The individual can progress faster with this positive attitude than by conforming to a rigid norm not necessarily suited to his personality. In this way everyone can benefit from the practice of karatedo. A person not physically gifted can develop a strong spirit to compensate for his lack of speed or strength. This kind of attitude, transposed into everyday life, can induce the individual to search for fulfillment whatever his qualities or failings, by correcting the latter but relying on the former to achieve his goals.
The student of karatedo must always try to perfect himself. He should never become complacent, as there will always be something to improve. Whatever his rank, he should consider himself a novice who always has something else to learn. He must realize that hard training is the only way to better himself in every aspect of life, and that whatever the difficulties, he must never give up but fight to win over himself in an endless search for truth. Shiai and kumite provide the student with direct contact with others so that he can compare himself and improve. This is the true test of proficiency in karatedo. It does not necessarily mean that only the winners are understanding and progressing in the way of karatedo. The essential thing is to participate with dedication, always trying to better oneself, always trying to win. But winning should remain secondary because winning itself is not the goal, only an indication that the individual is on the right path toward reaching his goal. If winning were to become the goal, then the path would be lost for the losing student, who would get discouraged and stop his search for self-perfection. On the other hand, the one who wins would be content, having reached his goal, and again the true spirit of karatedo would be lost. To use a now famous Zen illustration, "One should not mistake the finger pointing to the moon for the moon itself." Winning is the finger pointing to the moon, and the moon is at the end of the long but supremely fascinating journey with oneself amidst the immensity of the universe.
2. The Secrets of Karatedo
The remarkable feats demonstrated by karatedo masters have led many people to believe that these masters possess some mysterious secrets, or some source of extraordinary power. This is not the case. There is no formula which, when properly utilized, allows someone to perform supernatural acts. The secret is karatedo itself. When a man has mastered the techniques to perfection, when his mind has reached a state of intense serenity and plenitude, and when his mind and body are united into a single entity, then he is able to perform things that an untrained person cannot do under ordinary circumstances. But, under the stress of an intense emotion, even an ordinary person can accomplish unthinkable exploits. A mother can lift up a truck forty times the weight that she can normally lift, if her baby is pinned under it. A father can jump in the lion's den and attack it with his bare hands to save his son. Examples of this sort only sometimes make the headlines of the newspapers but, in fact, they abound. How can someone perform such remarkable deeds? Where does this extraordinary force come from? In a split second an intense excitation suddenly unleashes the inner power of these individuals which in normal circumstances remains hidden and even unsuspected.
Karatedo strives to liberate these forces consciously at the price of constant and assiduous training. But there is no secret to it. The method is not reserved for a chosen few and anyone can reach this stage if, and only if, he is willing to strive to do it. All people have an equal chance; there is no age or sex barrier. Training with a strong will to always progress and perfect oneself is the only secret of karatedo. The secret behind the extraordinary power of techniques demonstrated in tameshi wari, some of the best expressions of technical proficiency performed with hard objects such as boards, tiles, stones, etc., rests in years of practice in karatedo. Again, there is no secret. It requires strong concentration, will power, and correct technical execution with speed and accuracy. It is only a means of testing the technique and mental concentration of the student, however astonishing some performances are. It is against the spirit of karatedo to present them as a show, because people will see in it only the destructive power of karatedo techniques. Tameshi wari is, on the contrary, a positive way for the individual to test his power and develop his confidence.
While in the old days tameshi wari was the only way to test the efficiency of the techniques, in modern karatedo the use of protective equipment allows students to truly test their techniques on moving targets. The closest thing to a secret in karatedo is undoubtably breathing. Breathing plays an essential part in the union of the mind and body and in producing the inner power; it frees the mind by bringing it peace and serenity. Breathing brings harmony between the mind and the universe. During the retention of each breath, the body is full of ki and the mind is clear, free, and full of nothingness (mushin) which is equated to ku or kara, the emptiness. In this state the mind is at one with the universe, located everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It is this third stage of the respiration process—retention—which is the most important in generating power and in realizing the union of mind and body, the ultimate goal of man.
chapter 2 What is Karatedo?
1. Principles and Aims of Karatedo
In essence, karatedo is a set of techniques and mental attitudes systematized and codified in a martial art which, through a rigorous and systematic training of the mind and the body, strive to achieve knowledge of oneself and others to ultimately create a state of complete harmony between oneself and the universe. It is a discipline which advocates the development of a strong body and the awakening of the mind by a constant search for self-perfection both physically and spiritually in order to fully realize oneself.
But karatedo is also one of the most efficient fighting arts. Initially it was developed as a training method for personal combat and war, where vanquishing the adversary was the only important goal. However, like the other martial arts of the budo, the need to win over oneself is inseparable from the goal of combat and has become an end in itself. Thus, karatedo is an all-encompassing way of life which, far from being a violent method of fighting, teaches humility with confidence and courage, and self-defense with respect for life and restraint. It contributes to giving man a placid mind by surmounting his fears and his pride. At peace with himself and others, and in possession of a strong mind and body, man can thus fulfill his commitments to himself and to society. To reach these goals, the mind and body are trained and developed through use of the punching, kicking, striking, throwing, strangling, and armlock techniques which constitute karate-ho (the empty-hand techniques), and through the use of long and short weapons as an extension of the hands to thrust, throw, sweep, and strike buki-ho (the weapon techniques). Karate-ho and buki-ho together constitute karatedo.
2. The Meaning of Karatedo
The word "karatedo" is composed of three ideograms: kara (
Thus karatedo literally means "the way to self-perfection through the practice of techniques originating during the T'ang period."
The word “karate" was first introduced in Okinawa to designate "Chinese fighting techniques" which included both bare-hand and armed techniques (karate-ho and buki-ho). But, as is often the case in the Japanese use of Chinese ideograms, kara can also be written(
Thus, another sense of karatedo is “the way to self-perfection through the practice of techniques of emptiness," emptiness being understood both physically (without weapons) and mentally (with an empty or free mind).
It is unfortunate that when karate was introduced to Japan, the rising nationalism and antagonism against