copyright
© 2008 Ken Morgan, all rights reserved
I realized recently that come this June
I’ll have been practicing Iaido and Jodo for ten years. And I still
feel like I still have little to no clue as to what I’m doing.
I’m still a student, more then happy
to let Sensei run his class as he see’s fit. There will be no Coup,
no matter how many times he asks me to overthrow him.
If I were somewhere else in the country
or the world, I’d probably be teaching at my own club, but this is
Guelph, hence there is no need. Established Clubs need their senior
students to teach the newbie’s all the little things Sensei
forgets. We’re the Sergeants, Lieutenants and Captain’s of the
dojos. Let Sensei deal with the National organization, and the stuff
between clubs, we’ll handle the mundane internal club stuff that
needs to get done.
Aside from that, I have learned a few other things from iaido
and jodo I could never have learned elsewhere.
- Those of us who have hung around any length of time have the same
souls. We all tend to have similar interests outside of the dojo, and
as such, can form quite a cohesive unit. You can meet anyone, from any
dojo and odds are very good that they will be “good people”. This is
one of those places where you meet life-long friends, they gravite
here. The people that leave shortly after joining, would never have fit
in anyway.
- Practice, practice, practice.
- Trust what your body tells you. If you are unsure as to “what’s
next” in a kata you haven’t done in a while, trust your body to
remember. What it is telling you in all things, is quite probably
correct. Sadly we let our minds frequently overrule our bodies.
- The level of ones character can be measured directly by the
perseverance applied.
- You will never be able to do any kata perfectly. Just like Sisyphus and his rock, you just have to keep going. There is
no end to it.
- Technique is more important then strength.
- Awareness of your surroundings.
- Iaido is really boring.
- If you’re doing it correctly, Iaido and jodo is exhausting. I’m
by no means in perfect shape, but I can still run 5k without too much
difficultly, I can bench press 300+, squat 400+, I’ve done weight
training for 32 years, I’ve competed in bodybuilding shows, I’ve run
upwards of 80km a week, I know nutritionally what my body needs to
function at peak performance, and iaido and jodo can still drop me on
my ass. Sometimes 20 minutes into a two hour practice and I’m looking
at the clock. Anyone can go though the motions, anyone can memorize the
dance steps, but to actually attempt the kata with the correct physical
and mental intensity, that can drop you. That took me years to
understand.
- Practice, practice, practice.
