“…after a short time, the father called out, this time for his second son, who was also quick to respond. He came to the door and immediately opened it. Out of the corner of his eye, he glimpsed the falling vase, and his action was swift and conclusive; nimbly and smoothly he leaped to one side, catching the vase in his arms. His startled eyes glanced around the room, questioning everyone and everything. Politely suppressing his instinct to cry out or ask about the vase, he turned to the door, shut it, and, after a moment of fumbling, managed to replace the vase to its original position. Bows were exchanged, whereas his father introduced him (to his guest) with the following words, “this is my second son. He doesn’t know very much, but he studies hard and is getting better and better every day.”
– The Three Sons, from The Karate Dojo, Sensei Peter Urban, 1967
A generally accepted spectrum of learning and skill development characterizes mindful and intentional execution of tasks or actions as “conscious competence.” As martial artists, especially studying the arts of Japan so deeply rooted in Zen Buddhism and it’s introspective pondering, this state of mind can be considered bushin, or “martial/warrior mind”.
Do you know someone with bushin? They are the go-getters, who have energetic and productive routines in different facets of life; in work, in exercise, and so on. They are proud of their progress, and are seen busily finding new ways to learn and grow. They’re comfortable with themselves and, like all of us, have lots to learn still. They are excited to be mastering parts of their lives.
Bushi (martial artist), having started with true shoshin, have studied the rudiments of their style. They have diligently practiced the minute technical details, applications, and are aware of their bodily mechanics. In true martially-minded fashion, they’ve prepared themselves to demonstrate calmness and preparedness in the face of adversity. Through training, they have developed grit and focus. In short, they know the right things to do at the right times. The beginning of a serious practice in the arts, usually after a commitment of a few years, will yield this sort of awareness and ability.
As adherents to a style of karate with deeply rooted morality, classical martial artists interweave their otherwise destructive martial craft with an understanding of conflict-resolution, and ultimately peace. Along the path, as these bushi mature in their style, the natural progression of skill is based more upon feeling, not rigid technical application; in this sense, it is easier to do the right thing according to the circumstances. They are starting to become far more aware and cognizant of themselves and others.
Having a state of bushin does not necessarily translate to being in a mode of a cold, medieval samurai, ever ready to draw katana at the slightest injustice. In fact, the Mandarin term for martial arts, wu shu 武术 (“wu” being the Mandarin Chinese root of the Japanese “bu”, as in bushin) can be translated into English as “to stop fighting/war”. The character ‘shu’, then goes on to imply skill and experience. To summarize, the Chinese umbrella term for martial arts implies the same thing as warrior morality in our Japanese budo, and the great paradox of classical/traditional martial arts study; preventing war by becoming warriors.
If shoshin is a true beginner’s state of humility, and bushin warrior mentality is one of nobility, we’ll go full circle and examine an even higher yet more humble state of mind in our next Kaze Hatsu blog post.
Until next time,
Mr. Kenney McCoy (Nidan)