Winners and Losers

In what I perceive as our society we always have winners and always have losers. I understand this simply because I was raised here and as a youngster I was always confronted by things that had winners and losers. I often wonder about this especially since I have come to understand the importance of tori-n-uke relationships where neither is a winner or loser. 

The sole purpose of training and practice using a tori-n-uke relationship is the increase of knowledge, proficiency and ability of both parties. This is not just the technical part but all three parts of what I refer to as budo martial arts, i.e. the mind, body and spirit of both tori and uke. It is difficult, at least at the beginning, to remove yourself from the concept of winners and losers if only because our culture uses it a great deal. Imagine if there were no winners or losers in football, basketball or baseball - it is in our culture and is deeply ingrained in our psyche.

The true tori-n-uke relationship with mutual benefits is what I would consider a cornerstone to being a martial artist. I remember working very hard to remain dominant in my early training and practice. It took aging and experience to see that the tori-n-uke relationship was far superior in building a budo martial artist culture and belief system. I often think today that maybe that was what Tatsuo-san actually meant when he would say with broken English that those leaving the island at the end of their tours that it was important to learn and understand the culture and beliefs of the Okinawans. Tatsuo-san advocated participation in what he termed in those days as contests that were competitions yet I also suspect that since he would not call a point unless he determined that the technique would actually be effective as his way of promoting increased proficiency vs. simply winning. If you were awarded a point by Tatsuo-san then maybe he was saying to the participant, "your doing it right and doing it well," vs. focusing on accumulation of points to win the contest. 

It also can be argued that since some who won those contests consistently were awarded black belts that maybe this is a dream theory vs. reality. I do find it more of value that there are no winners or losers. I find value that if both participants of practice regardless of the role, i.e. tori or uke, that they both benefit creates a greater learning experience. Then, maybe there is an attitude that being a winner is no longer something to be lost. You can't lose the benefit of increased knowledge, ability and experience but you can lose a perceived status level simply by encountering someone who is better or one who is luckier than you.

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