Hawaii Statehood Day ハワイ州立記念日

1959

Did you know that Hawaii is one of four states that were independent prior to becoming part of the United States, along with the Vermont Republic (1791), the Republic of Texas (1845), and the California Republic (1846), and one of two (Texas was the other) with formal diplomatic recognition internationally.

Also,  that the Kingdom of Hawaii was sovereign from 1810 until 1893 when the monarchy was overthrown by resident American (and some European) businessmen. It was an independent republic from 1894 until 1898, when it was annexed by the United States as a territory, becoming a state in 1959.(Thank you Wikipedia for the info)

I feel it is important that while we celebrate statehood we also know the dark side of history as well. That while it may be a day of celebration for many, for some native Hawaiians it is not. 

On a personal note, Statehood always reminds me of the sad history of native American Indians  on the mainland. Like the native Hawaiians, the native Indians (not sure if this the proper name) were pushed aside,  forced in to "reservations" with their lands taken away and their culture oppressed.  We cannot take a time capsule back in history and change the way history took its course.  But, I think as Budokas, with peace as our ultimate goal,  we should not be ignorant of the sad history and  mistreatment of our native Hawaiians and Americans and as  Budokas we should strive within our limited powers to ensure such inequities are not repeated.

人の手足を剣と思え"Hito no teashi wo ken to omoe"

     In Funakoshi Gichin Sensei's " The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate", the 15th principle is "Hito no teasshi wo ken to omoe"; Think of the opponent' hands and feet as swords. A cursory review of this principle would probably be like "OK, so I need to practice so that the opponent doesn't touch me".

Not exactly wrong, but the core message is not to underestimate your opponent and do not get overconfident of your own skills. It is a mental principle vice technical principle.

     One of the basics in full contact type karate is that we condition our bodies for contact. Practice after practice we "abuse" our bodies to the point it would take a well placed punch or kick to get us down.

That type of conditioning has its merits. However in view of the Funakoshi Sensei's principle we need to ensure that we don't get over confident of how much punishment our bodies can take. If we venture on to competition,this is promulgated even further. How many matches have we seen were competitors stand head to head and pound away? Even worse, we see competitors deliberately allow his opponent to flay away in an effort to apply psychological pressure. Not a very good habit to have in real life.

Habits are hard to break. Even more so when you have considerable confidence in your pain threshold.

There is a famous story of a Jujitsu competitor who was accosted by a stranger. He quickly controlled the attacker with an arm bar, the attacker tapped out so the Jujitsuan released his hold as in competition.

He was immediately stabbed and had to get surgery.

Along with our physical and technical skills we must never forget our mental training. Do not let your skills make you water down your awareness and commitment to self preservation. Never underestimate an opponent.

It's summer! Shave Ice time!

RAINBOW SHAVE ICE!! (^^)
No need for explanation! YUMMMMMMMMY
It is hot in Honolulu today.
I

Losing sight of the Path (**;)

Oyama Sosai, Founder of Kyokushinkaikan

Kesshinkai and Kimura Dojo has in its heritage Kyokushinkai Karate which was founded by Masutatsu Oyama Sosai.  We were both attracted to Kyokushin Karate for its severity in training as well as the charisma of Oyama Sosai. Following his demise in 1994, Kyokushinkai has been fraught with political in-fighting, splintering upon splintering with each splinter group espousing that they were upholding the true Budo of Oyama Sosai. Sad to say, in my opinion, a bunch of malarkey. If what they is true why did they splinter? Why did they not close ranks and continue to promulgate Oyama Sosai's Kyokushinkai.

I will not bother the readers with any details of the tragic shenanigans that took place within Kyokushinkai after Sosai passed away.

Recently, word has come out that several high ranking Shihans of the European Kyokushinkai affiliated with Matsui's Kyokushin (IKO1) have broken away and is expected to join hands with another splinter group.

When will this nonsense end? It sounds irresponsible, but I am glad I am not part of it. It just doesn't make sense. Where did the path of budo disappear to?

I have made my own analysis of the situation, simple as it may be.

It is all about $$$. When an organization grows to the size of Kyokushinkai, then $$$ becomes a major focal point. It is natural as we all know its takes bucks to run any organization whether it be a profit making one or a non-profit one. It takes $$$.

World class tournaments is about $$$. Becoming a champion in a world tournament is $$$. Look at the pro sports, the amount of $$$ that a pro sport player can rake is unbelievable. It is the same with Karate.

Being a Champion insures income for the player as well as his Dojo and Organization. It is a very simple formula, students are attracted to Dojos which have famous champions.

Then things get sticky with regards to paying "Headquarters" royalty fees. After all they carry the Kyokushinkai brand name and Logo. I write this facetiously (^^), it is kinda like when a city PD has a major investigation, the PD's detectives and officers do all the leg work and suddenly when things appear to be on the right track, the Feds show up and state that it is a Fed matter, thank you but good-bye.

There are some out there that may wonder,"Hey I'm doing all the work in Europe or where evers what;s with this big chunk of royalty fees !!!!???) Human nature.

We need to rethink and look at  our Budo path. Let's begin with Oyama Sosai's 11 mottoes.

1.The Martial Arts way begins and ends with courtesy. Therefore, be properly and genuinely courteous at all times.

2. Following the Martial Way is like scaling a cliff - continue upwards without rest. It demands absolute and unfaltering devotion to the task at hand.

3. Strive to seize the initiative in all things, all the time guarding against actions stemming from selfish animosity or thoughtlessness.

4. Even for the Martial Artist, the place of money cannot be ignored. Yet one should be careful never to become attached to it.

