Stumbling on the Path

Reigi Saho

By Andrew Benioff, 2nd Dan

Editor's Note: Andrew Benioff – Began budo training in general in 1982 and Aikido in 1988. After spending one year with Yoshioka Sadao Shihan in Hawaii and three years in Japan, he has most recently practiced at the San Francisco Aikikai and holds the rank of nidan. He currently lives in Ithaca, NY while studying for his MBA.

This is the fourth article we have presented by Andrew, whose perspectives are based on his experiences in Japan and in the US. Any comments may be sent directly to him at: abenioff@yahoo.com

My first teacher, SadaoYoshioka, always reminded us that really learning something entailed making mistakes. After stumbling, you have the chance to pick yourself up, brush your ego off and try again. I have therefore always tended to feel that learning by experience or experiment is usually the best way.

This is especially true when it comes to etiquette for budo. And since learning is based on experience and experiment, one's own understanding is never perfect. Consequently, in the following attempt to describe some basic etiquette guidelines, I risk being rude myself and committing the error of sanctimoniousness. It is an obvious adjunct to state that one of the difficulties of teaching etiquette is realizing the ways I have been impolite, either knowingly or not.

From the reader's opposite perspective, there is a danger of providing too much information, and to encourage readers to think that by simply reading, that they have mastered etiquette out of hand. I would like to therefore attach the admonition that, as I found out myself through painful experience, until you have really absorbed such rules by experiencing them yourself as you try to apply them in practice, you will not have made them your own.

Etiquette is based on a foundation of common sense and consideration. Atop that is a more specific rationale underlying each rule, and finally there is the superstructure of one's own understanding of how such rules help one to progress in budo training.

My good friend Richard Lewis of Hawaii and I created the first version of these rules based on an amalgamation from many teachers who had corrected us. They originated one day back in 1989, when we sat down to try to put to paper some of our experiences and the errors we had made in practicing with a teacher that took the preservation of etiquette or Reigi Saho very seriously.

To help us understand the seriousness of learning and observing the rules of etiquette, Yoshioka Sensei sometimes told us of the time he spent as a student of Koichi Tohei Sensei in Hawaii and Japan. In those days you learned each piece of etiquette as you broke them. The first time, you were simply corrected. The second time, you got your "brain dented": you were chewed out in front of the whole class. The third time you were out: at the very least told to leave the class immediately, or at worst, dismissed from the school permanently.

With that as preface, so that you understand its context, here are our thoughts:

All rules of the dojo or school are to be adhered to without question. The way of Budo is not a democracy. Each style has its own rules and each teacher has his or her own rules. Just as the students must follow the instructor's rules, the instructors themselves have rules and guidelines they must follow if they wish to continue in their chosen tradition. If one cannot follow the teachers' rules, one should seek another instructor. If one cannot follow the style's rules, one should change styles, which of course includes changing instructors.

In a dojo, teachers transmit and students receive. All of us can both transmit information (by talking, gestures, expressions etc.) and receive information (by listening, watching, feeling etc.). However, assuming we cannot both transmit and receive at the same time, this practice helps to develop a student's ability to concentrate and to understand subtleties and “hidden meaning” in techniques and lectures. There should be little talking in class. This helps develop a “receptive” attitude.

Restrain the urge to question the teacher. “Why are we doing this? What is that?” are questions that reflect a state of mind that inhibits learning. For example, a common error made often by modern budoka is to ask the teacher to take a test for the next grade. When you are ready to progress to the next grade, your teacher will ask you ; until then continue to practice diligently.

Accept the teaching; put your faith in your instructor. There is a certain undesirable state in which the “thinking mind” retains each teaching in the brain only; which results only in getting confused. As a result, the teachings tend not to reach the spirit or the body; they stop in the brain. You should let each lesson absorb not only into your mind, but also into your body and your spirit. By so doing, you will have learned that lesson, or that technique, and you will not forget it. That kind of absorption is a requirement to a more sophisticated and sober analytical analysis.

Observe the rules of the Sempai-Kohai relationship. A kohai (junior) never corrects a sempai (senior). The reasons for this should be relatively obvious. There are many scenarios that occur in Sempai-Kohai relationships, and the rules are more complex because there is not as much difference between the partners (compared for example to the relationship of student and teacher). In addition, the frequency of interactions is usually greater.

First, take the case where the kohai “corrects” the sempai. By correcting a sempai the kohai is making two statements: one that the instructor has not done his or her job in teaching the senior correctly; two, that the kohai considers himself more knowledgeable than the sempai and three, that the kohai does not need to practice, and therefore has time to correct others. Again, whenever correcting, we are transmitting, and we cannot both transmit and receive.

The rule that the kohai should not compliment a sempai either is perhaps less obvious.

To compliment a sempai is also to judge them. We can only compliment on things that we have knowledge of or experience in. If I say that my instructor was very skillful in a demonstration, it means that based upon my experience of giving demonstrations of equal or more difficult quality, compared to how well I did, my teacher did well.

This can extend to the view that when someone is giving a demonstration, observers should not talk among themselves during the exhibition. The person performing might misconstrue such conversation as criticism, even if you are secretly complimenting them.

In another example, a kohai never invites a sempai to practice outside of class. It is similar to saying, “I feel your technique needs improvement, I would like you to join us in improving it.” This can be avoided by making the sempai aware of a practice session, and the sempai will ask to join if they so desire .

On the other hand, during regular practice sessions it is, of course, expected that kohai will step out of line first, seek out a sempai and bow to them before they have a chance to move. The extra effort it takes to move to where your sempai is seated shows your eagerness to learn from them.

This rule also bears on the common and confusing situation where one must choose a uke for a test. A kohai should only ask a person of equal or lesser rank to be their partner for a grading or demonstration. If the sempai is more advanced, he can more easily adjust to the kohai's mistakes and unnaturally inflate the kohai's perceived skill level. Working with one of equal or lesser rank provides a more honest example of one's abilities.

If a sempai asks a kohai something that the kohai knows or feels they should not do, such as teaching the sempai a certain technique, the junior should politely refuse once, and if the sempai persists a second time, the kohai should comply. It is always permissible to speak to an instructor who can always take up such a matter, and speak to the sempai if necessary.

Finally, one should not talk about any special training in a way that implies that participation makes one superior to others. Special training, such as Misogi , is an added hardship that not all budoka wish or need to endure. Take care that one's thoughts and words do not reflect an egotistic attitude of “I have suffered more than you so I am stronger.” Special training is a way for students to face themselves and their egos; it is a dialogue between whom you think you are and who you really are; it does not extend to comparison between students. In fact, thinking about it in such a way is proof that one needs this sort of additional training in order to further polish their hearts.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but nonetheless is one we found useful and I hope that you will also. One final point: Please remember that etiquette is not just a set of black letter rules, but an appropriate response to changing and complex situations.

Also, one should always follow ones own teacher's way. All teachers have their own guidelines. These rules were based on my experiences with my teachers. I know that even they among themselves differed on some points. If anything I have said is at odds with the guidelines of your own teacher, please follow your teacher's way.