Secrets of Iai (Pt. 2b): Merging (Self-cultivation)

Self-cultivation benefits of employing High-Level EA during iai:

In Part 2a of this series ( Secrets of Iai (Pt. 2a) ) I defined Merging as “a sensation of feeling totally connected to the environment…although it may be more accurate to say it is like being completely not DIS-connected! And actually, both “connected” and “not DIS-connected” are sort of misleading since they imply a duality, but to experience Merging is to feel a loss of self—not a loss of individuality—as one’s surroundings sort of “become” you.”

I also said that this peculiar experience resulted during iai practice from the application of High–Level Environmental Awareness (EA), with High-Level EA defined basically as “being as aware as is possible of all the elements that make up the physical environment you are in”, but that this High-Level EA was different from Situational Awareness because unlike Situational Awareness, Environmental Awareness does not include any “overt, intellectual assessment of the environment in terms of its effects and consequences.”

Part 2a was primarily concerned with the combat-related reasons for utilizing High-Level EA during iai.

What follows here is a discussion of the benefits of High-Level EA for Self-Cultivation.

Now, it might seem that there wouldn’t be much to discuss on that topic, but actually High-Level EA is massively (MASSIVELY) important in terms of using iai for Self-Cultivation.

Why and how this could be is summed-up nicely through some words attributed to the famous, 13^th century Zen master Dogen:

“The way of the Buddha is to know yourself; To know yourself is to forget yourself; To forget yourself is to be awakened to all things.”

(btw, I am definitely not suggesting that iai study needs to be done within the context of Zen Buddhism, nor that self-cultivation has to be defined as “spiritual” in nature)

Despite Dogen’s words appearing to be rather esoteric and mystical, in my opinion they are summarizing a simple methodology based upon a profound knowledge of human psychology.

“…to know yourself”

And so let’s begin with what “know yourself” means—in the context of this essay, that is.

It means to know what about your self is your Intrinsic (essential) Self and what part of your Self is cosmetic—and by cosmetic I mean “affecting only the appearance of something [in this case your Intrinsic Self] rather than its substance.” (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/cosmetic)

What then is your Intrinsic Self? Easy! It is whatever remains when the Cosmetic Self is removed.

Okay then, so what is the Cosmetic Self exactly?

Essentially, it is things like our delusions, our deceptions, our desires, our motivations, our insecurities and even our emotions.

I do very much appreciate that for many people the above leads to a controversial definition of Intrinsic Self since to them much of what I am categorizing as cosmetic are perceived as core components of their individual personalities, and as such part of their Intrinsic Self.

As Star Trek’s Captain Kirk once said…

“…pain and guilt …they’re things that we carry with us, the things that make us who we are. We lose them, we lose ourselves. I don’t want my pain taken away! I need my pain!”

For sure it is a matter of definition, however in terms of this essay defining these types of components as cosmetic is appropriate because in my experience they do eventually seem to be profoundly just that—by the way, being cosmetic does not necessarily mean that they don’t have their uses.

To better understand my perspective it may help to think of your complete, psychological Self as a car.

When we think of our car many things may spring to mind. We might think of its shape, its lights, its tires, the upholstery, the windshield wipers, the seats, cruise control, maybe even the A/C, or these days perhaps the fancy media center.

But compare this to dictionary definitions of a car (or automobile)…

“a passenger vehicle designed for operation on ordinary roads and typically having four wheels and a gasoline or diesel internal-combustion engine.”

“a usually four-wheeled automotive vehicle designed for passenger transportation”

“a passenger vehicle, usually four-wheeled, propelled by an engine or motor that is part of it, esp. an internal-combustion engine, and meant for traveling on streets or roads.”

Based on these definitions, none of the parts of a car I listed above are actually required for a car to be a car.

No doubt they all make driving a car more interesting, enjoyable and/or safer, but they are not required parts of any device that wants to be a combustion-engined, four-wheeled transporter of small groups of people on a modified surface. They are all, in fact, cosmetic.

Which is why a 1908 Ford Model T is no less worthy of being called a car than is a 2018 Cadillac.

Similarly, that which is your Self can also be massively “stripped down” without losing its intrinsic function/substance.

Now, it is one thing to broadly define what elements can be considered cosmetic, but it is typically quite another for an individual to discern all that is cosmetic about their own Selves

This is because—essentially—any attempt at discernment will inevitably involve at least some of those same cosmetic elements.

And I say this involvement is inevitable for three main reasons:

First, the cosmetic elements tend to be the primary motivation for us thinking about our Self at all.

Second, as a species we tend to rather love to use cosmetic elements in our thinking, and most definitely want them present when considering our precious Selves.

Thirdly, even when we try to cut the cosmetic elements out of our thinking, doing so can be incredibly difficult. This is because the cosmetic elements are mixed into the “thing” we use to do our thinking: the virtually incessant stream of babble that is sometimes very aptly referred to as our “chattering monkey mind”

But why does it matter if any part of the Cosmetic Self is involved?

Answering that question brings us to the next part of Dogen’s statement…

“To know yourself is to forget yourself”

Why does it matter if the Cosmetic Self is involved? Short answer: the Cosmetic Self is inherently deceptive. Not only does it provide distorted—if not false—perspectives, but in true “monkey mind” fashion its voraciousness serves to divert, distract and obscure the truth.

Think of it as like asking an auto-mechanic a question about your car’s engine and him/her trying to answer your question in terms of the car’s trim—while also at the same time trying to sell you a more expensive trim…while asking your opinion on the trim of the other cars in his shop.

Or, to put it another way: think of it as trying to get rid of a headache by banging your head against a wall. Or asking a blind person which color shirt looks better on you.

Therefore because the Cosmetic Self is going to invariably involve itself in any attempt at awareness of one’s Intrinsic Self, and because 99.9% of the time this involvement will produce flawed data, in order to “know yourself” you have to also first “forget”—or perhaps more accurately, discard—the Cosmetic Self. “To know yourself is to forget yourself”.

That’s all well and good, but what does this have to do with High-Level EA?

Because High-Level EA inevitably facilitates the aforementioned discarding (or “forgetting”) of the Cosmetic Self.

How this happens is actually simple—conceptually at least.

If you are focused on the outside world to a degree that High-Level EA requires, there can be little to no superfluous conscious mental activity.

This means therefore there is very, very little (possibly zero) introspection, subjective analysis, conceptualization, deliberation, emotion.

Why is this the case?

First, because we all have finite mental resources and High-Level EA is a big drain on those resources. Or, in other words, High-Level EA takes a huge amount of concentration. So, depending on the complexity of the environment and the number and frequency of changes happening in it, AND on the psychological make-up of the individual, it is possible that there just won’t be any surplus resources leftover to apply to anything that isn’t directly related to maintaining High-Level EA—think trying to stream a movie while your computer/device is also doing a full system scan.

The Second reason why High-Level EA should lead to an absence of any of the above mental activities (“introspection, subjective analysis, conceptualization, deliberation, emotion”) is because they all require some level of distraction from the physical environment, and are thereby basically incompatible with High-Level EA. Or, to put it another way, essentially, they make trying to maintain High-Level EA like trying to go forward in reverse gear.

A simple illustration of this incompatibility can be seen in the way that many people—if not almost all—have to frequently glance downwards as they walk through a sensorily busy environment.

And I believe that George Jonas was alluding to the same thing—whether he knew it or not—when describing the Environmental Awareness part of his (alleged) Mossad training:

“…agents rarely smiled. In fact, most of them had unusually expressionless faces. It was very difficult to be scanning with your eyes all the time without immobilizing the rest of your features.” Vengence, George Jonas, Harper Perennial

OK, but how does eliminating “introspection, subjective analysis, conceptualization, deliberation, emotion” facilitate the discarding/forgetting of one’s Cosmetic Self?

Because by eliminating all (or virtually all) of these mental processes you are starving your Cosmetic Self of expression. While the Cosmetic Self may still be present in the background, it is—so long as High-Level EA is maintained—invisible…voiceless…neutralized…robbed of its influence.

Okay, so that establishes the role High-Level EA plays in forgetting yourself, but, where comes iai come into this?

It is true that theoretically High-Level EA can be predictably achieved during many types of pre-arranged physical activity. However, it is much easier—or rather, not so incredibly difficult—to achieve High-Level EA while practicing iai.

Unfortunately, explaining why this is the case is a fairly lengthy endeavor, involving all the other Secrets and so I will not be tackling it properly until the final essay of this series.

And so onto the last part of Dogen’s statement…

“To forget yourself is to be awakened to all things.”