5. The Martial Way is centred on posture. Strive to maintain correct posture at all times.

6. The Martial Way begins with one thousand days and is mastered after ten thousand days of training.

7. In the Martial Arts, introspection begets wisdom. Always see contemplation on your actions as an opportunity to improve.

8. The nature and purpose of the Martial Way is universal. All selfish desires should be roasted in the tempering fires of hard training.

9. The Martial Arts begin with a point and end in a circle. Straight lines stem from this principal.

10. The true essence of the Martial Way can only be realised through experience. Knowing this, learn never to fear its demand.

11. Always remember: in the Martial Arts, the rewards of a confident and grateful heart are truly abundant.

「頭は低く目は高く、口慎んで心広く、孝を原点として他を益す
Keep your head low (modesty), eyes high (ambition), mouth shut (serenity); base yourself on filial piety and benefit others.
 
Let us all return to the womb.
OSU!

Field expedient

For a very long time in Yokohama and Hawaii I did not collect any monies for Karate, everything came out of pocket.  This was based on the fact that I do not consider myself a professional martial artist and that I was happy just to share whatever I knew with others. Along the line I was convinced to collect "dues" and off set any expenses I incurred for the Dojo. To be honest, being retired, every penny does count! (^^)

Now the rent is covered.  My dream is to save $4,000 to purchase mats for the Dojo. Hmmmm. How many car washes will it take? (^^)

One of the higher expenses are protectors, punching and kicking equipment. So I am always thinking of ways to have equipment without having to dish out $$$. In the Army, the phrase "field expedient" was often  used. In short, make use of what you can get your hands on. Adapt!!

So, as I was trolling through Wall Mart his morning, lo and behold, a sale on Noodles! Those things you can hang onto in the pool. Hmmm, not too hard, not too soft, some flexibility and $2.00 each! My left over brain cells whirled and I came up with a focus stick (vice pads). One noodle makes three one foot long sticks.

Add a PVC handle, wrap it up with Duct Tape. Voila! A portable focusing stick that kids and adults can easily hold.

Good for reaction drills, blocking drills, punch/kick combination drills.

Once in a while, I can let the kids put on some head gear and let them play samurai.

Total cost per stick came to under $2.00!! (give or take some cents) (^^)

On Teaching

Kahil Gibran 18893-1931

     The Prophet by Kahil Gibran is one of my favorite books. Almost like a Bible to me. The first time I read the book was when I was 16 years old in High School. It had a impact on me and to this day I open its pages when I feel lost.

     Teaching is not an easy. The responsibility weighs heavy on our shoulders. One word or one action by us has the potential of changing lives. Hopefully the changes are for the better. I find myself critiquing myself after each practice. Did I communicate properly with the students and parents? Was the concept too early to introduce? Did I inadvertently set a wrong example by being too playful? On and on. It can become endless. On those endless occasions I pick up The Prophet and reflect on Gibran's words. Allow me to excerpt some of his thoughts.

No man can reveal to you aught but that already lies half asleep in the dawning of your knowledge.

The teacher who walks in the shadow of the temple, among his followers, gives not of his wisdom but rather his faith and lovingness.

If he is wise he does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom, but rather leads to to the threshold of your own mind.

The astronomer may speak to you of his understanding of space but he cannot give you his understanding.

The musician may sing to you of the rhythm which is in all space, but he cannot give you the ear which arrests the rhythm nor the voice that echoes it.

And he who is versed in the science of numbers can tell of the regions of weight and measure, but he cannot conduct you thither.

For the vision of one man lends not his wings to another man.

And even as each one of you stands alone in God's knowledge, so must each on of you be alone in his knowledge of God and in his understanding of the  earth.

I do not know why but I feel relaxed after reading his words every time. (^^)

Karate and Change

One year ago today we were having lunch in Alao Moana after morning practice. Today, one year later, I have to invite you to my garden veggie lunch via the internet. How time changes us! This year Jen is in Virginia caring for her sister, who as I am writing is, having surgery. We are all hoping that she will have an easy go of it, but there is concern on all parts. It brings me to think of how we go though life’s changes. Like our garden today, the plants themselves do not look as strong and healthy as they did just a month ago. However as you can see a veggie and ganola eating tree hugger like me is rather happy with garden during this period. It made me think about karate. I will concede, I might have been thinking about karate already. A few years ago, I was in better shape, not producing very much for the dojo, a trophy every now and then, or a broken block, the last of which is now being used as a door stop, but that is about it. Just one year ago, I sat with you on the park bench and leaned that karate is not tasio. I knew there as more to karate. I had great teachers along the way. I just did not know how or what teaching karate was about. Many of days now, I understand that we do in practice is not teaching, we simply invite others to join us on our personal michi. We provide the model, of good budo. I can not help but think of the students, that have left the dojo, because they could not do the" workouts" anymore. I feel bad that I did not model good budo, and let them get way. At that time, all I knew was conditioning, so we went at it hard. Every day, the students knew we were going to “get a good workout”, but now I look back. Like my garden in early June, our students stood strong, but nothing seemed to ripen. I have been busy, as my bee friends, this last year pollinating our students, with the knowledge of Karate-do. I hope that they will not hate me, but I am learning that the word, dojo…does not mean a hall for conditioning. I am sure that some of them miss the old Sempai Tony. Like my garden here in New York, I am entering a new period of growth. I look at my pictures now that I send you, wondering who is that old man, with the bad right leg, and white hair??

Little Anthony was late for class this week, AGAIN, but I did not know he even came into the dojo. He was seiza, at the doorway, shoes off!! First, ripe tomato!! Well I should leave the post at this point, but those in class will point out, He did forget his dogi again…smile. Like those tomatoes, or cherry blossom we are trying to be perfect, but will accept and understand the effort it takes getting there.