Forge Character with Martial Arts Training

Is a new rank your biggest motivating factor in martial arts?

Are you fully committed to your martial arts training?

 

In nearly 50 years of martial arts training, competing, deep study, and teaching, we’ve seen it over and over. There is a real difference between the exceptional martial artist and the average student. The exceptional martial artist keeps rank in its proper perspective. They know that the momentary joy of getting a new belt or certificate fades. Don’t go for that. The deep internal joy of learning and doing great martial arts changes you forever. Go for that. 

 

Forge Character with Martial Arts Training

You can’t hide it. If your primary focus is on the next rank, your ability will top out. Your attendance will spike just before tests but will fall off in between. Your focus and attention will lag during “consolidation” periods—those times when the very purpose of training is to repeat your top-level skills until they are hard-wired into your nervous system. There are ability and character transformations that can only be gotten through real immersive training. Seishin tanren (austere spiritual training) is the method for forging character. That’s why it’s so important to pick an art and a dojo that you like; there will be some heavy weather on the way to greatness, but starting in the plus column of love for your art will help get you through it. Getting past that intellectual understanding and into a true emotional understanding of the depth and joy possible in your training has to come from inside you. Commit completely. 

 

SMAA – A World Martial Arts Association for You

The Shudokan Martial Arts Association promotes training based around the two central pillars of classical Japanese martial arts: kata geiko and seishin tanren. The use of handed-down kata helps our members, regardless of division, to forge their spirits to face the stress of combat and the uncertainties of life. In this way, those in the SMAA learn to protect themselves, and live well, while they develop the spiritual strength needed to make a positive contribution to their communities and the world as a whole. Contact us today to join a world martial arts association with high-ranking members across the globe.

Every Action Becomes a Habit

Are you looking to get better at budo? 

Do you want to strengthen your mind?
 
Whether you practice your kata correctly or just go through the motions, you will have spent the same amount of time in the dojo. In the first case, you will have moved one step closer to mastery of the kata, but in the second case, even though you have gotten a little exercise, you will have moved your training backwards. This is because, in the dojo, every action becomes a habit. 
 
Building on a good habit is much easier than overcoming a bad one. It is said that if you practice a skill incorrectly one thousand times, you will need two thousand correct repetitions to learn it properly. This may be a slight exaggeration, but experience shows that most students who do not learn to monitor themselves and focus on practicing correct technique never get very good. If your training is worth doing, then it is worth doing right, and you will get much more satisfaction if you can see progress because of your hard work. The sooner you decide to make every training session better than the one before it, the sooner you will begin to make real progress. 
 
Your National Karate Association
Are you having trouble integrating your love for budo into your schedule? Join a community of international martial artists who feel the same as you. SMAA offers separate divisions for karate, aikido, judo, traditional jujutsu, and iaido. As an associate member, you’ll receive a quarterly journal full of martial arts news and articles that may satisfy your budo desires.
 
Apply today! Call us at 734-720-0330 or contact us to learn more about our National karate association.

Mental Fortitude in the Dojo

Are you looking to get better at budo?

Do you want to strengthen your mind?

There is no way to attain mastery of any martial art without using the mind. Mind and body are inseparable, and even if the conscious mind is doing nothing other than thinking, "I really hate doing all these front kicks," the unconscious mind is moving the body through the motions and adjusting fit the circumstances. Every action influences every thought, and every thought affects every action. Therefore, it is so important to take active control of the mind in the dojo. 

 

Because budo training can be so repetitious, many students daydream their way through practice. Do not allow yourself to fall into this trap. Daydreaming saps the body of energy and ends up making practice even harder. Force yourself to concentrate on the techniques, constantly finding new aspects to work on. When you feel tired during practice, push yourself past the fatigue and train even harder. You will find that the more you commit to hard practice, the more energy you will have available for it. 