How does High-Level EA during iai practice promote being “awakened to all things”?

Because to be awoken to something is to become aware of it. But both the aforementioned introspective processing and “monkey mind” activity can act—perhaps ironically—as obstacles to becoming aware of a wide variety of things. This is because not only do they limit what you are aware of, but also how much you absorb of what you are aware of AND the manner in which you absorb what you are aware of.

Therefore, when the introspection (aka Cosmetic Self) and the “monkey mind” are taken out of the equation (as it were) greater awareness can rush in unhindered—okay, sometimes it less rushes in than peeks in, then takes very small, slow steps through the door, but the point is that understanding is no longer blocked.

The student can now experience iai without pre-conceived notions, biases, fears or desires on any level. Every aspect of iai is perceived as new—as if from “the center of the circle” (to borrow an Oriental metaphor)—without taint or alteration.

So what does the iai student potentially become aware of?

To begin with, let me quickly mention the potential for a greater, intuitive appreciation of the technical meaning and potential martial realities of the components of an iai kata. I know this doesn’t seem very related to Self-Cultivation, but I mentioned it in the previous essay and punted on providing an explanation since it would have meant delving into pretty-much everything I have so far covered in this essay.

1. Unity and clarity

To varying degrees all parts of iai practice can acquire a new profundity which extends far beyond the martial aspects of iai. High-Level EA (with help from the other Secrets) allows many moments in an iai kata to generate a sense of far-reaching completeness and fulfillment reminiscent of the “seeing the universe in a drop of water” phenomenon.

While in my opinion it is not helpful to say any more about what this extraordinary experience feels like, what I can add is that like the Merging this new awareness helps create, the experience is (at least for me) at first as disquieting as it is exhilarating.

I actually think it is very similar to—or perhaps even on occasion the same as—those moments of clarity and/or epiphany that people sometimes unexpectedly experience when under great stress—such as when in combat:

“That there is a potential relationship between danger and spiritual revelation is reflected in the experiences of some combat veterans.

These include feeling like they discovered “the momentous truths about ourselves and this whirling earth to which we cling”, or that their ” ‘I’ passes insensibly into a ‘we’ “, or they feel so much “part of this circling world”, so much alive that, in seeming paradox, death no longer matters to them.””

Flawless Deception: the truth behind the samurai schools ( https://www.amazon.com/Flawless-Deception-behind-samurai-schools-ebook/dp/B014OMZ0EA )

In my opinion this effect is simply the disorientating result of the individual not being familiar with existence when devoid of the influence of the Cosmetic Self and the suppression of the “monkey mind”—metaphorically sort of like how I momentarily felt many years ago when drunk as a skunk I woke-up and rolled out of my bunk in a pitch-black room, only to realize a moment later when no floor greeted my hands that I was actually on the top bunk.

And lastly, these transcendent-type experiences I am claiming can eventually be part of iai practice do not need to be limited to just iai practice.

Once an individual has gained the ability to manifest High-Level EA during iai there are many other non-martial art-related activities it can potentially be integrated into, and this in turn produces some fascinating changes of perspective on everyday living…

2. A whole new world!

I have read that often the reason that babies find great joy in what seems to us to be simple and familiar events is because they have not yet acquired a “mature” human’s blasé attitude to the physics that govern our world. So for example, I imagine that to babies it is still unexpected and extraordinary that when they knock over a cup of milk the milk does not stay “upright”, but miraculously changes shape and transfers itself to the surface the cup is on! Truly incredible stuff.

Similarly, I suspect that could we remember our infant months we would recall the thrill of learning to control our bodies; the hilarity of being able to just want one’s fingers to wriggle and whammy, it happening, or the feeling of amazement at being able to roll-over, sit-up, and finally to be able to STAND!!!!

(I can’t help but be recall Douglas Adams depiction of God in his Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series of books)

Sadly, as we mature familiarity with such incredible events may not breed in us actual contempt for them, but we absolutely stop thinking about them unless for some reason we are no longer able to replicate them due to injury or illness.

High-Level EA may not always be enough on its own to allow us to return to an entirely naïve appreciation—and consequent exhilaration and wonderment—of familiar uses of our bodies and the physical laws of our world, but in my opinion it is generally an essential component to going in that direction. And the more practice one gets at viewing life while accompanied by High-level EA the more of it becomes again fresh and extraordinary.

While the potential examples of where this can apply are virtually unlimited, beyond the types of examples just mentioned I would add (because it is a favorite of mine) a greatly enhanced ability to perceive the incredible realities of massive and/or distant natural phenomena such as large bodies of water, or mountains, or clouds, or celestial bodies.

To be able to look afresh at these things without intellectual or scientific familiarity, and thus—paradoxically—being better able to “sense” their power, their beauty, their unfathomable weight or distance is a literally awesome experience.

3. Patterns

The next major change in life that High-Level EA brings is an awareness of patterns in your environment. Because, as mentioned, you are able to absorb more external information and also process it more effectively—which includes greater objectivity—it becomes possible to be considerably more aware of when things change—or, to put it another way—to be very sensitive to contrast.

The advantages to this are extremely far-reaching and they deserve their own essay—if not a whole book—but here I shall limit myself to saying how especially impactful enhanced pattern appreciation is in regard to inter-personnel communications.

Knowing things about people of course helps enormously when establishing what is often referred to as rapport. Creating the complementary state with someone that rapport denotes requires a mixture of elements, however it becomes easier and easier the longer you spend with someone IF you are constantly building a database of things like their physical characteristics, facial responses, body language. On the most simple level, you are able to notice and—if appropriate to rapport—point out to them that you have noticed a change. Nothing ground-breaking there, right? Absolutely, but it is amazing how small a database people typically build for those they have interactions with everyday. Sure, they may notice something glaring like a newly shaved head, or a cast, but what about a newly acquired slight stoop, or a persistent increase in the typical width of a smile, or changes in how they walk that indicates a different mind-set? All such things may not mean anything in isolation but they all contribute to the overall communication strategy you adopt with someone.

And the great thing is that while you might choose to consciously ask one’s self if any changes in pattern have been noticed, generally notification of any change comes without request.

4. Cosmetic compromise

And lastly, being able to acquire High-Level EA means that you become progressively more aware of when your High-Level EA is compromised by your Cosmetic Self—which will happen frequently.

Because of this you begin to learn the full scope of influence your Cosmetic Self has on your life—and HAD on your life—if you allow it.

This degree of appreciation is likely impossible without sufficient experience of the contrast in perception of events in your daily life that removing the Cosmetic Self (and a goodly amount of the monkey-mind) allows.

If this phenomenon is difficult to process, imagine that whenever you drove anywhere it had ALWAYS been on a very busy and extremely fast-moving freeway, and that it had ALWAYS been raining heavily and you had ALWAYS been playing music loudly and your car was ALWAYS full of passengers all arguing passionately about a variety of fascinating subjects AND everyone else on the road ALWAYS appeared not only oblivious to the torrential rain but also to your car’s existence—oh, and you had only ever driven at night, and nobody had ever bothered to invent dimmed headlights.

Then think about the scenario without the rain. Then subtract the music. Then make your passengers strangely respectful of your need to concentrate on driving and have them sitting quietly. Then bring the sun up and remove about 50% of the traffic.

Ahhhh….

Then bring everything back again.

Because of the experience of contrast, your “old” driving scenario is going to be viewed by you differently. Generally it is going to be considerably less tolerable, and as a result you are going to try your damnedest to get the new scenario back —I say “generally” because for various reasons, some healthier than others, we sometimes prefer adverse conditions.

Also, while during all the years of the nightmare driving narrative you might have tried to imagine the new one, if you believed that driving was intrinsically like that for everyone, and no-one had ever conceptualized in any medium an alternative, how accurate would your imagined version be? (Ever had a massage and only afterwards realized you had been tense in some part of your body? If it was long-term, persistent tension, prior to the massage you likely would have sworn blind that there was no tension there…)

And there is one other extremely important aspect to using High Level EA to shut-out your Cosmetic Self: the effect it has on your future. The more of your past is less tainted by the influence of your Cosmetic Self, the less likelihood there is that when you remember past events—whether recent or distant—that they will have the necessary elements to fuel Cosmetic type traits. What I mean by this is that the memories will contain more fact and less subjective augmentation added at the time of acquisition! There is a reason why generally the more emotional a witness was when they saw a crime, the less accurate their testimony will be.

