Health Benefits of Karate Do Training (Continued)

In a previous post, I presented some of the health benefits of Karate Do Training. The blog may have seemed a little bit one sided due to the fact that I only focused on the positive impacts of Karate Do training. Furthermore, I had to end the blog before addressing the Mental and Spiritual benefits that I stated I would. In this post I would like to get back to this thread, but before doing so I would like to clarify one important point regarding the information I provided in that post 'Health Benefits of Karate Do Training'. The information I provided was taken from a book that Chitose Tsuyoshi Sensei, the First Generation Soke and founder of Chito-Ryu Karate Do (O Sensei) wrote, "Kenpo Karate-do Universal Art of Self-Defense." He wrote this book in the late 1940s (1946 or 1947) eventhough it was translated into English by Christopher Johnston and published in 2000 by Shindokan International. (the Cover of this book is pictured below)

 

Training approaches have changed a great deal since this book was written and since it was published. The audience for which the book was intended must also be considered when we read it. It was intended for Japanese Nationals living in post WWII Japan. Many were malnourished and in poor physical health. This book was expressing the benefits of Karate Do training as a way to increase the general physical health of Japan as is stated in three very important sentences in The Purpose of Studying Karate-do where O Sensei writes, "In order to re-build the New Japan, we must first ensure that we are in good health. To begin with, to perform sound physical exercise is to study Karate-do. Initially a way to protect ourselves, Karate-do is the most complete form of physical exercise" (p. 90).

While sports training methods have grown in leaps and bounds in the 70 years since the end of WWII, the health benefits of continued exercise such as the practice of martial arts which now often includes various forms of cross training such as running and other strength training, speaks for itself. There are, however, some things that we do need to be careful of when teaching or training specific 基本 Kihon, Basics and 技 Waza, Techniques, namely the danger of injuring our joints due to the application of stress caused by unnatural twisting, torquing, and pressure. It should be noted that these injuries are not caused by the technique itself but rather by our misunderstanding of how it should be practiced. There is nothing unhealthy about Karate Do,  but the limits of our understanding often lead to unhealthy practice habits. I am no exception. I have had my fair share of injuries which resulted due to my limited understanding. However, since studying Japanese Language and Culture and after coming to Japan and developing relationships with various Karate Do Sensei my understanding has increased and my injuries have reduced in number and severity. I would have to say that only recently have I begun to practice at a level that I feel is indeed increasing my health without a high risk of injury to my joints. It took me almost 25 years to understand, but in the past 2 years I really feel that my Karate Do has changed for the better namely due to deeper understanding in two major areas. I would like to tell you about them. The first area will be the focus of this post and the second I will write in a following post. The first area deals with a more natural use of muscle combinations, focusing on contraction, stretch, and a state in between which may be referred to as neutral, natural, or relaxed.

 

Muscle Use
During my time training in Japan I have grown and and deepened my knowledge base in many ways, all of which have impacted the way I approach my personal training. One of the major epiphanies I had was the realization of how to use the muscle groups in my upper body, namely my shoulders (Trapezius) and Lats (Laissimus Dorsi) in a more natural working combination through out the movements of 基本 Kihon and 形 Kata (See photo below for muscle groups discussed).

お正月 in 熊本 Continued

There is a lot that I want to share with you and the many customs of the New Years' time in Japan are rich with tradition. As I said in my previous post, there are far too many to share in this format, but I would like to tell you as much as I can about how I have spent the New Year here in Kumamoto for a little over a decade. I would like to continue this post where I left off, with 初詣 Hatsu Moude, the First Visit to a Shrine or Temple. I have visited 小国神社 Oguni Jinjya, Oguni Shrine almost every year on January 1st since 2002. Please let me share with you how my family started our year.

(My Daughter, Son, and I Hatsu Moude at Oguni Shrine, Jan. 1st, 2015)

初詣 (Hatdsu Moude)
As I said, I am not religious and have no ties to anything in particular, but since I started going to Oguni for the New Year's holiday, I have visited Oguni Jinjya on January 1st for Hatsu Moude with my wife and this year was my Son's first New Year's visit. We never stay long. We make a wish, buy some おみくじ Omikuji, Fortune Slips, and お守り Omamori, Good luck Charms or Talisman, then we return home. There is nothing particularly ceremonial about how we do this other than we must wash our hands and mouth at the fountain in front of the shrine before entering. Although it is not ceremonial, there is an order that we have followed every year. Let me share it with you now.