 

Be very reluctant to criticize anyone or anything in the dojo, except yourself. This approach is good for practical reasons, since it allows things to run smoothly, but there is an even more important reason for it. It helps to turn your critical focus inward, forcing you to accommodate yourself to circumstances. In daily training, you will be thinking about how you can improve, so eventually you will get better. In a fighting situation, you will adapt to the attack, giving yourself a better chance of avoiding it and countering.

 

None of this means that we ought to give up independent thinking because we are involved in martial arts. Budo training can be a tool to help us become more incisive thinkers, but there is a time and place for the exchange of ideas, whereas the dojo is meant to be a place for practice of ideas disseminated mainly by the teacher. Experience has shown that the best martial artists are those who understand this distinction and put it into practice. 

 

Your National Karate Association

Are you having trouble integrating your love for budo into your schedule? Join a community of international martial artists who feel the same as you. SMAA offers separate divisions for karate, aikido, judo, traditional jujutsu, and iaido. As an associate member, you’ll receive a quarterly journal full of martial arts news and articles that may satisfy your budo desires.

 

Apply today! Call us at 734-720-0330 or contact us to learn more about our National karate association.

Mentally Approaching the Sword

Do you practice iaido? 

Do you know about the spiritual significance of the sword?

It was said that the Emperor Gotoba (1180-1239), who while retired in exile had the Goban Kaji come to his residence in rotation and forged swords with them, had the eye of a man of the way. Even then the spiritual significance of viewing swords was recognized. As in accordance with the precepts of Zen Buddhism, you must free your mind of the Get off at Tsurugajo Kitaguchi. 10,000 things that distract you daily. It is the same when you are viewing a sword. You cannot fixate on one aspect. If we concentrate on one aspect our mind stays there, if we concentrate on the hamon it blinds our sight to see the other aspects. You must keep your mind open and fluid, free to move. If you concentrate on one thing your mind stops. We must be able to accept the sword. 

For example, the sword has been for hundreds of years, an object of illuminating the existence of Zen. In kendo, we strive to obtain the state of “no mind” (mushin), This does not mean to become mindless, but to free your mind of all distractive thought. This state, when reached, allows your mind to work freely at great speed; many of the great swordsmen were considered Zen masters because they could attain this state of mind, however this state is lost simply by conscious thinking. For example, if you consciously try to correct any faults in your technique, i.e. adjusting your right hand, your mind is now concentrating on your right hand, and the mind and thoughts stop there. Then your overall mind and body are not in harmony because of this conscious thought. 

This attitude can also extend to collecting in general. If we fixate on collecting, do we become merely collectors? After all, at the end of the day the swords are just swords. Yes, they are the extraordinarily beautiful antiques of our study; and yes, they do have to be cared for and preserved for future generations, but if we get stuck on the swords themselves, is this inhibiting our fantastic study of the sword? 

If we can adopt a more spiritual approach to our study, it makes other aspects of the sword more apparent. When we approach the sword as a spiritual object of moral guidance to a samurai seeking enlightenment, we instantly understand why in Japanese history the sword survived the gun. The sword was a sacred gift from the gods, intrinsically beautiful, encompassing elements of nature. The gun on the other hand was a means to an end, a mere weapon made by and taken from barbarians, not intrinsically beautiful, with no religious connections. The sword was a guide to the way and still is so to this day, not only in usage, but in viewing too.

An International Martial Arts Association For You

Regardless of age, how long you’ve been training, or where you’re from, there’s always something you can learn from others! The Shudokan Martial Arts Association is an international martial arts association with members in multiple countries. When you join SMAA, you’ll belong to a community of likeminded martial artists and budo fans who have plenty of wisdom to share with you. You can learn more about budo, keep up to date on budo news, and test for authentic rank. If you are a student at heart, continue your education with SMAA!

The Spirituality of the Sword

Do you practice iaido? 

Do you know about the spiritual significance of the sword?