To conclude…

It should be stressed that as with Imposing Threats —and, indeed also with the subject of the next essay—iai practice is perhaps uniquely suited amongst pre-arranged physical activities to serve as a vital pre-cursor to learning how to apply High-Level EA outside of iai. Further, predictably facilitating the just -discussed increases in self-knowledge, knowledge of others and the appreciation of the nature of existence requires the ability to experience life through the crystal-clear lens of High-Level EA.

I also want to reiterate that although for the purposes of clarity of explanation I have separated all the Secrets into their own essays, in reality they rarely—if ever—truly work in isolation from each other.

And lastly, as I said regarding the ability to Impose Threat during iai, a crucial component to infusing iai with High-Level EA is a sufficient involvement of hara. In my opinion, while sheer mental effort may yield some level of success towards achieving High-Level EA (or any of the Secrets), ultimately the ceiling will always remain very low—the endeavor being very much akin to trying to drive a nail into wood using a screwdriver.

Phil Trent (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009132148739)

Coming up…

Secrets of Iai (Part 3): “Breaking Free”

Secrets of Iai (Pt. 2a): Merging (Combat)

What Merging is, and its combat applications for iai:

Part 1 of this series discussed the unfamiliar practice of imbuing iai with artificial threats (Secrets of Iai (Pt. 1): Imposing Threat)

By contrast this essay deals with a very commonly known concept, however in my opinion this concept merits being labeled as a Secret because of the current lack of understanding of its potential scope and applications…in the words of The Hitch-hiker’s Guide To The Galaxy:

“you may think it’s a long way down the road to the chemist, but that’s just peanuts to space.”

So, what is Merging?

Well at least for me, “distinctly weird” is what it initially was.

It is a sensation of feeling totally connected to the environment…although it may be more accurate to say it is like being completely not DIS-connected! And actually, both “connected” and “not DIS-connected” are sort of misleading since they imply a duality, but to experience Merging is to feel a loss of self—not a loss of individuality—as one’s surroundings sort of “become” you.

Yes, I am well aware that that description is offputtingly reminiscent in flavor to Louis in “Interview with the Vampire” describing his “turning”…

“The statue seemed to move but didn’t… The world had changed yet stayed the same.”

And yet, as it happens, in terms of its degree of indescribable oddness, that isn’t too far from what Merging feels like—at least to me.

But fortunately, however unusual or trippy the experience of Merging may be, the experience is overwhelmingly NOT what this essay is about.

Rather, what I want to discuss here is what Merging apparently indicates, and that is something that is both accessible and intrinsically practical whether you are studying iai as a martial art or for self-cultivation.

And so what is it that Merging “apparently indicates”? Environmental Awareness.

A certain variety of Environmental Awareness to be exact, since as I intimated above Environmental Awareness itself is not exactly a secret.

In fact, I suspect you’d be hard-pressed I think to find any school of iai—or even any Japanese martial art—that doesn’t strive to employ zanshin during kata…and isn’t zanshin just the same as environmental awareness?   Certainly, while there are variations on how zanshin is defined, they do all seem to include environmental awareness.

But here’s the thing, while everyone who studies a Japanese sword art (or any traditional Japanese martial art) might be familiar with the concept of environmental awareness (as zanshin), it seems very few—very, VERY few—appreciate how far it can be taken during iai practice, and therefore they also don’t know how greatly it can enhance iai.

“how far it can be taken”? What does that mean? Don’t you either have environmental awareness during iai or you don’t? No, it is far, far more complicated than that. There are actually very many levels of environmental awareness, and it is these higher levels that are the Secret to be discussed in this essay.

First, let’s clarify what High-Level Environmental Awareness (EA from hereon in) is in the context of this essay….

High-Level EA is being as close to as aware as is possible of all the elements that make up the physical environment you are in.

I say “as close to as aware as is possible” because not only is it very unlikely that we can ever have 100% EA, but our level of EA generally is almost inevitably going to decrease as an environment becomes more complex, or faster moving and/or less predictable.

This is because our level of EA is of course hugely dependent upon only one of our senses: vision. But given that our eyes are forward facing (the usual predator-mammal set-up) and that they have a fairly narrow field of vision and that we have only the two eyes, there are always going to be “holes” in our EA.

These failings can be somewhat alleviated by constantly moving our eyes, turning our head and changing direction. However, not only is this not a perfect solution but these behaviors are not typically allowed in iai practice—although as with the Imposing Threat skill discussed in Part 1 (Secrets of Iai (Pt. 1): Imposing Threat), High-level EA makes you really want to look around.

It is also extremely important to note that I am using the term Environmental Awareness rather than Situational Awareness. This is because the latter term is typically defined as including some kind of overt, intellectual assessment of the environment in terms of its effects and consequences. Even though Situational Awareness is absolutely critical to any warrior from any era, the type of awareness I am referring to does not attempt to make any conscious judgments or conclusions, decisions or assessments regarding the physical environment.

Why bother trying to achieve high-level EA in iai?

So, we’ve established what high-level EA is in the context of this essay, but why bother trying to manifest it during your iai practice?

Certainly, if you are practicing in a group setting, while in a confined space and with sharp swords then it’s an excellent idea to be as aware of the environment as possible—accidents can happen after all.

However, there are a number of other reasons, regardless of whether you are training alone or with others…

As  with the Threat Imposing of Part 1, and as well as what will be covered in Part 3, for all the following reasons High-Level EA makes iai endlessly stimulating, exciting, challenging and satisfying—way beyond what is possible with a purely technical/mechanical study. Which is why even today, after 37 years of virtually daily iai practice, I can’t wait to don gi and sword(s).

In short, frankly Merging makes iai practice freakin’ awesome!

Also, as I said in Part 1, each of the Secrets are very much connected and influence—or even in some cases perhaps even depend on—each other. So, if you are able to exhibit high-level EA during your iai, artificially imposing threats will be easier—and make the threats stronger—just as, conversely, the ability to impose threats will assist in developing High-Level EA. (Also, both of these “skills” help with, and are helped by, generating the states-of-mind that are the subject of Part 3 of this series)

But onward to more specific reasons to achieve High-Level EA, starting with those that pertain to iai study when it is geared towards combat training.

Reason 1 for achieving High-Level EA in combat-orientated iai:

High-Level EA teaches you to perform iai techniques in a way that is more practical for combat.

Understanding what this means starts with defining a fundamental difference between iai practice and combat:

Medieval warriors in close-combat would obviously be fixated with the utmost intensity upon anyone trying to kill them or that they were trying to kill—typically one and the same people.

While by contrast when you practice iai the lethality is entirely symbolic (and mostly abstract) and so there is no incentive to generate combat-level focus and even if you could, there would be nothing to apply it to. (Yes, as I explained in Part 1, it is possible to feel threats during iai, but that does not in of itself result in the type of focus being discussed here—hopefully the difference will have become self-explanatory by the end of this essay)

This obvious difference between iai and combat is crucial because it means that during iai we tend to learn to perform techniques in a different way and that way is not very practical for combat training.

To explain this odd statement, it is necessary to think about how any technique in an iai kata is physically achieved when done without the influence of High-Level EA…

The answer is not “muscle memory”—because that isn’t a thing in this sense—but rather it depends on the psycho-neurological profile you have created for that technique.

This profile is what generates the physical movement itself, and whatever else the profile includes it is going to include a collection of at least one type of sensory-based cues—these cues probably having been mostly established when the kata was first learned, and which combine to create what I shall refer to as Sensory Templates.

So, for example, if a kata requires that you turn and step in a certain direction, how do you know that you have turned far enough, or that your feet are in the correct position, or that your weight is distributed in the prescribed way? And if you were also required to move the sword in a certain way: how do you know the edge is at the correct angle or if the blade is pointing where it is supposed to?

If you are visually inclined, most of the above information could be determined by assessing the path of the blade if at any point it enters your field of vision, and similarly seeing and noting the relative positioning of your leading knee and foot might be used to guide your stance—if they are within your field of vision.  And if you are in a familiar location—such as a dojo—you may use environmental “landmarks” to help guide you to the right degree of directional turn.

Alternatively, another visual way to reproduce an action in a kata is through visual imagination. This is different to the above in that you initiate and model your movements based on a third-person memory of the action being done rather than just what your eyes see of the movement when you do it. (BTW, I realize that this is technically not “Sensory”, but the effect is the same)

On the other hand, if you are primarily kinesthetically inclined, you could do much of the above by remembering how your body feels during any particular movement in terms of use of particular muscles, or joints  and/or any level of discomfort or strain associated with the movement—or lack of movement.

