A different perspective on ‘Shu Ha Ri’.
One of the bi-monthly in-depth articles on the paid section of this Substack project.
Image: The young Yoshitsune (Ushiwakamaru) trains with the tengu in his forest lair on Mount Karuma.
This has always been a tricky one, and will probably continue to be one. So, all I can offer is a fresh angle on the Japanese concept of Shu Ha Ri.
Here is the standard description according to Aikido master Endo Seishiro:
“It is known that, when we learn or train in something, we pass through the stages of Shu, Ha and Ri. These stages are explained as follows. In Shu, we repeat the forms and disciplines ourselves so that our bodies absorb the forms that our forebears created. We remain faithful to these forms with no deviation. Next, the stage of Ha, once we have disciplined ourselves to acquire the forms and movements, we make innovations. In this process the forms may be broken and discarded. Finally, in Ri, we completely depart from the forms, open the door to creative technique, and arrive at a place where we act in accordance with what our heart/mind 1 desires, unhindered while not overstepping laws”.2
The misappropriation of Shu Ha Ri.
The concept of Shu Ha Ri would have not been on my radar if I hadn’t kept hearing it used as an excuse for all kinds of craziness in the UK martial arts scene, and this goes way back to the 1970’s.
The usual way it appeared would be when a disgruntled western martial artist used it as a justification to go off on his own and form a new style (or his personalised interpretation of the style he was ‘breaking away’ from), he would then declare to the world that he had ‘transcended’ and that his genius could not thrive within the confines of the organisation he had started off in3.
To take issue with this would be like shooting fish in a barrel. First of all, you have to ask, have these individuals truly ‘mastered’ their system? If you look at their personal timelines it is a total impossibility to do this. Taking classes a couple of times a week in a local sports hall for a few years is not going to cut it, it’s hardly a ‘total immersion’ experience. It’s not exactly a five-year pilgrimage up Mount Kurama to learn from the Tengu, is it?