Excellence is a Choice

Have you ever encountered a martial arts master that didn’t seem to fit the archetype of wisdom and
integrity?

Here’s what Sensei Wayne Muromoto has to say:

I looked upon my iai sensei in Kyoto with deep respect and affection. After I left Japan, we continued to write and correspond in between my visits back. He answered my questions about the history, theory, and techniques of iai, and encouraged me to dig further—to study the philosophy and spirituality behind budo. To him, a person’s nationality was no barrier to budo training, even though he had suffered through a Manchurian prisoner-of-war camp under the Russian Communists before he returned to Japan at the end of World War II. As long as you were serious about training, he would teach you.

However, when he passed away, I was told that I was no longer welcome to train at the main dojo. One of my Japanese sempai was oblique as to the reason why, and I didn’t find out until I encountered several other people in the same situation that I discovered the real answer. The sensei who took over the organization hated anyone who wasn’t a native Japanese, myself included.

That is why, if you find a good teacher—one who is not only technically proficient but also a decent human being—you stay with him or her. They are not the norm, just as excellence is not the norm in any endeavor. But in such a short lifetime, why not seek excellence? Anything less wouldn’t be worth it.

Learn more in our latest article.

Looking to Join a Martial Arts Organization?

SMAA is a martial arts organization for all martial artists who want to be part of a community of dedicating to keeping the spirit of budo alive. If you love your art and want to share it with others, give us a call at (734) 720-0330 or submit a contact form to talk about joining!

Wise Masters: Fact or Fiction?

Do you think of martial arts masters as fonts of wisdom?

Here’s what Sensei Wayne Muromoto has to say:

One of the notions that many people have is that martial arts masters are wise in the ways of the world. The appeal of the original Karate Kid movies, starring the late Pat Noriyuki Morita, or the Kung Fu series starring David Carradine, lay partly in the fact that the martial arts teachers could not only kick butt, but also dispensed wisdom as they kicked butt. 

That’s a nice positive stereotype—but not always true, unfortunately. And it’s one we have to guard against as martial arts students looking for good instruction. Budo sensei are not necessarily good personal role models, those movies notwithstanding.

The basic concern of most martial arts training is becoming technically proficient in one’s art style. Of course, in budo, it is hoped that by adhering to this long and arduous regime of physical and mental self-discipline, one’s spirit also is polished and refined as a matter of course.

Learn more in our latest article.

Looking to Join a Martial Arts Organization?

SMAA is a martial arts organization for all martial artists who want to be part of a community of dedicating to keeping the spirit of budo alive. If you love your art and want to share it with others, give us a call at (734) 720-0330 or submit a contact form to talk about joining!