(So while “muscle memory” is currently considered impossible in terms of the reproduction of actions, memory of muscle feelings is valid)

And even those who are profoundly auditory in nature could still reproduce some actions of a typical kata quite accurately using just sound references. Examples which come to mind are the rhythm of breathing and/or kiai, or the “swish” of the blade through the air, or even some kind of internal monologue such as counting.

So, while I suppose it is possible that in very extreme cases an iai student’s Sensory Template might consist of only one type of cue, for everyone else Templates will be composed of a mixture of types of sensory cues that may also interact and rely upon each other through the course of an action.

(Incidentally, a reliance upon Sensory Templates is one reason why a student may find himself unable to pick-up a kata if it is paused for whatever reason, or if it is done at a very different speed to usual: the connective cues between actions have been disrupted and so the student is left adrift. This is far more likely to happen during partner kata, but it is definitely a phenomenon in iai also, especially with longer kata)

OK, what is it about Sensory Templates as a way to generate actions that makes them impractical in combat?

It is because, as mentioned earlier, such are the existential threats inherent in melee combat that a warrior will be fixated upon the incoming sensory and intellectual data related to his immediate opponents (and possibly other environmental factors/elements in close proximity). Consequently, as a result of these pressing distractions some percentage (if not all) of any given Sensory Template will be unavailable–either because the warrior’s mind is too distracted by the combat or because the required cues have been at least partly obscured.

So, for instance, if during iai you rely to some degree on your direct or peripheral vision to determine the position/angle of your sword blade during certain cuts, during a combat you might not be able to track the weapon because of the vision restrictions the helmet creates or perhaps because during the cut your attention is drawn away by something your opponent is doing and your sword falls out of range of your field of vision.

Or perhaps you have a chronic injury in your shoulder that has been around long enough that the mild discomfort it brings during certain movements during iai practice has become part of the associated Sensory Templates. During a combat adrenaline might make you unaware of your shoulder pain, or the pain might get overridden by some other combat-related kinesthetic sensation in another part of your body—could be an impact from either an opponent’s weapon, or from a collision with  something in the environment.

And what would be the side-effect of any Sensory Template disruptions in a combat?

Basically, the warrior would experience a reduction in one or more of the following athletic attributes: coordination, dexterity, speed, judgement of distance, agility, timing.

It is important to note that reductions in athleticism would not be limited to just when the warrior was trying to perform actions specifically learned during iai kata. If iai has formed enough of the basis of your technical skill, any ad hoc actions attempted during a combat will still be attempting to utilize elements of the same Sensory Template.

The level of reduction in any aspect of the warrior’s athleticism might be very minor or it might be huge, depending on the individual and the demands of the moment.

For me, if I had been in a medieval-like combat any time in about my first 20 years of iai training most likely I would have seen a massive reduction in my physical skill simply because throughout any action I was simply mimicking a very vivid, visual memory of that action—very good tool for remembering kata, very bad tool to use during combat. Consequently, when faced with an opponent(s) I could have either ignored him/them and performed actions that had little bearing on what that opponent(s) was doing and so would’ve died in short order, OR I could have focused on the opponent, ignored the film playing in my head, screwed-up whatever action I attempted because my Template couldn’t be used and died in short order.

These reductions in athleticism could alter a warrior’s actions in a combat in any number of ways:

A sword blade might strike its target with the edge out of alignment or the warrior might lose some of their cutting power and/or accuracy or experience a reduction in balance. Or they might lose some muscle control and end up moving too fast or too slow for the context of the attempted action.

More extreme examples could easily include doing something like tripping over their feet during an action, and on the rare occasion they needed to draw their sword when the combat was in progress they could find it to be much more difficult to achieve—despite doing it thousands of times in iai practice.

So, the question is, how does High-Level Environmental Awareness during iai prevent these Template Disruptions?

Because it makes us learn how to perform techniques differently: in a way that is more reproducible/applicable to combat.

How?

I wish I knew for sure! Well, I only sort of wish I did since I suspect knowing would inhibit the process.

That said, If I had to make a somewhat educated guess I would say that the High-level EA starves the brain of the input it needs to utilize its Sensory Templates—as though you were in a combat—and thereby encourages the subconscious to learn how to perform actions with whatever sensory data is available each time the action is required—creating off-the-cuff Templates, as it were.

Of course, it is likely that the brain always innovates somewhat every time a Sensory Template is being employed. However the “sense” I have had when doing iai all this time is that with enough practice the brain can increase the size of the innovation to the point that actions are initiated and performed as though from no sensory pre-conceptions—which is to say, with no Template to speak of.

But is High-Level EA necessary to provoke this change in how actions are performed if the student/warrior also engages in partner training, whether that partner training is in the form of kata and/or free-play?

Surely such activities would have had the same effect as using High-Level EA so far as reducing the use of Sensory Templates? Maybe. That depends on how dangerous (real or perceived) and/or athletically demanding the partner stuff is—which is to say, whether or not it provoked that “utmost intensity” that I said earlier was the crucial difference between how actions were performed in iai versus combat.

I suspect that in Japan’s past (especially before ~1650) partner kata training and/or free-play would have been sufficiently stressful/demanding. Not only because this would have appealed to the samurai’s warrior mentality (for further explanation see m book Flawless Deception (https://www.amazon.com/Flawless-Deception-behind-samurai-schools-ebook/dp/B014OMZ0EA) but because as I explain later in this essay, it is necessary to utilize a crucial reason for adopting High-Level EA during iai.

However, today that is quite understandably not the case for all but a tiny fraction of schools—such as Karato Ryu (The elephant in the room… , https://www.facebook.com/genuinesamuraimartialarts/)—so for modern iai students, High-Level EA may be the only way to reduce their reliance upon Sensory Templates.

Reason 2 for achieving High-Level EA in combat-orientated iai:

The less-Template-dependent method that High-Level EA promotes reduces your level of athleticism during iai and thereby creates a profound understanding of the reduction in athleticism that combat will bring.

Yep, that’s right: High-Level EA will reduce the technical quality of how you perform iai—and also make kata feel harder to perform.

The draws especially will be affected in terms of their speed and smoothness, as may cuts. In general there will likely be a feeling of not having quite the same level of precise physical control as previously.

(You are not likely to win any iai competitions if you are using High-Level EA during your demonstration!)

But wait a minute, wasn’t Reason 1 for applying High-level EA that it “teaches you to perform iai techniques in a way that is more practical for combat”? How is the less-Template-dependent method more practical if it still results in a reduction in athletic performance—and therefore combat prowess?

First, while both methods of performing actions result in a reduction in athletic performance during combat, the degree of that reduction is very likely going to be much less with the less-Template-dependent method.

Second, because if your partner-training has not been sufficiently combat-like and therefore Sensory Templates play a significant role in how you perform actions, when you enter a combat you will not be ready for the reduction in athleticism—which could at best be very disorientating, but could also very likely prove to be fatal. However, conversely, the less Template-dependent method ensures that the reduction will be quite familiar and so the reduction will be far less surprising and detrimental to your prowess since you are more aware of what your athletic capabilities are realistically going to be.

Third, because the more reliant upon Sensory Templates a warrior in combat was the lower their level of Environmental Awareness would’ve been…

Reason 3 for achieving High-Level EA in combat-orientated iai:

Practicing iai with High-Level EA teaches the ability to apply High-Level EA during combat.

Did a medieval warrior in combat seriously need to be taught how to apply High-Level EA? As mentioned earlier, the inherently life-or-death aspect of combat results in focus of “the utmost intensity”, and it is the absence of this during iai that I claimed as a fundamental difference between it and combat.

If anything you would imagine that it would be the other way around: that applying High-level EA to iai practice would require combat experience!

The answer to the “riddle” is that in close-combat although focus on immediate opponents will be immense, that focus will be mostly (and quite understandably) ONLY on opponents—rather than your environment as a whole. Consequently, a warrior’s level of Environmental Awareness would typically have actually been very low. This is not conjecture, just a result of our natural tendency to intellectually narrow our attention towards lethal threats—and also physiologically when adrenaline is present.

In many ways this is a very practical response since from an evolutionary perspective the physically closest threats did merit the most resources.

That said, the ability to apply High-Level EA during close-combat would of course been extremely advantageous to the medieval warrior, and increasingly so the more complex the combat environment was.

In terms of the disorder of a melee, High-Level EA would make it far more likely to be able to spot new incoming threats as you were fighting—it might also prevent you becoming isolated when battle-lines abruptly changed. And whether in a melee or a duel, the ability to steer an opponent towards a pothole or to notice when your weapon (or his) was going to strike a nearby obstacle (whether another warrior, or a horse, or a tree, etc.) could make the difference between victory and defeat.

