“Shi to deshi” describes the relationship between a great teacher and a student who feels awe for his teacher’s abilities and follows his teachings with humility and respect. A student can learn a lot from a teacher they truly respect. However, growth will stop if the student begins to criticize or superficially serve the teacher. …
Essays
The Essays – An Introduction
Kinjō Kaichō brought to the 2019 Kōburyū seminar four essays from the Japanese monthly magazine, “Chichi” (致知). Chichi is a Japanese magazine of “philosophical anthropology.” While the essays are written in Japanese and are heavy into Japanese thought (with some religious and cultural interpretation) they also speak to the serious student of karate and kobudō. …
Ability Cannot Surpass Passion
Kinjō Kaichō is an amazing martial artist, but he denies that he had more innate ability than anyone else. He says he simply worked harder than everyone else. Kōburyū today is a living, evolving martial art because Kinjō Kaichō did not limit himself to the conventional. He had the passion to think deeply and creatively …
Polish Yourself
Many times in the martial arts you will find a student who has been gifted with special ability. It is easy for this talented young person to become satisfied with his or her skill level and not work to develop his or her ability to its full potential. All students should be encouraged to learn …
Yu
Learning as Play The kanji for yū (遊), comes from the Japanese verb, asobu (遊ぶ), meaning to play. The play of yū is not play in the sense of messing around or killing time. Nor is the play structured or engaged in for a purpose, like a sport with rules and the ultimate goal to …
Hamon
Loosely translated hamon (破門) means “broken gate.” In the martial arts, if a person behaves in a severely inappropriate manner hamon can be the result. The person is denied access to training, the name of the person is removed from the registration of the school and the person is stripped of all ranks and qualifications. …