Reigi - is it just about bowing?

Recently, we have had a few new people try our old-school, Japanese martial art; Takamura-ha Shindo Yoshin Ryu.

For us, this is rare. We don't strongly advertise, my sensei prefers that people search us out. We are known in the local community as those guys who swing swords around on week nights, especially in the darker months where the dojo lights highlight our presence in the neighbourhood. We train out of a karate dojo so families and students of karate classes sometimes see us as they pass through as well. Other than a website, that's it for advertising.

So when people turn up to train, they have usually done a little bit of research on what we are all about. Even then, sensei is straight-up with them. He tells them that our training is relentless but issues no belts and new people start with basic movements they must repeat over and over again. We prefer people who have at least accomplished a black belt in another martial art but we make exceptions based on character and commitment.

Two of the new folk are father and son. They are continuing to train despite the grind, they have been with us for a few weeks and its nice to have new bodies on the mat. However, as a senior student of the dojo, I have a job to do - to set their reigi right.
Ellis Amdur (an author I am a big fan of) says this, "Martial arts are a laboratory for real life, not ‘real life’ in themselves. Through martial arts practice, we learn how we respond to force, how to deal with less than perfect training partners, and how to react to things that we are taught, that don’t seem to make sense. We are expected to bow to each other, to our teacher(s) and to such things as a photograph of a teacher, a scroll with some words or the name of a deity, even though we don’t do that in real life. (And regarding this last phrase, there is a Biblical commandment against bowing to idols)."

For people new to the Japanese martial arts, this can be weird. Bowing, especially to pictures of dead people and scrolls, is strange to a Westerner. In TSYR this is even stranger as more archaic practices must be adhered to that come from a time when Japan was a feudal society.

Years ago, while I was still training at my aikido dojo, we had a woman who really enjoyed training with us. She felt empowered and was learning quickly. Then one day she walked in and said to my sensei that she had to stop training because her husband discovered she was bowing to a picture of Morihei Ueshiba (the founder of the art) and as they were Christian, this had to stop. Christians don't bow to false idols.

Unfortunately, we lost a good student due to cultural differences.

This etiquette (or correctness) is called reigi in Japanese. A large part of reigi is the bow, but it is not everything. There is more to it. In TSYR, when you become a deshi (student) you take on the responsibility of representing the kai (martial school). You must behave in accordance to kai rules and not put the school in disrepute.

Reigi helps determine social hierarchy in a dojo. There is a strict vertical authority with the headmaster of the school at the top. Juniors should be respectful of seniors and seniors should treat juniors in a manner consistent with the best interests of the kai. This means being considerate and nurturing when needed, or telling them the rules when they don't know them or break them.

The social climate in a koryu dojo is a subtle one. No one is barking orders and counting out repetitions. Students watch their teacher and their seniors carefully, watching for cues on how to behave. This leads to a natural situational awareness. Students will go about doing small chores if they need to be done, before and after training. They look for what needs to be done, they don't get told what to do, it is expected they will watch and learn. I had a junior student take a mop bucket out of my hands the other day and said, "I'll get that." He removed one chore from me. He was showing his willingness to contribute, I didn't ask him to take the bucket from me, in fact, I was quite happy to do the chore. His action spoke volumes about his character though. This is important. The students who sit about while others look to the cleanliness of the dojo won't last long with us.

Takamura sensei had this to say on reigi, "Acceptance or rejection of proper dojo etiquette can expose a student's dedication or shortcomings to a sensei. The student who refuses to embrace reigi is not suitable for continued training because he ultimately views his own opinions and desires as superior to the aims of the ryu."

So, let me take you back to talking about the father and son who have joined us recently. The son, by the way is about 20, so they are both adults. I noticed that the son came to the dojo last time without wearing shoes. He walked in off the street in bare feet. For us, that is a problem. This means he is walking the outside filth onto our mats. Up until this point, both father and son have been respectful in everything they have done. The father, in particular, has had experience in another martial art and often bows in acknowledgement of a comment or when greeting us. The son knows to bow onto and off the mat. It wasn't till they were leaving that I also noticed the father walking barefoot to his car. As a senior student of the dojo, I had to put this right. So I called the father over and told him that I noticed he was not wearing footwear outside. He said, "Oh, they are in the car." I then explained to him the importance of keeping one's feet clean until entering the dojo space. He accepted it and went on his way. If I was to not bring this up, then I would have been at fault, not the father and son. They may not have known any better, but I did and had to address it.

People think they are coming to our dojo to learn how to fight with a sword. They are coming to do so much more than that in a Koryu bujutsu. They are coming to sharpen their minds, develop situational awareness and dedicate themselves to an alien way of being and thinking, from a time that held the group cohesion above an individual's needs. Some Westerners can accept this while others cannot. I guess, at the end of the day it comes down to how bad you really want to be a part of this old martial tradition.




Train safe!