Of course, taking too much attention away from whoever you are trying to kill and/or avoid being killed by would be extremely foolhardy—there is little sense in noticing that you are about to be attacked on your flank if it results in you getting stabbed in the throat by your current adversary.

What I am describing is a type of Environmental Awareness that essentially creates a balanced awareness of one’s opponent(s) and the environment; being neither psychologically fixated upon the former, but not so busy “looking at Mount Fuji” that you can’t effectively fight—essentially allowing the warrior to “have their cake and eat it”…a Holy Grail of environmental awarenesses, if you will!

How then does practicing iai (while employing High-Level EA) achieve this remarkable feat? How does it teach a warrior to override the extreme, but restricted focus that the stress of medieval-like close-combat brings?

Once again, I cannot say for sure, I can only go on the following “insights” based on my related experiences.

The first step is to gather enough experience of High-Level EA.

Incidentally, this experience does not necessarily have to be through iai, or even through martial arts at all. However, for reasons to be discussed later in this series, solo kata practice—and especially with a long-sword—is ideally suited to developing High-Level EA compared to other activities that on the surface might appear more effective in this regard.

Step two in using iai to be able to apply High-Level EA in combat is to use the psychological environment the High-Level EA requires in order to start re-writing/adapting the brain’s reactions to the combat scenarios the iai kata reflect. As a result, the training acquires a new depth of combat-ambience way beyond what is possible from just studying the physical techniques.

(The other Secrets of Iai are key to this re-writing/adapting and therefore also to the subsequent increased combat ambience. High-Level EA on its own will not suffice)

This new combat ambience is essential because the re-written reactions amount (in metaphorical terms) to a basic Formula in sort-of the same way as described in Part 1: Imposing Threat. The difference being that here the Formula is not for psychologically preparing for threats, but for maintaining High-Level EA during those threats.

How does this become so ingrained that during combat, the “default”, deeper responses do not rise to re-assert themselves?

The answer to that question will be explored in later essays! However, for now I can say that I have experienced nothing to suggest that the above Formula method for maintaining High-Level EA would collapse during combat, and indeed my reaction to spontaneous, threatening events outside of the dojo gives me confidence that it would endure, however I cannot say for sure.

Reason 4 for achieving High-Level EA in combat-orientated iai:

High Level EA can also help towards a greater intuitive understanding of the potential combat applications of the techniques within any given iai kata. However, explaining how and why this happens is actually better left in the next essay…

Phil Trent (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009132148739)

Coming up…

Secrets of Iai (Part 2b): Merging and Self-Cultivation…

 

Secrets of Iai (Pt. 1): Imposing Threat

After watching this video of the 20(?) year old me and the 50 year old version doing this kata (https://youtu.be/cDgN1qV0WuM), it may seem like the 1000’s of additional repetitions of that kata I did in the 32 years between the videos had little impact on how I perform this kata–no longer slamming my right foot down on the downward cut or letting my hands finish too low are not exactly major changes.

And yet appearances can be deceiving, and in this case extremely so.

For about the last 2 decades there have been crucial differences between how I practice not just that particular kata but any of the approximately 60 other solo kata Karato Ryu (https://www.facebook.com/genuinesamuraimartialarts) teaches.

Just why are these differences “crucial”? Because they determine whether or not a study of iai is going to fulfill its extraordinary potential—regardless of whether that study is directed towards combat training or self-cultivation.

The curious thing is that regrettably it would seem that 99.9% of people reading this will have little-to-no idea about this potential.

So, what exactly is it that I am doing differently today, as opposed to when I as was in my twenties?

Well, in this essay I am only going to cover one of the differences. That said, all the differences overlap—something that will become apparent in Parts 2 & 3 of this series.

Also, all the differences have aspects that defy description. AND they all sound suspicious to some degree. BUT they are also very intriguing.

So, without further ado, for THIS essay the fundamental difference between how I practice this kata now and when I was younger is this:

Today I am somewhat mimicking the mortal combat the kata symbolizes in that throughout the kata I am experiencing a sense of both physical vulnerability and of existential jeopardy.

“What the hell?”, you say?

Let me put it another way…

Throughout the kata I feel as if I am being threatened and that I am not necessarily able to protect myself against this threat. Second, during the kata I get a real sense of what (I believe) it would be like to perform actions that are actually ending life and/or putting my own life at risk.

As such, this is how I perceive the kata step-by-step as it happens:

As I am kneeling I feel generally uneasy at not being able to see what is beyond my peripheral vision, and as a result I feel the urge to look around—but I don’t since the kata does not allow it.

Then I perceive an immediate threat directly in front of me—not a visualized threat, mind you, just the sense of one. At that point one of two things happens: either I decide to take the initiative and draw the sword, or it occurs to me that my opponent before me is already attacking and I draw to counter him/her.

Now, my draw—like my “opponent”—is also primarily conceptual. By which I mean, although the draw is done in a strictly prescribed fashion it is entirely born of intent rather than aiming for a particular anatomical target or (when the draw is reactive) to counter a particular technique. And although the aforementioned intent is basically abstract, at its core is the sincerest awareness throughout the action that if successful it will involve taking life—or at least cause severe injury.

Conversely, throughout both the decision to draw and the intent-driven draw itself the vulnerability I feel makes me very aware that my life too is on the line.

This is because, first, I am aware that I am probably leaving myself even more exposed to attacks from other directions.

Second, because of the awareness that even though I am trying to perform the draw with total mental and physical commitment, as in a real combat this will not necessarily be enough to guarantee my safety.

Consequently, the draw is performed with a moment-by-moment mindfulness that I might potentially need to adapt it to any changes of circumstances that should arise as the blade follows its path—even though what those changes might be are not defined or considered.

The remainder of the kata—the advance with the right leg followed by a downward cut and the sheathing sequence at the end—are a continuation of the same psychological elements as just described.

Sounds a little far-fetched, right? But putting aside for now whether or not I’m telling the truth (which to the best of my abilities I absolutely am), why would doing a kata in the manner I’m proposing be so invaluable to using iai for either combat training or self-cultivation?

Let’s take a look at combat first.

The stressors found in mortal combat typically reduce combat effectiveness and consequently also perhaps a combatant’s life-expectancy.

Chief amongst these stressors are the very ones I am claiming can be present in iai kata: a feeling of being vulnerable, fear of both one’s own death and often also of having to kill someone else…and all these factors typically become more exaggerated in close-quarters combat.

This reduction of combat effectiveness (and life expectancy) as a result of this type of stressor can be anything from slight to catastrophic.

This is why combat veterans have always been prized: they have already demonstrated that they are capable of “keeping it together” during combat and consequently can more confidently be expected to fight effectively.

Therefore, anything a warrior can do to reduce the impact of these stressors upon them can only be to their advantage.

Repetitive training alone is not going to be enough to prevent stressors from degrading a warrior’s performance.

What is needed is that the warrior’s training replicate the stressors found in combat, and this has always equated not surprisingly for a desire to make the training combat-realistic.

The hope is that while the training can’t (and probably shouldn’t) be so severe that the stressors involved are as powerful as in actual combat, through the warrior experiencing milder versions of these stressors not only will combat be less of a psychological jolt to the trainees, but during training the adept will intuitively set-up psychological coping processes that will prepare them for combat—and thereby allow them to fight effectively.

As far as how in my experience this works in the context of iai, think of it like learning how to do multiplication math problems…

Let’s say the levels of perception of vulnerability and jeopardy you are able to generate in a kata equates (metaphorically speaking) to a problem of this kind of difficulty:

And let’s say the levels you experience in combat are more like:

As daunting as the “combat-problem” might seem at first glance, if you work out the formula for the iai- problem—carrying numbers, adding 0’s for each additional decimal place, etc.—then the combat- problem can be solved using the same process.

How do I know that the iai-created “formula” can be used in this fashion?

While I am not a combat veteran, and I have never been in a fight where I thought my life was at risk, Karato Ryu partner kata training gets progressively more dangerous both literally and in terms of the student’s perception—which amounts to the same thing for this particular discussion.

As such, in this partner training I have many times felt as though I am both genuinely very vulnerable and also in considerable danger due to the nature of the techniques involved. And although I have of course never wanted to kill my training partner, I have been able to apply the same degree of, uh, abstract intent as I do in any of the solo kata.

