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Reflections
of Frontline Dojos in Asia
Article I
A Story of Zen no Aikido * and Bananas
By Gaku Homma, Nippon
Kan Kancho
March 20th, 2006
This first article was written from an outline
of Homma Kancho’s
teachings at a special fundraising seminar for orphanage
support in Bangladesh held at Nippon Kan Headquarters March
18th, 2006.
*The word Zen in the title of this article
does not refer to Zen Buddhism. The Japanese character is written
differently
and translates
as “virtuous and respectable.”
I have written
before, “People create the martial arts, martial
arts do not create people.” Teachers and students
together nurture each other and each grows in the process.
If we are to
more deeply understand the martial arts and ourselves we
need to pursue our study through practice. Our training
must be diligent
and never ending. This is shuygo. Even someone who has
become a
famous instructor with their own organization must practice.
If one does not practice shuygo with diligence there will
never true
understanding.
Sokaku Takeda, Founder of Daito Ryu Aiki
Jujitsu, was a teacher who traveled throughout Japan teaching
his art
until his
last days in the countryside of Aomori Prefecture. Aikido
Founder
Morihei
Ueshiba from his days as a young man until the end of his
life worked hard, practiced, and studied. His life was
tumultuous at times with many successes and many failures.
Today you can find Aikido dojos in countries all
over the world, and it is said commonly said that the Founder’s
life was a great success. The late Morihiro Saito Shihan 9th
Dan,
who lived with the Founder from 1946 until the Founder’s
death in 1969 had a deeper insight. “Toward the end of
the Founder’s
life, his students only knew the public image of a great
man,” said
Saito Shihan. “They did not understand the truth
of his life. In truth, the Founder faced many hardships,
much loneliness and
disappointment in his life. I remember times when the
Founder was forced to use donations left on the dojo
shrine (tamagushi) to
buy food, and relied on rice that was given to him by
the families of students to survive.” This testimonial
by Saito Shihan on the life of the Founder speaks to
aspects of the Founder’s
life that are not written about in most biographies.
These two martial artists, both Sokaku Takeda and
Morihei Ueshiba lived difficult lives. Today their names are
legendary, but
what lies at the heart of their success is their constant
dedication to shugyo. Both men accepted hardships as
part of their practice
and did not retreat. They worked through their difficulties
as
part of their life training.
So how do we approach our
practice of Aikido. Some Aikidoka may not care to hear my opinions
on the subject, wanting
to do things
their own way. Doing things “your own way” seems
to be a current mood in our Aikido society today. For
some instructors
and students, Aikido is mostly about “magic and
miracles”,
not hard work and training and these people are usually
interested only in their own perception of Aikido.
A Zen Buddhist Master (roshi) once told
a story to his young students about the moment he achieved enlightenment. “One
evening as I was walking in the moonlight through the
temple gardens, I
hit my shinbone on a rock. It was at that very instant
that I achieved enlightenment.”
The next evening,
all of the young monks in training could be found in
the garden hitting their shins against
the
rocks.
If you give bananas to wild monkeys they will
never learn to find bananas for themselves. The message of
the story
the roshi told
the young monks is that true enlightenment is a personal
experience. The story is a Zen Buddhist joke of sorts,
a teaching parable.
It was the master’s way of teaching the monkeys
to find their own bananas.
After returning from a
one-month teaching tour of Nepal, India, Bangladesh
and Mongolia, I sat at my
desk staring
at the mountain
of mail that had accumulated
in my absence. As I began to sort through it I noticed a flyer
for a summer Aikido seminar in the mountains. It
struck
me that
this advertisement
had been sent
out quite early which meant either business was good or there was
a little desperation in this mailing and business
had not
been so
good of late.
I thought about these seminars and
how expensive they can be — seminar fees, transportation,
food and lodging
expenses
can add up. People spend a great
deal to attend these seminars and fulfill their personal dreams.
It is true that there
are many rocks in the mountains, but as the roshi taught his
students, “Hitting
your shinbones on the rocks does not guarantee enlightenment.”
Every
time I travel I become more convinced that there’s more
to be learned by experiencing the world than by attending a
seminar. I have had the chance
during my travels to meet people as wise as the roshi mentioned
in this article. I have known martial artists in developing
nations whose Aikido practice and
instruction is serious, dedicated, and pure. I have discovered
that there is much to learn from those who are living on the “front
lines” in
countries and in conditions that many people cannot even imagine.
