Navigation and the Martial Arts

It occurred to me today that although discussions have traveled the path toward the need to change from the dogmatic adherence to the original that this beginning is necessary. It is our navigation system. It is a combination of signs/symbols and an organizing hierarch that the signs/symbols embody that allow your natural ability to scan and determine what is necessary for the individual and results in change. 

The fundamental principles of martial systems, the basic waza, the kata and the applications through kumite, drills and matches are those processes that make up the navigational systems that lead from the shu to the ha and finally to the ri stages of martial systems. It brings about familiarity of the entire system just so you can extrapolate what is needed, not necessarily what you may want, to achieve individualized mastery of the system of choice. 

It creates a trust between the individual and the system through the efforts of the sensei, senpai and kohai to achieve a level of knowledge, understanding and proficiency that makes your martial system yours. 

The processes that one must dogmatically adhere to are set but the end discoveries one makes with the journey takes us out of the rigid requirements and allows for freedom of self-discovery that makes a martial system a martial system. 

The navigation system that is the martial arts are the directions passed down from person to person. They remain solid and proven yet they are not meant to restrict and hinder. Growth and longevity depend on this transitional process ergo "shu-ha-ri."