And yet despite the danger (both perceived and real) and the level of intent present in our partner training, while I typically feel distinctly uncomfortable/vulnerable/at risk during it, I am able to remain intellectually dispassionate/objective. Consequently, the challenges of the kata never translate into tension, or angst, or stress, and so there is neither an adrenal response nor (apparently) any resulting psychological “baggage”. In fact, to the best of my memory, it has been decades since I had any kind of response to any potentially stressful situation, including those that occurred outside of training where I was knowingly in considerable danger.

(It should be mentioned that the above response (or lack of) to stressors is due at least in part also to the physiological effects of my application of abdominal breathing (https://koryumatters.wordpress.com/2017/08/02/combat-cultivation-battle-or-betterment/))

 

OK, so how developed can these self-generated experiences of vulnerability and jeopardy become? Can they ever replicate the severity of those experienced in combat?

Certainly with the correct training methodology and dedication, the experience becomes stronger over time.

But, I cannot be sure if this approach to iai can ever lead to the complete neutralization in combat of the stressors under discussion.

However, I am convinced what is possible (in my experience) is enough to constitute a very significant advantage in this regard—possibly more significant than any other combat-training program has been able to provide..?

Also, being able to artificially generate the sense of vulnerability and jeopardy (both yours and your opponent’s) through iai has other benefits in terms of its use in combat training/preparation.

First, no changes to the component techniques of the kata are required in order for the student to keep progressing. Nor does anything need to be added to practice: you don’t need either additional equipment or people.

This means an iai adept can if necessary train in isolation for many years (as I have found) and not just maintain but even improve upon at least this aspect of their readiness.

Second, the psychological skills needed to perform the mental gymnastics required to induce these feelings/states of mind are of value to other aspects of martial arts training—not to mention also one’s day-to-day life.

Which leads into the relationship of this approach to self-cultivation.

How much of a relationship there is may depend on the definition of “self-cultivation” to be used. For me (and my Ryu) it is about developing self-awareness, self-honesty and thereby becoming a more effective individual in terms of being able to succeed in whatever you do in life.

Others may argue that doing iai in this manner will bear little in the way of cultivation fruit because a “jutsu” approach doesn’t emphasize ethics, morality or spirituality like the “do” arts.

However there is no evidence that I am aware of that practicing a martial Way such as iaido or kendo or aikido is any more beneficial (or even AS beneficial) in terms of self-cultivation than any “jutsu” art, or even any sport—martial or otherwise.

So, the reason why the skills I have described here (and those that I will describe in 2 & 3) make iai so good for self-cultivation is because “adversity breeds character”!  Basically, iai practiced in this fashion creates perceived adversity and it provides the most useful psychological environment in which to healthily indulge, manage, reproduce and express this adversity.

 

To conclude…

At this point, one of the obvious questions might be, how do you achieve these feelings of vulnerability & jeopardy during iai practice when in reality there is nothing to physically inspire them? (Assuming of course you aren’t practicing in the tiger enclosure at your local zoo, or on a busy street)

Certainly, if I could explain with more detail how it works it would not only be interesting but also probably give the whole concept more credibility.

But, alas, this is an extremely difficult—if not impossible—task.

First, much of what allows it to happen occurs “behind the curtain” (the sub-conscious), so any explanation on my part would be guess work.

And so far as the parts of the process that are consciously/overtly handled, while you certainly have to deliberately manufacture (not imagine) the senses of vulnerability and jeopardy, the majority of the huge effort (or non-effort!) goes into enabling that intent to make it to the sub-conscious—or maybe it’s the other way around…

However, what makes the whole thing possible (in the fashion that it is) is the involvement of the hara—to use one of the most common names of the dozens it goes by.

Why do I consider this mysterious little rascal invaluable?

Simply because I am entirely unable to create the psychological environment I have outlined here without engaging my hara.

And this lack of engagement means (for reasons to be expanded upon in later Parts), that as the “math problems”/stressors become more complex/intense during training, when the student attempts to apply the basic “formula” the objectivity I discussed earlier will not be present.

Consequently, almost certainly the “formula” will acquire (albeit invisibly) additional pieces that lessen its efficiency—basically, robbing the process of its advantage over the usual ways of combat-realistic training.

Who knows, perhaps for some people the hara is not required, but for me it is a “mechanical” necessity.

A “necessity” because it is through hara that I learn the metaphorical “formula”. And “mechanical” because the hara’s role (as I perceive it) seems to be analogous to the relationship a driveshaft creates between the engine and wheels of an automobile. Somewhat.

And lastly, I want to point out another side-effect of this approach; one that might augment either combat or cultivation training. Namely, doing kata this way makes iai training fun and fulfilling and endlessly challenging to an extent that is hard to describe!  This is especially so if a kata includes reacting to attackers from multiple directions. As I say in Flawless Deception (https://www.amazon.com/Flawless-Deception-behind-samurai-schools-ebook/dp/B014OMZ0EA):

“There is nothing like dealing with one enemy while at the same time “feeling” the approach of another from the side or even behind and knowing that you must somehow address the problem in order to survive.”

And as good as vulnerability and jeopardy make iai practice, adding the elements to be discussed in Parts 2 and 3 only increases both the enjoyment and challenge.

Phil Trent (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009132148739)

Coming up…

Secrets of Iai (Part 2a): Merging!

Combat, cultivation, battle or betterment…

After almost 40 years of practicing abdominal breathing, I can say with 100% confidence that a persistent, protracted study of abdominal breathing will bring huge benefits to any martial artist—regardless of what their goals are.

So, the following is meant only as a very brief overview of a few facets of abdominal breathing, based upon a combination of associated scientific research and my (www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009132148739) experiences.

First things first, what then is abdominal breathing?

Simply, it is where the abdomen is fully utilized in the moving of the diaphragm—which means, the abdomen expands as you breathe in and contracts to its resting position as you exhale.   Or, to put it another way, it is virtually the opposite method of breathing to that employed by most adult humans even though as infants we all breathe abdominally and it is the method employed (as far as I know) by every land mammal on the planet.

Onto the benefits…

A large body of research has demonstrated that our typical negative reactions to potential stressors can be reduced through abdominal breathing.

It does this by enervating and activating the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS), which then triggers a massive release of endorphins which causes tremendous calm and a sense of well-being, as well as an increase in emotional disengagement.¹⁴

Beyond these inherent effects of abdominal breathing on the PNS, additional effects arise when the abdominal breathing is deliberately slowed and paced.

Control of the pace and duration of the breath brings changes in the individual’s heartbeat in terms of its frequency and smoothness during every inhalation and exhalation, which in turn leads to reduced emotional arousal and blood pressure, as well as—as with the PNS—a general sense of peace and well-being.¹²

And even though during prolonged, intense martial arts training is impossible to always maintain a slow, regulated breathing pattern, it is considered likely these positive effects will persist to some degree beyond the sessions in which it is practiced—even though the duration of this has not yet been researched, so far as I know.¹³

Additionally, these enhancements of the heart’s beating produces an “energized and responsive state that is conducive to everyday functioning and interaction, including the performance of tasks requiring mental acuity, focus, problem-solving, and decision-making.”¹⁵

That these phenomena (when taken as a description of “mindfulness”) are genuine is reflected in the increased attention paid to them by the military over the last decade as part of their attempt to not only reduce the level of stress felt by soldiers prior and during combat, but also as a way of alleviating PTSD.¹⁶

And if the above advantages weren’t enough to make any martial artist—or anybody else—immediately start breathing abdominally, there may yet be additional reasons to do it…

As well as providing the ability to remain calm but alert during times of stress, I know not only from personal experience but from the testimony of others that eventually abdominal breathing produces significantly increased levels of physical energy and physical endurance.

Hold on though, that doesn’t seem right given that as described above abdominal breathing both suppresses the “flight or fight” reaction and activates the PNS and its orders to “rest and digest”.¹⁷

Surely, the last thing that should happen then should be for energy levels to increase? This is the reason why it has been noted that, “it would be dysfunctional to have PNS predominance during times requiring high energy and arousal, such as when under threat or attack.”¹⁸

What then is happening? Do the increased oxygen levels that abdominal breathing presumably brings and the aforementioned changes in the heart beat, serve to not only nullify the energy-dampening effects of the PNS, but also leave enough left over to boost the individual’s energy beyond normal levels?

It would be fascinating to know what is actually going on!

For some martial artists who experience these elevated energy levels part of the explanation—as well as the source of yet more benefits—might be found in the variations in abdominal breathing they practice.

A potential deficiency of the studies I have seen is that they do not address the differences between “normal” abdominal breathing and the variations on it such as the one that specifically focuses on the part of the abdomen that sits roughly in the pelvis—a variation I shall very imaginatively refer to here as low abdominal breathing.

