learned about non-violence and I would definitely not have come to understand compassion and ultimately O Sensei's teachings of love.

If thought of one of my children being hurt is painful to me then it is a natural extension to realize that every person is somebody's baby.  If I don't want my kids hurt then why would I hurt somebody else's child.

To be able to give compassion or live, one must understand it first.  Having children has allowed me the gift of that understanding.  Now it is up to me to manifest it in not only Aikido, but in every aspect of my life.

"Just...live." - Gabrielle Bouliane Austin

Watching this video really makes one think about life.  What are we doing?  How do we spend our time? What is really important?  Makes me think... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rRwaPkfwo4&feature=youtu.be

I never met Gabrielle Bouliane Austin, but I hope that one day that I will be able to heed her words...

Rest in peace.

Mind your footwork

It is my opinion that if one wants to get good at Aikido, they must master the footwork.  Footwork in the Japanese martial arts is called ashi-sabaki (足捌き).  Some teacher focus more on tai-sabaki (体捌き) or whole body movement, but to me foundations begin from the ground up.  To me there are only five footwork movements in Aikido that consists of: forward and backward tsugi-ashi, forward and backward ayumi-ashi and tenkan or turning.   Some think that there is a sixth, but I don't personally count side stepping as a form of footwork since Aikidoist employ the hanmi stance. Rightfully, many don't focus on footwork because what is really happening is that the hips are moving in Aikido, but for me the hips are driven by the feet.  So I don't want to jump the gun and have students focus primarily on tai-sabaki because if their footwork is bad, their hips will be bad and thus the whole body movement will be out of sync.

If you don't think footwork is where it is at, here is a video of the great Ronaldinho and you can see how he destroys his opponents with his excellent footwork.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0ksVaLlaIw

How can one learn to run if they can't walk first?

Rules are made to be broken, but they must first be learned.  To get good at Aikido, one must be good at the basics.  Without a foundation of skills one cannot build upon it and ultimately "break" the rules.  Everyone has to start somewhere.  Aristotle said, "Well begun is half done."  He didn't say, "Start at the top and make your own rules."  How can one learn to run if they can't walk first?