We of the martial art persuasion tend to have a slightly skewed view on tradition to a point you may find it difficult to impossible to get anyone to define what tradition means in regard to, say, Okinawa Karate.
There can be a vast chasm of difference between what the Okinawans think of as tradition and how we Americans think of as tradition.
Fundamentally, “We equate tradition with experience. Experience is thought of as being very close to if not synonymous with know-how. Know-how Is san American prized possession, in that when we look backward it is rarely to take pleasure in the past itself but rather to calculate know-how, to assess the prognosis for one’s success in the future.”
If we allow for the American tradition as such then we begin to understand the why as to how we view traditional karate as an American cultural perception, belief and understanding.
This brings us to how the Asian mind perceives the state of harmony leading to a huge misunderstanding of karate tradition and traditions especially to the American student of the Asian Sensei in the dojo teaching environment.
The example is the American pension to question things that results in a ripple in sensei’s harmony. To maintain his harmony he will do whatever necessary to return to a harmonious star Ti include providing misinformation to the bothersome American disturbing his state of harmony with his incessant badgering for more information in lieu of simply following the Asian tradition of shi-kata.
You see, in lieu of questions some Asian cultures create a kata for everything be it so emerging they do or how they do something, I.e., sitting seizable to building an automobile. Since everything is a kata, everything learned can be learned through observation so questions become few to unnecessary. It creates a Sensei-deshi relationship and the result is superior results that can be done the same by everyone and the quality becomes perfection and one’s personal and social harmony is ... harmonious, steady and unwavering with peace and tranquillity a result.
Life, modern life, in stressful causing frustration, anxiety and emotional turmoil. This means harmony along with peace and tranquility cannot hold.
Harmony or “wa [和]”, are about a balance oh peace, tranquility and contentment that promotes health, well-being and a calmness relieving one of stress, anxiety and imbalance of mind, body and spirit.
Wu-wei, (無為), a "state of perfect knowledge of the reality of the situation, perfect efficaciousness and the realization of a perfect economy of energy" which can only be achieved with a peaceful, relaxed, free balanced mind, body and spirit.
In Japanese it’s referred to as, “mu (無), or mind of no mind.” It is nothingness of one’s mind or the ability of no-mind meaning free of the mind-chatter of what is referred to as the monkey-mind 🐒. A control over our emotional monkey-mind of anger, fright, frustrations and fear. This means a control over the adrenaline dump and their effects that hinder one’s ability to act appropriately in self-defense.
This translates to every day life events that trigger the same adrenal effects, etc.!
As you study this, you already know what you will find. It’s fundamental principal effect is harmony peace, and proper actions, etc.!
Think self-control and understand that this control is all about you and no one else. We are totally and completely responsible for everything we think and do so finding harmony, peace and tranquility within is critical to what we perceive, think, believe and do in all things and this is the ultimate achievement we seek in life and practice!
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