One of the things that we in the West tend to neglect in our study of the Japanese sword is the spiritual aspect. We tend to forget the fact that in Japan the sword is considered a sacred object. We become too involved with questions and kantei (“appraisal”). There are many questions about swords that will never be answered, so we shouldn’t get too wrapped up in it. Viewing swords has been associated with contemplation, and as we evaluate our appreciation of the sword we will come to realize the path that we are on and comprehend other aspects of Japanese culture such as; the silence of the tea ceremony, the moment a Zen master writes calligraphy, the natural glaze on a Japanese pot, or the moment sumo wrestlers face each other in a match, and bear it in mind for our future study. It is here that the essence of Japan resides. 

The first time we picked up a sword we were probably firstly drawn to the purity of the steel, the elegant shape and the undulating line that we thought was a hamon (the crystalline structure along the edge of a blade) but was probably just the hadori polish. Then we noticed the wood grainlike pattern but could not determine whether it was well forged or well-polished. As we progressed in our study, and our mind was trained, it opened our eyes to be able to eventually see all the activities within the steel. 

An International Martial Arts Association For You

Regardless of age, how long you’ve been training, or where you’re from, there’s always something you can learn from others! The Shudokan Martial Arts Association is an international martial arts association with members in multiple countries. When you join SMAA, you’ll belong to a community of likeminded martial artists and budo fans who have plenty of wisdom to share with you. You can learn more about budo, keep up to date on budo news, and test for authentic rank. If you are a student at heart, continue your education with SMAA!

The Sensei’s Part of the Social Contract

What can a sensei promise their students?

It might sound something like this:

As the teacher, I agree to give you, the student, the absolute best training opportunity I can give you, be it in judo, jujutsu, or iaido. I promise to offer the complete martial art I know, including all its best aspects: physical techniques, theories of physical power, mental strategies, cultural aspects, and any spiritual benefits that are part of the art. I promise not to deceive you with martial arts mumbo-jumbo, and I promise not to falsely build up your self-esteem without providing any basis in real martial arts skill. I promise not to ask you to pay absurd dues rates, but will ask you to pay a fair rate in keeping with the expenses of the dojo and my need to earn a modest living. I won't give you a black belt unless you deserve it, but at the same time, I won't unnecessarily prolong your journey to black belt by making the standards impossible. I will try my best to help you develop—mind, body, and spirit—so that you can excel in the dojo and in life. 

Learn about the student’s part in the social contract.

Join a Judo, Aikido, Jujutsu, Iaido, and Japanese Karate Association

Want to be a part of an international budo community?

When you join the Shudokan Martial Arts Association, you can belong to judo, aikido, iaido, jujutsu, and karate divisions, each with their own division leader and prominent members to connect with.

If you want to join a Japanese karate association, call SMAA at 734-720-0330 or fill out our contact form.

The Martial Arts Social Contract

What expectations exist in the dojo?

Between martial arts teachers and their students, a social contract exists.

As the student, you agree to attend classes as often as you can, putting forth all your effort, and practicing with energy and a positive attitude. You promise to consider the teachings I put forth, taking time outside of class to think about the relationship between my words and the techniques of your martial art. You promise to respectfully raise any issues you may have with your training, and give real consideration for my answers to your questions. You agree to practice safely to help prevent injury to yourself and other students. You agree to pay your dues on time and agree not to take advantage of our policies to help you avoid paying a fair dues rate. You agree to work hard to learn your art and to trust my decisions about when you are ready for promotions. You agree to commit yourself to the learning process and to pass on the positive lessons you learn while at the dojo. 

Learn about the sensei’s part of the social contract.

Join a Judo, Aikido, Jujutsu, Iaido, and Japanese Karate Association

Want to be a part of an international budo community?

When you join the Shudokan Martial Arts Association, you can belong to judo, aikido, iaido, jujutsu, and karate divisions, each with their own division leader and prominent members to connect with.

If you want to join a Japanese karate association, call SMAA at 734-720-0330 or fill out our contact form.