Darzeka
25-Aug-2002, 01:07 PM
Has anyone else heard of Shu Ha Ri?
It pertains to the thinking behind the art I am learning.
It is process of how we learn and then learn to relate to our environment and ultimately spontaneaity.
quick definition of environment. - The immediate area around you that can possibly interact with you. Look around your environment. Everything there is unique to that instant. This includes people, objects, everything.
First let me ask a simple question.
When do you stop concentrating on learning techniques?
Is there a point where you realise that after there all you will learn will be variations and combintaions?
Because you could spend eternity learning different techniques and still have an eternity of eternities of learing before you could learn them all.
Essentially my point is this - you cannot learn every single technique possible.
Why do you learn a technique? to relate it to a situation or environment (a better term I think). You learn this punch which will work under these conditions.
But how many environments will this technique relate to? 1?, 2?, 46?, 347? We don't know.
How many different environments are there? it is limitless. There are an infinite number of different environments (situations or scenarios).
Why then do try to learn 5 billion techniques to try to cover them all?
At best trying this you could learn enough techniques that something will roughly relate to the current environment and thu you will perform this.
Why not just learn a few basic principles that can be changed to suit the environment? Where would you draw the line at these basics?
Here we enter the Shu journey. You are always on the Shu journey but it changes emphasis later on.
Where you learn many techniques.
These techniques are not the be all and end all of techniques.
They are meant to be a platform if you will to launch your mind from when you are required to respond to an environment.
It is here that you will become proficient with your body, come to understand it and realise what will work and what won't.
We train all apsects of the body and mind to be at what we think is the peak condition for us.
You also begin a limited exploration of looking to your environment. The obvious one is your Dojo. Four walls and a roof. Everything inside it. All the people you train with.
But it is a controlled environment where most of the factors are kind to us.
You can only go so farand learn only a certain number of techniques before you realise that the possibilites are endless.
So we begin to introduce the Ha journey.
this is the letting go stage.
You realise that although we have learnt a finite number of techniques that the body is dynamic and one kick is much like another.
We begin to let go of the word technique and use the training of our body to allow us to flow. You begin to realise that you need to relate to your environment. Yes I can punch and yes it is a good punch but if I havn't realted it to the environment then I am merely waving my arm in the air.
You experiment with your environment, change it, introduce different factors - multiple opponents, uneven ground, obstacles (again it is limitless). You let go of your techniques merely relate to the environment.
Again a change in the journey. The Ri journey.
Opening up. Spontenaeity. Mushin (I think I spelled it right - means no thought anyway).
You have come to terms with your need to relate to the environment and that you merely need to respond accordingly.
There is no right, wrong, good or bad. Merely different.
The environment changes and so do you.
but instead of executing a technique you merely flow with the environment, blending with it, not trying to control it to where you can do something.
eventually with all your training you will be able to blend seemlessly with the environmet.
What comes next? No-one knows for none have ever been.
that is what I look towards and why I continue.
The journey is not strict, rulebound or rigid. It too flows. You may learn 2 techniques before begining to let go of them or you may learn 2000. It does not matter. All you need to do is learn that which you need before begining to let go.
The syllabuses we learn are rigid in that we need to be able to show the techniques required but we need not wait until we have reached a certain point before we may begin to let go and open up.
For what good would it do to only know techniques that relate to a few environments? But learning those same techniques and then proceeding to relate them to a multitude of different environments is the goal and is encouraged.
Today we had a "camp" where this was discussed and we did many excercises that helped our understanding of what was intented by the art. It has helped me immensly and sparked this post.
Hopefully I will have some photos soon so that I can show you all.
I hope that I have given you the sparks of many questions which you can ponder about and come to your understanding of what you seek.
The most important thought ever thought by any entity is
why?
It pertains to the thinking behind the art I am learning.
It is process of how we learn and then learn to relate to our environment and ultimately spontaneaity.
quick definition of environment. - The immediate area around you that can possibly interact with you. Look around your environment. Everything there is unique to that instant. This includes people, objects, everything.
First let me ask a simple question.
When do you stop concentrating on learning techniques?
Is there a point where you realise that after there all you will learn will be variations and combintaions?
Because you could spend eternity learning different techniques and still have an eternity of eternities of learing before you could learn them all.
Essentially my point is this - you cannot learn every single technique possible.
Why do you learn a technique? to relate it to a situation or environment (a better term I think). You learn this punch which will work under these conditions.
But how many environments will this technique relate to? 1?, 2?, 46?, 347? We don't know.
How many different environments are there? it is limitless. There are an infinite number of different environments (situations or scenarios).
Why then do try to learn 5 billion techniques to try to cover them all?
At best trying this you could learn enough techniques that something will roughly relate to the current environment and thu you will perform this.
Why not just learn a few basic principles that can be changed to suit the environment? Where would you draw the line at these basics?
Here we enter the Shu journey. You are always on the Shu journey but it changes emphasis later on.
Where you learn many techniques.
These techniques are not the be all and end all of techniques.
They are meant to be a platform if you will to launch your mind from when you are required to respond to an environment.
It is here that you will become proficient with your body, come to understand it and realise what will work and what won't.
We train all apsects of the body and mind to be at what we think is the peak condition for us.
You also begin a limited exploration of looking to your environment. The obvious one is your Dojo. Four walls and a roof. Everything inside it. All the people you train with.
But it is a controlled environment where most of the factors are kind to us.
You can only go so farand learn only a certain number of techniques before you realise that the possibilites are endless.
So we begin to introduce the Ha journey.
this is the letting go stage.
You realise that although we have learnt a finite number of techniques that the body is dynamic and one kick is much like another.
We begin to let go of the word technique and use the training of our body to allow us to flow. You begin to realise that you need to relate to your environment. Yes I can punch and yes it is a good punch but if I havn't realted it to the environment then I am merely waving my arm in the air.
You experiment with your environment, change it, introduce different factors - multiple opponents, uneven ground, obstacles (again it is limitless). You let go of your techniques merely relate to the environment.
Again a change in the journey. The Ri journey.
Opening up. Spontenaeity. Mushin (I think I spelled it right - means no thought anyway).
You have come to terms with your need to relate to the environment and that you merely need to respond accordingly.
There is no right, wrong, good or bad. Merely different.
The environment changes and so do you.
but instead of executing a technique you merely flow with the environment, blending with it, not trying to control it to where you can do something.
eventually with all your training you will be able to blend seemlessly with the environmet.
What comes next? No-one knows for none have ever been.
that is what I look towards and why I continue.
The journey is not strict, rulebound or rigid. It too flows. You may learn 2 techniques before begining to let go of them or you may learn 2000. It does not matter. All you need to do is learn that which you need before begining to let go.
The syllabuses we learn are rigid in that we need to be able to show the techniques required but we need not wait until we have reached a certain point before we may begin to let go and open up.
For what good would it do to only know techniques that relate to a few environments? But learning those same techniques and then proceeding to relate them to a multitude of different environments is the goal and is encouraged.
Today we had a "camp" where this was discussed and we did many excercises that helped our understanding of what was intented by the art. It has helped me immensly and sparked this post.
Hopefully I will have some photos soon so that I can show you all.
I hope that I have given you the sparks of many questions which you can ponder about and come to your understanding of what you seek.
The most important thought ever thought by any entity is
why?