Low abdominal breathing involves not only a greater movement of the muscles in the lower abdomen, but also a decrease in the movement of the upper abdomen–except during high demand, physical exertion.

So, while I have no supporting scientific evidence, it feels to me like the low abdominal breathing allows for an even more movement of the diaphragm, so perhaps this results in a corresponding increase in oxygenation.

However, another cause may be more psychosomatic in nature…

Advanced exponents of martial arts that practice low abdominal breathing combined with a persistent focus on that area (the hara/tanden/lower dantien, etc) appear to be capable of a greater level of intellectual, emotional and sensory self-manipulation.

Perhaps, these factors equate to an even greater reduction in the physical tension/stress which normally serves to reduce our energy levels and shorten our stamina. Or, in other words, the low abdominal breathing may allow us to liberate more of our innate energy.

Hmm.

So, low abdominal breathing may enhance the effects of the “normal”, garden-variety of ab breathing, however it would seem that by whatever combination of processes, the use of abdominal breathing prior to and during dangerous and other potentially stressful situations creates the ability to simultaneously manifest the useful symptoms of both the PNS and the SNS’ “flight or fight” reaction, while also avoiding the potentially negative aspects of both—essentially allowing an individual to “have their cake and eat it too”.

Because of these awesome abilities—and others—I can’t imagine abdominal breathing not being at the center of every aspect of my martial arts training,

That said, for me, the study of abdominal breathing has rarely been anything even close to easy and I have never known anyone who has pursued it with the necessary dedication to find it less than extremely challenging.

But for so many reasons, for any martial artist—whether they practice aikido or kyokushin, iaido or kenjutsu, tai chi or BJJ—I guarantee the struggle is worth it…so, so, so worth it!

Phil Trent (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100009132148739)

(The above essay is adapted from a section of the Kindle book “Flawless Deception: the truth behind the samurai schools.” (https://www.amazon.com/Flawless-Deception-behind-samurai-schools-ebook/dp/B014OMZ0EA ))

Endnotes:

12, 13, 15, 16, 17. Milton Z. Brown, Ph.D., Regulating Emotions through Slow Abdominal Breathing (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Center of San Diego (www.dbtsandiego.com)

14. Rick Hanson, PhD, Relaxed and Contented: Activating the Parasympathetic Wing of Your Nervous System (Wellspring Institute for Neuroscience and Contemplative Wisdom (http://www.wisebrain.org/ParasympatheticNS.pdf), 2007)

18. Monique Moore, PhD, David Brown, PsyD, Nisha Money, MD, MPH, ABIHM, Mark Bates, PhD, Mind-Body Skills for Regulating the Autonomic Nervous System, (Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (www.dcoe.health.mil), June 2011, Version 2), p7

What is a genuine samurai martial art?

So, what is a genuine samurai martial art?

If we’re talking about those koryu that developed during or shortly after the Sengoku Jidai—and in this essay we are—for anyone that knows anything about the subject the answer is simple:

In the photos above, the guys on the right are doing a genuine samurai martial art, but the jokers on the left aren’t—even though on Facebook they refer to themselves as Genuine Samurai Martial Arts of Dallas (GSMAD).

Sure, on the surface what GSMAD is doing seems to be like what those “genuine” guys on the right are doing—more so, even—in terms of replicating the battlefield combat these koryu were primarily focused on.

But this is what a reviewer said about GSMAD:

“Fake. Not genuine. Makes false claims of being more genuine than the real martial arts schools.” (https://www.facebook.com/genuinesamuraimartialarts/?ref=page_internal)

Since that happens to be the Page for the school I have had the privilege of training in for 43 years you would perhaps imagine that I would be insulted by this scathing characterization.

But nope, not a bit of it. In fact, I encouraged it.

The reason for the inclusion of Genuine in the name was actually an attempt to provoke (emphasis on “provoke”) discussion about the school’s legitimacy with the hope that this would in turn eventually lead to debates about the meaning of “genuine” as it applies to the extant koryu of the Sengoku Jidai—hereafter referred to as “early koryu”.

I mean, it’s not as though when I chose to put the Genuine in GSMAD that neither I nor my students didn’t appreciate our school’s deficiencies in the “genuine” department.

We’ve often laughed about how mightily suspicious my and the school’s “backstory” are as well as the seeming absurdity of my claim that Tenshu Shindo Karato Ryu (a name I mostly made up) could be a koryu let alone one from the Sengoku Jidai—for more details on that topic see https://koryumatters.wordpress.com/2016/04/30/elephantintheroom/

You might ask then, why do any of the few students I am permitted to have stay with Karato Ryu? Because some do! In fact, I have a very high success rate. Out of the approximately 10 students I’ve had in 25 years, those that have made it through the first few years have stayed 5, 10 and 16 years respectively—and another two might well be still training if I hadn’t terminated their memberships. And it’s not as though membership is a casual or easily maintained affair, rather not only is the training exceptionally demanding, but students are expected to not only attend almost every class but to demonstrate that they are training extensively in their own time.

Well, those that have stayed have definitely not done so because they’re weak-minded or otherwise easily gulled. In my experience and opinion, training in Karato Ryu isn’t for anyone who isn’t psychologically robust, skeptical and ruggedly individualistic…not to mention intelligent…and a tad nuts.

So, one reason for them hanging around is that I give my students video proof that I at least didn’t make up the huge curriculum and that decades ago I had an instructor and we (and other students) were doing what I am now passing on. So, while I might be a fool, my students can be sure that at least in this regard, I am an honest fool.

Another reason can at least in part be, frankly, my high-level of technical skill.

But most importantly, my students see that although what we do contrasts greatly in several fundamental ways with what they can see online or read about in English with respect to virtually every “genuine” early koryu (indeed, koryu as a whole), the training makes them gradually start to re-think what “genuine” means in the context of an early koryu.

And this new definition of genuine and the consequent change in the student’s priorities is recognized by them (as it was by me) as something so much more personally valuable than that which seemingly is offered by the actual surviving genuine samurai martial arts.

But just thinking something is “genuine” doesn’t make it so, right? Or does it?

An online critic of my school who most decidedly views Karato Ryu as a fraud used as part of his argument to support his position a dictionary definition of genuine.

He wrote, “The definition of the Oxford English Dictionary is: “Genuine: ‘Truly what something is said to be; authentic’” (And he was right: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/genuine)

“said to be”? Why not “what something is”? It’s because the definition of what is genuine is frequently not an immutable absolute.

Simple example: while the official definition of an antique in the USA requires the item above all else to be a minimum of 100 years old, I discovered while working in that industry, in at least Texas, to many dealers and members of the public, not only did a genuine antique need to be only 50 years old, but the term could often be acceptably applied using more subjective criteria.

Let’s now look at knighthood…

Modern English knights such as Paul McCartney or Richard Branson are as 100% legitimately knights as any other in English history since all had the title legally bestowed upon them.

This is so despite the fact that their title now requires none of the medieval, martial expectations—there will be no Sir Paul McCartney “in shining armour”.

So what is “said to be” genuine can be subject to change.

And now let’s look at those genuine early koryu—whose members, even more than the medieval English knights, would have had a very high expectation of having to test their martial prowess in battle.

Today, these koryu earn the title of genuine through satisfying a couple of criteria:

First, the date they were founded and, second, that they have managed to maintain an unbroken transmission of their school’s teachings from that date.

The same critic who cited the genuine definition above also listed a few other possible and “less commonly” applied considerations:

Student teacher dynamics.

Being battle tested.

Peculiarities of Japanese Culture

Training syllabus

Training manner.

And, while not a criterion as such, he rightly said, it is extremely likely that a genuine koryu would appear in the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten—a highly respected listing of known koryu (“If it is a koryu, nine times out of ten the style should be listed in the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten” (http://www.koryu.com/library/wmuromoto4.html))

(btw, the translation I have of the Bugei Ryuha Daijiten does not include the name that my instructor used for our school—I guess it must be an example of that one out of ten times mentioned above!)

Now looking at the above criteria, what is interesting to me is that as with today’s English (well, British) knights, apparently there is no requirement for the development of combat prowess in the students of these surviving early koryu.

That being said, in the excellent Budo Perspectives (https://www.amazon.com/Budo-Perspectives-Alexander-Bennet/dp/4990169433) Meik Skoss (an extremely knowledgeable koryu adept and scholar) provides his own list of criteria that appears to both explicitly state and also infer that developing actual combat skills is a characteristic of a koryu:

“the classical Japanese martial  arts (koryu bujutsu) are usually:… 3. Primarily concerned with developing effective skills for battlefield combat and/or personal self-defense…4. Not amenable to sportive competition, by virtue of the skills and methods used to train warriors for combat…5. …a way of training body and mind in a way similar to that of their ancestors.”

