Have you ever seen the movie, The Last Samurai with Tom Cruise? It was an epic motion picture depicting Japan’s dismantling of its caste system that had been in place for hundreds of years. And the warrior class (bushi) were at the top of the food chain until this period.
Because I’m a “glass is half empty” kind of guy, I must point out a few flaws in the movie. Spoiler alert if you haven’t seen it yet. First, Tom Cruise’s character, Nathan Algren, actually had little value as a military prisoner and probably would have been unceremoniously killed on the spot. Katsumoto, the leader of the mountain samurai clan, most assuredly would have known absolutely no English given Japan’s isolation from the West for over 200 years. Nathan Algren, wounded and battered would not have been able to dispatch a seasoned samurai with a spear; laying on his back, no less. Mission Impossible. And given the samurai’s reverence for the sword, Capt Algren wouldn’t have been allowed near one, even the wooden sword (boken) he used to spar with Ujio, played by Hiroyuki Sanada. Sanada-san is actually a real swordsman, by the way.
But here’s my big problem: In about three months, Tom Cruise went from being a western-trained, alcoholic solder to a full-fledged, highly regarded samurai. Supremely skilled and disciplined. Ummm…no. Hell no. Sorry kids, it just doesn’t happen that way.
Now, I know it’s just a movie, but it’s the idea that you can achieve great things in little or no time. Things like learning how to use a sword, conditioning your hands and feet to be used as weapons, or developing the skill to blend with an attack (aikido reference). A lot of people enter into martial arts training with that exact mindset. And if some don’t feel as though they are progressing fast enough, they quit. Do you want to know why most martial arts academies have so many belts to go through? To give people bite-sized, achievable goals and keep them coming. Want to know where the colored belts came from? That was a European thing. There’s a reason why people in some traditional martial arts systems wear a white belt for so long.
During the first few months of studying Iaido (the quick drawing of the sword) in Japan, I was not allowed to hold a weapon. Beginning Iaido forms all start from a kneeling position and I would show up for class, sit on my knees and cut the air with my empty hands. Oh, and there was very little instruction. While everybody else was beheading invisible foes with that really cool katana, I was making hand motions much like the “wave” at a ball game. I was finally allowed to use a wooden sword after about three months. When I received my actual katana, the first few sessions were dedicated to it’s care and cleaning.
The average person training in martial arts attends a school about twice a week, if that. Few train outside of the dojo. “I don’t have time” is the most common reason. Too many other things going on. “Too many rabbits” as my aikido teacher once said to me. Learning martial arts is like learning a complex musical instrument. And it takes more than a couple hours a week. But I don’t believe time is as big a factor as commitment.
There are 168 hours in a week. If we take away 80 hours for work (including travel, getting ready, etc.) and another 49 hours for sleep, that leaves 39 hours. 39 hours each week to use for other things. Of course there are commitments like family, friends and down time. But how much time are you willing to dedicate to bettering yourself? Not just martial arts training, but exercise, reading a book that feeds your brain, painting or playing that old guitar you keep meaning to pick back up.
I have a chat with every new student that comes to our dojo. I look them dead in the eye and say, “This is going to take time and commitment. Don’t expect to be really good at this for a while.” They typically nod politely, knowing themselves far better than I do. They hit the mat and that notion of becoming a samurai in three or four months quickly dissipates. That’s when we lose a lot folks. They swiftly realize there is no “quick and easy.” They abruptly come to understand these are complex skills and that they’re going to have sore muscles and bruises for a while. They won’t look anything like they thought they would after a couple of classes and they won’t swing the “cool katana” for quite some time. And they quit with a myriad of excuses or they just stop coming altogether.
The most important thing to learn by studying traditional martial arts is patience. From patience comes discipline, from discipline comes a better understanding of ourselves and how we fit into the world. Unfortunately, it seems, most people don’t have time for that. But those who stay, those who keep coming despite failure to “achieve” quickly earn something far greater than a few self-defense moves. Learning to conquer others is easy. It takes little effort and very little time. Conquering yourself, well, that takes a lifetime.
Dave Magliano
Tatsu Dojo
Jissenkan Budo
Dojo Cho
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