Two weekends, two winter courses.
Reflections on the experiences across two different Wado karate winter courses.
This is unusual for me, as I tend to allow some breathing space between attending courses, but this year the calendar just didn’t allow it.
I am not going to do the usual course report, I am certainly not going to discuss techniques, politics, make comparisons or give specific shout outs. This is going to more about trains of thoughts and basic observations.
Bear in mind we are talking about Wado karate, so this is very style-specific, but most of it can apply to other styles of martial arts.
Spare a thought for the organisers.
Here I feel I am on safe ground and I know what I am talking about. The first winter course this month was with our own organisation AND it was on my home turf AND I was part of the organising committee. I know how much organisation had to go into that. The planning started a year ahead and it didn’t just involve collecting money at the door or booking the venue; the list of things to organise was endless. This was because we very much thought of ourselves as hosts, was also had the local knowledge so we were in a great position to advise attendees on accommodation, help with airport transfers and lifts and set up social events. So, I know how much work goes into it. But, I often wonder if those who attend the courses are aware of these facts.
The perfect waiter.
My usual way of describing this is to draw upon the analogy of the perfect waiter. Most people know how this works in a restaurant, the ‘perfect waiter’ is almost an anonymous presence; things just seem to happen in a totally frictionless way; everything you need is at your fingertips; menu, order, food arrival, perfect timing and you hardly notice the waiter’s involvement. The waiter knows that you are there to enjoy your evening, not to be distracted by annoyances and niggles, any engagement is welcoming and appropriate. It’s only when things go wrong, or the waiter is making a hash of things that he or she become a presence, the focus of annoyance. So it is with karate courses or any event that involves complex coordination.
The karate course organiser is that person who has factored in all eventualities and keeps a close eye on things; like an engineer who taps the gauge and adjusts the pressure by a few degrees to keep the motor running smoothly.
Networking.
Here is one of the most valuable factors of these big get-togethers. We appreciate it even more after experiencing Zoom events over lock-down. While Zoom still allowed some form of access to instructors internationally – distance no object and the only limitations have been around technology and time-zones, but, it’s not the same.
Across both courses the face-to-face reactions were the same; huge smiles, hearty handshakes or even big hugs, this is Community with a capital ‘C’. You only really appreciate something when it has been taken away from you. We are still experiencing the ripples of Covid (and of course, it hasn’t gone away), it is going to take us a long time to shake of the collective bad dream of the pandemic.
The networking you do on these large events has two aspects; the first being renewing and refreshing long-established contacts (personally, many of the people I encountered during both weekend courses go right back, in some cases nearly forty years). The second aspect is making brand new connections, or reinforcing tentative acquaintances. It’s all valuable, and often you discover that you have more in common than just karate training.
And then there is…
Mitori Geiko 見取り稽古.
I normally think of Mitori Geiko as learning/copying/studying by watching. I have seen it sometimes where a student is unwell or injured and still turns up to training, but only to sit on the side and observe the class. Typically, it indicates a high level of dedication.
But so much can be gained by just watching and observing on these larger courses. The Sensei teaches through physical example, we watch very closely and make sure we don’t miss anything. But you also can learn so much from studying your fellow students.
A discerning eye can spot so many things; how body types influence technique delivery; how stylistic nuances (even within the same theoretical Ryu) dictates how techniques are launched and energy is generated. It is also possible to see how subconscious mirroring feeds into student’s performances, for good or ill. But it’s about understanding and processing. As mentioned above, with the Sensei ‘we watch very closely and make sure we don’t miss anything’, but you have to be wary that you don’t transpose your own beliefs over the top of what is being taught, also look out for ‘confirmation bias’ (“Confirmation bias is the human tendency to search for, favour, and use information that confirms one's pre-existing views on a certain topic”), you have to keep that in check.
In the more recent course I attended, the Sensei stressed the importance of ‘self-awareness’, this was one of my main take-aways because, if you expand it beyond self-awareness regarding your own body functioning, which was his particular entry point, you realise that it also applies to monitoring your own critical faculties and reining-in the urges to indulge in such things as confirmation bias, but also how you present yourself. During a recent conversation with a friend who has considerable experience of Japanese culture and language, we talked about the concept of Giri 義理 (‘Duty’ or ‘Obligation’) this made me realise that this particular concept is hugely wrapped up in the self-awareness of how you present yourself to the world through actions and words.
The conversations.
One of the most valuable experiences of the larger courses is those conversations that take place outside of training time. It should be possible, with only the smallest of communication skills (supported by social media of course) to create opportunities to get together after training, discuss the content of the training and reinforce networks. These informal events are what brings people together and supports and develops the cohesiveness of the group; it is also how we get a more complete and rounded picture of our fellow trainees and our Sensei and understand them as human beings.
In Japanese social mechanisms it is the cohesiveness of the group (the ‘Wa’ 和 the same ‘Wa’ as in Wado Ryu)that trumps the personal interests of the individuals. Without the priority of this cohesiveness the individuals in the group cannot flourish. Their own self-interest, if allowed to run amok, sabotages the smooth-running machinery of society, at macro and micro level. The burden of this truth is a particularly heavy one for those at or near the top of the hierarchy. If their individualism (or ego) becomes overinflated and unchecked by a higher source, be that a higher source of Principle or the best examples and models of propriety, then the whole Jenga stack tumbles down, everyone loses.
In conclusion.
The larger/longer courses create opportunities for growth, often putting you outside of your comfort zone. For me, it comes down to checks and balances, what do I invest and what do I gain from that investment, and I am not talking about money here, as all pricing for such courses continues to be reasonable and for the quality training you get at expert level, exceptionally cheap. No this is about investment in time and effort driven by the passion to engage in the depth of study of your art. Sometimes, you have to put yourself out there.
Tim Shaw was at the Shikukai Karate-Do International winter course, February 9th to 12th and the Wado Academy Winter Course, February 18th and 19th.
Main image; the Shikukai Karate-Do International winter course.
What a journey is Karate!