5th Kyu Essay

One of things I have seen come up over and over in my my study of Aikido are the stories about how different it is to train in Japan compared to North America. Some tales were of the "good old days" where people might have seemed to be more over the top than they tend to be today, but part of me eventually started to ask, "what is so special about over there?"

To answer it one way, they have some of the best teachers in the world, they beat in the very heart of the culture that gave birth to this art.

To answer it another way, they don't have anything special. In the end, I have to do my own breakfalls. The only Aikido I have is the Aikido I do. And although having a teacher that can point you in the right direct is invaluable, it is the individual that has to dive in and do the training. All they have is people. All we have is people. As one of those people, what will you bring to the mat?

The Essay...

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At the Yoshinkan Hombu Dojo in Japan, there lives an interesting group of people called Uchideshi. These live-in students are responsible for the care of the dojo and its instructors in addition to their own heavy training schedule. Soke Gozo Shioda called this living “Shugyo”, a devoted ascetic practice that required the student to be continually aware and attentive to the needs that arise. In the West, this style of training is rarely encountered. The training that some of us do in a week, the Uchideshi do in a morning. It would be great to train more, and we should, but the real challenge is to engage in Shugyo in the life we have. In a nonresidential dojo this would be much harder: harder, not impossible.

The nature of Shugyo is care. It is about taking care of our self, our partners, our instructors and our dojo. This is a training that we have to set about with deliberate effort. Much of society teaches us to only take care of ourselves. There is certain need for that mentality, but it does not entirely work in Aikido. We can't do Aikido by ourselves. Not only do others need to be there, but we need to connect with them. Aikido comes from those connections. When there is a pull, enter. When there is a push, pivot. When there is a need, meet it.

In a nonresidential dojo, there are fewer needs to meet, but they are still there. What can we do? Well, we can sweep the mats, straighten the buki racks, fold Sensei's Hakama, dust, work with a junior, help others train after class, carry Sensei's bag, help lock up, run to our spot, pay close attention, sit still, and be a good Uke, just to name a few. Many of these are practical needs and basic courtesy, but when fully engaged they are Shugyo. Through this type of training we develop a more complete connection to everything around us.

Going through the motions doesn’t do it (someone recently told me that it is possible to die stupid). It’s not about training everyday, its about training now. Take this time and really enter it. Milk it for all that it is worth. Ever moment is full of opportunities for training.