(Chou Zu Ya, Kagoshima, Japan, 2014)

 

手水舎 (Chou Zu Ya)
Every Shino Shrine in Japan has a 手水舎 Chou Zu Ya, a special fountain or pool of fresh running water near the entrance designated for cleaning our hands and mouths before proceeding to the shrine. (See the photo above) To the best of my knowledge this is there simply to cleanse the body so that when we enter the grounds of the shrine we can do so with pure intentions. Cleaning our hands that we use to touch things with and our mouths which we use to communicate our thoughts, for me, holds a particularly powerful meaning and I always make it a point to perform this cleaning action. I do have to tell you, though, this year's Hatasu Moude was extremely cold and it was difficult to take off our gloves and pour cold water over them, but as you can see in the photo above, we all did it. After we clean our hands and mouth we enter through the main entrance and make our way to the shrine. In front of the shrine there is a large bell and rope. We throw ￥100 One Hundred Yen into a wooden box beneath the bell and ring it by shaking the rope back and forth. The sound it makes is very unique, unlike any bell I have ever heard before or since. We then clap our hands together two times and bow our heads and make a wish. It is said that the wish you make on Hatsu Moude should not be a wish for personal success but rather for the health, happiness, or success of others. I always wish for the health and happiness of my family.

 (A sign telling you the proper procedure for washing your Mouth and Hands)

 

(See the video attachment to hear the sound of the bell)

 

The O Mikuji is like a kind of guide that gives us advice on how to proceed through the year ahead. It gives us advice on work, health, and relationships. I can tell you that, in my experience, they have been surprisingly accurate and I have received some pretty good advice over the years from these little slips of paper. (See photo below right, my O Mikuji, 2015)

After we finish reading the advice we tie them on a branch of a tree or a rope designated for this at the shrine. We do not take them home with us, but depending upon the kind of O Mikuji you buy, they usually have a little good luck charm inside that you can take and keep with you throughout the year. (See the photo below, our O Mikuji together tied on the rope in front of the tree at Oguni Shrine.) 

the Teacher / Student Relationship

Introduction

As an educator and Instructor of Karate Do I feel it is important to consider the teacher / student relationship in order to better understand Karate Do on an even deeper level.  At the heart of every style of Karate Do lays the common philosophy of 文武両道 Bun Bu Ryou Do, the importance of excelling in both literary and military art (This is a concept that deserves its own post. Therefore, I will not discuss it in great detail in this post). I just want to point out that the majority of the martial arts in Japan place a unique emphasis on the development of the mind and the body, this is true of Karate Do as well.

 

Relationships

Every experience in our lives is an extension of a relationship. Even when we experience something alone it is still an extension of our relationship with nature or with the event itself. Therefore, we must consider the fact that our relationships with others greatly affect our experiences. This is especially true in Karate Do. The teacher student relationship in the Karate Do context is a very unique relationship that can sometimes become very complicated but, when all of the conditions are right and the level of understanding among those in the relationship is mutual this can be a very fulfilling relationship where both the student and the teacher enjoy physical, mental, and spiritual growth as a direct result of their unique relationship.

 

Forgive me for stating the obvious but, in order to develop a good relationship on any level with anyone else it is very important to begin with listening and continuing to listen as the relationship develops (See my previous post ‘Listening is the Key’). We are capable of listening and not hearing and at the same time we often hear things even when we are not listening. But, the key is to “listen with the intent to hear.”

There is a famous saying that is well-known world-wide, “when the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” I wish to suggest here that this statement should not be taken literally. That is to say, the 'teacher' who will 'appear' is not always a person dressed in a suit and tie who will, like an advice genie, magically appear suddenly, when you are ready and in need, to tell you what to do and guide you through the rough patches or by becoming your mentor after you have fulfilled the basic requirements. Although this is sometimes true, some times the teacher is not a person at all. Rather, the teacher could be an experience or an event that opens our eyes to new possibilities or expands our awareness. Growth like this in an individual thing that can only occur when that person is ‘ready’. Perhaps, it is someone or maybe even something that has always been there but we just couldn’t see it until we recognized it. We couldn't see it because we couldn’t comprehend the importance of that presence and how it could influence our life until. Once it is in plain sight, it we can learn from it or them. I think we have all felt this at one point or another in our lives.