A lot has happened over the last few weeks. One of the things that is really important in my world is taking time out of “life” to think. As a coach this is something I regularly encourage managers and leaders to consider as an investment, even if, it might not seem to show immediate returns 🙂

I even listen to my own advice from time to time and try to put time aside for cardio training. This is my thinking time, ideas drift in and out, most are the desire to stop training and sleep 🙂 but every now and again a memory or idea comes along and I think hmmm…

One thing I’ve been thinking about recently is around the martial arts “way”, the things we demand from our students and ourselves, the guidelines we observe in the dojo and it all left me wondering…

Is there space for the etiquette we have in Karate in todays world?

I’m not going to get into the where and why of how Karate became structured and graded, lets just take taht as a given

Near to home there is a martial arts centre, and every now and again I seem to time it just as the classes are letting out. Like most martial artists, I am intrigued and curious when I see karategi. I’ve heard the instructor telling his students to ensure that they remove their belts and ensure all suits are “neat and tidy” and that they have jackets on. It always reminds me of a former Sensei. This set me thinking. Dangerous I know.

Many articles and websites proclaim that etiquette is the thing that sets martial arts on a different level. Of course not taking from other sports or interests by any means, to each their own, these go on to espouse the virtues that martial arts bring with words such as discipline, order, respect etc.

Growing up as a kid in the dojo there were some very strict rules. It started with hair and nails, included clean karategi and then everything else was pulled into focus. The dojo had a range of grades and ages and ages, it was an open secret not to ask about gradings, no, that one had ended badly for some folks and we had all felt the wrath of that forbidden question being popped! Another story spoke of the student who was pulled from their black belt grading for bad etiquette, tho no one ever met this student and the nature of their crime was not revealed.

So let’s talk about these dojo “rules”. Not the basics such as bowing on entry to the dojo etc, more the behaviours that are expected in pretty much every good dojo. Let us start with when the Sensei is speaking. Only three options existed when I was coming up through the ranks, sit, kneel or stand (but with heels together). Questions were encouraged of course and answers were always to be acknowledged with a bow. Now please don’t get me wrong, this was not an oppressive environment, far from it, there were just clear guidelines for everyone. If something wasn’t understood it could of course be queried, and the message that the Sensei made sure to make clear was that Karate as like life. In order to do a good job, be it at school or work, well then you needed as much information as possible, so getting the “best view in the house” was important so as to equip oneself accordingly. It also didn’t matter who stood in the front of the class, if he put them there, they were there for a reason and full attention and respect was to be shown at all times. There was one time a yellow belt was asked to take part of the class. We all lined up, bowed and the class was underway, after a few minutes we were all struggling to keep up with this guy who was in his 50’s and it turns out, was a Judoka, Dan grade.

Another area worth consideration here is the subject of feedback. Here is a question. In the “everyone gets a medal” world, is there space for the sort of feedback given in Karate? For me there are a few things to consider. First of all, any senior grade giving feedback has had feedback through the course of their Karate career , plus (hopefully) they continue to do so. Someone once said to me that Karate is one of the few places where feedback is pretty instant and you get it whether you like it or not and it is either verbal or physical (you get hit). What you do with it, is your choice. I could not agree any stronger. Feedback for me is an opportunity to tweak my training, to get better, yet I do see a lot of people who are disappointed, annoyed or even unbelieving when in the same situation.

Are we wrong though?

Are we wrong to just bow, take the feedback and get on with it?

Wrong to not challenge the old adage that “Karate is not a democracy”?

Here’s my take on it. Serious Karateka realise that the training they do could be used to save their life or the life of someone they care about. Bad technique even in training can be dangerous for all involved, and there is a huge responsibility on the dojo instructor and of the participants to keep everyone safe. Karate is not for everyone, to honour the work that we do and our lineage I look to my seniors to correct me (please do) and in turn I promise to help those around me. I want the people I work with to be so good that they put me under pressure when doing Kumite or encourage me to try harder in Kata. I hate to fail and I’m probably the most competitive person you’ve ever met (see what I did there?). So when I do get something wrong or a technique doesn’t work, yup I am far from happy. But, I thank whomever points out my shortcomings and then get on with it. It’s not always easy.

The dojo is a place that is open to everyone, all abilities, all levels, everyone, in turn all that is asked is that members become part of a community that is there to lift others up. It is also one of the few places where there is still honesty and I for one thing we should ensure that this remains. One final thought, I said earlier that Karate is not for everyone, failure is part of growth in Karate. Without it, technique does not progress. Karate is essentially a process of failing and rebuilding constantly. Whilst we are all “striving to reach the essence” of our style, getting there is, lets face it, highly unlikely, and for some this is just too much. Some call it grasping at clouds and that’s not a bad way of looking at things.

I’m off to reach for more clouds.