And Diane Skoss in her Koryu Primer essay at koryu.com (http://www.koryu.com/koryu.html) states:

“A few traditions still exist that were actually used on the battlefields of pre-Tokugawa Japan, and in these systems effectiveness of the killing technique is still paramount.”

Further,

“For the most part, however, the techniques of the koryu still retain an element of danger; protective gear is typically not used. Safety is less important than efficacy; though wooden weapons are usually used in place of live steel blades, these can still do considerable damage if an error is made, and one learns to function out at the edge.”

However, I think it is telling that when in Mr. Skoss’ essay he addresses, “What attracts Americans (or Japanese) to the koryu”, he does not include in the possible attractions a desire to become competent fighters in any sense—whether for battle, dueling or bar-fighting. In fact, by stating that “classical martial arts are archaic methods of fighting, with little or no practical use in modern society”, Mr. Skoss is in my opinion clearly reflecting the lack of emphasis on practical skills in the koryu since the skills required to stand a chance of proficiency in a medieval melee most certainly can translate in many ways to other forms of fighting, and I believe Mr. Skoss would realize this if his training had been sufficiently practical in nature.

And while Ms. Skoss says, “in these systems effectiveness of the killing technique is still paramount” there is no indication that these techniques are practiced within a method that is geared towards enabling the students to successfully employ said techniques—“An element of danger” and having to function “out at the edge” while both potentially indicating high levels of risk could also, with respect, mean something far less extreme depending on the sensibilities of the student.

And the argument that these koryu no longer strive for combat-effectiveness is further  bolstered by the impression gained from watching virtually every demonstration available to the public of koryu (both early and later) and by reading 99.9% of the reliable English resources on the koryu.

Consequently, it is my conclusion that developing actual combat skill is of little more importance to the typical early koryu today than it is for the English to have Sir Elton John be proficient at jousting.

Karato Ryu, on the other hand, places huge emphasis on combat effectiveness in its methodology/regimen. Our primary goal is to train in a manner that recreates to a great degree the physical and psychological challenges that samurai would have faced not just in battle but also any other period form of combat.

So does that give Karato Ryu the right to say it is genuine?

For the critic cited above, the answer is obviously an impassioned and resounding “no”, and there are many, many others that feel the same way.

However, being genuine requires authenticity, since as the definition above reminded us:

“Genuine: ‘Truly what something is said to be; authentic’”

And here’s what the same dictionary says when defining authenticity: “Of undisputed origin and not a copy; genuine.”

Yep, that means koryu are authentic—and therefore genuine—and that Karato Ryu isn’t either one of those.

But another definition of authentic from the same dictionary is:

“Based on facts; accurate or reliable.” (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/authentic)

And yet another definition listed is:

“Made or done in the traditional or original way, or in a way that faithfully resembles an original.”

Now, it is inarguable that early koryu are today different from their original forms in any number of ways beyond the emphasis of developing combat proficient exponents.

As I state in Flawless Deception:

“The fact is that from the way the weapons are being wielded to the terminology being used both logic and observation suggests that there is almost nothing about an extant koryu that might not have been changed in some way since the Sengoku, and possibly quite drastically.”

(https://www.amazon.com/Flawless-Deception-behind-samurai-schools-ebook/dp/B014OMZ0EA)

Therefore, no koryu from the Sengoku Jidai (and probably any other period) is entirely authentic and by extension none are entirely genuine either.

So, “genuine” becomes a matter of which definition is applied.

So why not continue using that first definition? I don’t hear anybody in the koryu community grumbling about koryu being defined in this simple way.

For a start I think it is rather disingenuous. I don’t think there is any doubt that when most people hear that an early koryu (or any koryu) is “authentic” or “genuine” there is an assumption of a far greater degree of similarity to their original model than there actually is—especially as regards the techniques employed and the methodology.

However, I am not suggesting that the current need for either proof of age or of lineage/transmission be discarded, instead I am saying that both definitions should be utilized.

With that we can start talking about judging a genuine samurai martial art in terms of degrees of genuine and types of genuine, rather than with what is to my mind a rather simplistic, “yay” or “nay”.

And in addition, when determining any given early koryu’s genuine “score”, we should include whether or not, or how much, that koryu still attempts to make their students hypothetically capable of functioning effectively in a medieval-type combat.

But, hold on just a second! Isn’t this crazy idea of “fixing something that ain’t broke” merely a ruse to somehow justify the claim that Karato Ryu is, as the reviewer said, “more genuine than the real martial arts schools.”?

Well, here’s what our Page actually says:

“…more genuine in that it provides its students with training that is closer to the original model and which is far more able to create battle-ready warriors.”

So, not a general claim of being more genuine.

Yes, I think that Sengoku Jidai, koryu-taught samurai would be turning in their graves if they could see what their koryu have apparently become—martially speaking.

And yes, I think those same samurai if faced with the option of Karato Ryu’s method and regimen or that of other extant koryu (based on their image today), would choose ours every time.

And, finally, yes, if I could provide the required bona fides for Karato Ryu I think it would be more genuine than any other extant koryu that I am aware of—based on what is available to the public of their practices.

However, until I provide proof of both the age of Karato Ryu and that there has been unbroken, direct transmission of its teachings over the centuries, I have to conclude that those koryu that can do both those things will always be more genuine than Karato Ryu.

And yet despite that, I know that the version of genuine that Karato Ryu offers is not only considerably more preferable to myself and my students, but in my opinion the emphasis on combat practicality and prowess is an essential element in the maintenance of what is most valuable about the early koryu.

Please, Like our Page if you think we’re Genuine enough

(https://www.facebook.com/genuinesamuraimartialarts/?ref=page_internal)

Karato Ryu origins: the elephant in the room…

Providing a summary of my koryu experience is tricky and explaining why this is so will take a while, so please bear with me… if nothing else, you may well find what follows curious, maybe audacious and even, I hope, quite amusing.

But first, let me say it is perhaps difficult to appreciate how I could be even close to objective about something that I have devoted my life to for the last 43 years. The fact is that on a personal level I just don’t care much about where and when the training I received came from, in much the same way that I get just as much satisfaction from a reproduction suit of armor as I would an original. Beyond it being sufficiently faithful, I am far more concerned with whether the armor does its job than if it is old. Likewise the “koryu” I am a member of. This is because, first, I am confident that it allows students to quite accurately appreciate the physical and psychological rigors of medieval-like combat. Secondly, and more importantly for me, the training is not only endlessly challenging and thrilling it also inevitably brings about great positive change in its exponents.

Onward…

It’s not actually impossible that I have spent the last 43 years as a student of a school that was founded (as it claims) just after the Onin war—yeah, the 15th century Onin war. But, it’s also not impossible that what I have been taught dates back less than 50 years

What is most reasonable is that the truth lies somewhere between these two extremes.

That being said, at a glance, the “less than 50 years” scenario appears to be resoundingly (and pitifully) more likely.

First, I’ve never been to Japan and as far as I know neither had my instructor—we’re both English. My instructor claimed to have been taught by a Japanese Soke who was living in England in the 1960’s, but I never met said Soke and have zero proof that he existed. My instructor also claimed that he was in frequent contact with the family that owns the school, but again I have no evidence that that wasn’t a complete fib.  And if that wasn’t bad enough, even the name for the school I use was mostly made-up by me about 25 years ago AND I have never seen the name that my instructor used for the school mentioned anywhere.

Soooo, the school is obviously (laughably?) about as koryu as the name I gave it—Tenshu Shindo Karato Ryu (which is meant to be a pun on its own fakeness, fyi), right?

If only it were that simple! (Or maybe you’ll think it is even after you’ve finished reading this!)

First, if the school is a modern creation, then it must have been created for a reason and of course one reason would be to make money. However, Karato Ryu (KR) rules don’t allow this to happen.

First, it is traditional for the school to limit its instructors to around five students. Second, charging anything more than what’s needed to pay any rent for training facilities is not allowed—I do now charge a nominal fee, primarily to cover the time and materials required for me to build armor and weapons. Third, the keppan does not allow the unauthorized dissemination of any techniques and since I am no longer in contact with my instructor and he was the only link (alleged) to “the family”, I will not be getting any permission soon. [Yes, I have bent this rule by posting class photos & video of what I consider pretty generic technique on our Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/genuinesamuraimartialarts/)