Читать книгу Martial Arts Training in Japan. A Guide for Westerners онлайн

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I took a seat on a bench about fifty feet from the karatedoka, and as the shadows deepened around the ancient pine trees that dotted the campus, I watched the karatedoka drilling back and forth to the commands: Ichi! (front snap kick), Ni! (rising block), San! (reverse punch), the kiai sounding with the reverse punch. It was very familiar, and though I was on the other side of the world from the place of my birth, I felt at home as I watched the Japanese karatedoka in their drills. To the outsider, karatedo looks like a method of fighting, full of kicking, punching, and violent shouts, but in truth it is a physical embodiment of a message of peace and the heroic acceptance of our common destiny.

The sound of strong, focused breathing. The snap of the dogi (practice uniform) sleeve when a student’s reverse punch worked well. The random music of the senior students as they sparred at the end of class, joking lightly with one another. I found myself watching a young Japanese white belt struggling with basic techniques and in my mind I coached him as I would a student of mine back in the States: “Relax your shoulders. Bend your knees. Don’t wobble.” Karatedo has a hard and noble beauty that will come to you after years of relaxing your shoulders, bending your knees, and steadying your posture. In my travels around Japan I saw many karatedo groups, each with its slightly differing ways of performing similar techniques but all giving me the feeling of deep familiarity. The strong common thread of karatedo is present no matter which of the many styles (public and “hidden”) is practiced, and there are hundreds of such styles.