Samadhi of Action - Judo

In Judo, normally, when two persons practice, each of them grasps the collar and sleeve of the other, and tries to score with throws and pins. Through intensive practice, one can develop muscular strength and use it to control an opponent if victory is strongly desired. We can see this competitive process, for example in the style of competitive judo which is now an Olympic sport, and as judo is practiced in many places in the world. 

People that only know this type of judo may not understand the concerns voiced in the following remarks by Jigoro Kano - the founder of modern Judo in 1918:

In the Kodokan, each person practices randori by grasping his opponent’s collar and sleeve. This must be done for beginners to improve their skill, but that method is not the ultimate one. If you grasp your opponent’s collar and sleeve, you must grasp extremely softly and without strength. Otherwise, you cannot move quickly.

This clearly and amazingly demonstrated here by Kyuzo Mifune, 10th dan.

Now this is Mastery. And the lightness of Mifune Sensei is a perfect illustration of the first verses of Zen Master Seng Can's Shin Jin Mei:

The Great Way is not difficult
For those who have no preferences.
When love and hate are both absent
Everything becomes clear and undisguised.

Keep training...

Unity of Mind and Body - 01

Kyuzo Mifune taught along with many of the other greats of his time (Dr. Jigoro Kano, founder of Judo, Morihei Ueshiba founder of Aikido, Gichin Funakoshi founder of Shotokan Karate, Dr Tsuyoshi Chitose, founder of Chito Ryu Karate) that Martial Arts were about perfecting one's character.

“Action of a man done without the unity of mind and body, may be indecent and cause harm to the people around him.” (Canon of Judo, p. 27)

As long as I am not able to see through my own nature, I cannot know what the consequences of my actions are. Consequently whatever I do to try to make things better is liable to have in the long term some negative consequences.

The West acknowledges this when we say that : "The way to Hell is paved with good intentions"

 

Once I saw a mockingbird stunned in the middle of the road in front of my house.I lifted the bird off the ground and laid im in a branch of a nearby tree. After 30 seconds, he flew away. I had saved him, it was the compassionate thing to do. But now think about the family of earthworm that he swallowed for breakfast that next morning. Or about my cats who would gladly have had him for breakfast. How do these creatures feel about my saving the mockingbird ? 

The story of the arsenic contamination of the groundwater in Bangladesh is a tragic one : 

Prior to the 1970s, Bangladesh had one of the highest infant mortality rates in the world The death were mostly due to diarrheal diseases due to ineffective water purification and sewage systems as well as periodic monsoons and floodings. 

As a solution, UNICEF and the World Bank advocated the use of wells to tap into deeper groundwater for a quick and inexpensive solution. Over 8 millions of wells were financed and constructed as a result. Infant mortality and diarrheal illness were reduced by fifty percent. 

However, it has been found since 1993 that approximately 20 % of these wells are now contaminated with very high concentration of arsenic. As a result, many people have died, and more will. About 80 millions people are at risk. Arsenic causes both physical and intellectual damage to the human beings. It is a carcinogenic 

which causes various diseases, especially of the skin.

Does that mean we should do nothing until we harmonize Mind and Body ? (For whatever that means!) Of course no, some situation do call for actions. There are situations when we should act. If I see a creature suffer, I will try to help. But I must be aware that my actions may have consequences different from what I expected.

Lets keep training.

Heavy Breaking

I'm going to make more friends over this one...

Kyuzo Mifune (1883 -1965) was already a 6^th dan in Judo at the age of 30. In 1945 he became the fourth person to be promoted to 10^th dan. He taught at the Kodokan, where he became the chief instructor and at numerous universities, police departments and military academies. Mifune Sensei practiced Judo throughout his life, he was a referee in the Tokyo Olympics, in 1964, less than a year before his death.

Once when as he was visiting a Karate Dojo, one of the Karate men demonstrated breaking. After the guy had smashed a number of tile piled on top of each other, he asked Mifune Sensei :

"Can a Judo man do that?"

"Yes, very easy!" replied Mifune

"Is that right ? I'd love to see what kind of technique Judo uses to break tiles ?"

"No problem, just set up the tiles, I'll be right back."

Mifune came back with a hammer he had in his bag.

The Karate Man looked at him surprised : "You are not going to use this hammer to break the tiles are you ? "

"Oh yes I will ! I told you it was easy ! Efficient use of energy is the key principle of Judo..."

Being able to break hard stuff is an exercise some Karate people enjoy. Some of them are amazing in their expertise at breaking hard things. Our Grand Master Katsuoh Yamamoto himself holds a world record of ice breaking. It can be extremely impressive. I would not advise anyone to try to break a baseball bat without the proper training. It takes lots of guts, hard work and perfect technique to break certain things. The ability to break hard and heavy stuff shows guts, courage and dedication, it also requires the proper technique. It is not however, an indication of one's ability to fight.

"Concrete blocks or baseball bats don't strike back". 

(Shihan Travis Page)