BANGLADESH
On this tour, the third country I visited was Bangladesh. It
was in Bangladesh that I discovered a love and consideration
for others,
a
caring and personal
peace in the people I met that stood out vividly against
the harshness of life there. The martial artists I met in
Bangladesh
correctly
understood their position
in their community and what they had to offer to the young
and to the future of their country. They understood the educational
value
(kyozai) of the
martial
arts and were dedicated to creating a foundation for those
that
will follow them. Their approach toward their own practice
and their teaching
was very
different
from what I have seen in other more “developed” countries,
and I would like to explain what I discovered about the martial
artists on this
journey
to you.
The martial artists I met in Bangladesh truly understood
that the power of a nation can be raised by supporting and
developing
its
young people.
They
were
correct in their position that education was the foundation
for the future, not the pursuit of personal magic or power.
Their
actions were filled
with a grace
and sense of purpose that I have not seen.
THE JOURNEY TO BANGLADESH
Six hundred kilometers north of India’s capital city
of New Delhi is the town of Dharmasala. Dharmasala is the home
of the Dalai Llama, the exiled
leader
of Tibet and the Sukurakan temple. It was here that I
left the other members of our tour and started the journey
forward alone. (link here to Nippon Kan
delegation visits Nepal and India, January-March Activity
Report 2006)
I took the night train south. In the early morning
hours I found myself sitting on the open deck between the
rail cars
staring
out at the countryside
as
the train slowly made its way back towards New Delhi.
I suddenly realized that three
hours had passed as I sat watching life in the India
outback roll by.
Before this trip I had felt like I
had seen and done many things, and that not much could surprise
me. In
my mind
I could find
an appropriate place
to file
similar experiences or feelings and had my own order
for the world. This trip had already changed my perspective
and the
journey had
only
just
begun. Scenes
of life jumped out of the morning fog that had no
place of order in my mind. So many images danced before me
that
I
soon even
lost my sense
of time.
From New Delhi I boarded the plane for Bangladesh,
my brain still swimming with images of India. “I
still can’t organize my thoughts” I
said to myself. I realized what a small person I
had been; standing all the while
on the hand of Buddha while thinking I knew everything
there was to know. I laughed at myself, thinking
how much more there was to learn.
The flight only
took one hour and forty minutes. From the window
as we descended toward the airport
in Dhaka,
I looked
out at
what must
have
been fifty huge
smoke stacks of what I was to learn were brick factories
dotting the land below. Once
when landing in Managua, Nicaragua I was surprised
by the abandoned cannon bunkers that lined the runways
on
our
approach. I hope,
I thought to
myself jokingly
that these chimneys were not full of missiles!
The
plane landed at Zia International Airport in Dhaka, and I was
met by Shaaeekh (Maji) and company,
who had
originally invited
me to Bangladesh.
Maji attends
the university in Dhaka and lives with his parents
who own
a hotel
adjacent to the Kamlapur Central Train Station.
View of Kamlapur Station from
Sea Land Hotel operated by Maji’s family. |
On our way from the airport, Maji introduced himself
and then said quietly “Bangladesh
is a pretty poor country.” I heard what he
said, but I said nothing, letting his comment pass.
In other developing nations I have visited in different
parts
of the world I have heard that said many times.
It is a difficult subject to
respond to.
By what measure do we judge what is
rich and what is poor? As I looked around while
we made our way
to the
hotel,
I saw markets
filled with
vegetables, meats, fish, fruits, clothing, decorations,
crafts etc. Bangladesh had
electricity,
schools, festivals, celebrations and a religious
presence in the
people that seemed manifest in every aspect of
their daily lives. By the standards
of
others,
the people I was meeting on this trip may not have
a lot of monetary wealth, but they possessed a
richness of heart
that
is evident
in the way they
take care of those less fortunate around them.
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| A bountiful harvest in Bangladesh |
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| Butcher shop row in Dhaka. |
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Very friendly people! |
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| Traditional Bangladeshi hats (topi) for
sale. |
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Speakers for sale, used for broadcasting
prayers at the many mosques. |
Some of us that live in “developed” countries
might use an international monetary standard to measure and
rank countries by their economic wealth, drawing
a line somewhere in the list designating countries
as “developed” and
others as “developing” or “poor.” These
distinctions and labels I feel are not fair. It
is difficult to judge all cultures by only
one standard.
In Dhaka, Bangladesh, a two liter
bottle of mineral water costs 3 cents (U.S.), and
a haircut at the
local barber
shop costs
4 cents
(U.S.).
In the United
States, that same bottle of water might cost $2.50
or more, and even a cheap haircut
these days runs about $15.00. It is difficult to
compare the numbers unilaterally.
Sometimes travelers
revel in how “cheap things are!” in certain countries
compared to their country of origin which can
be quite inconsiderate to the local population of the country
they
are visiting. Each country has its own economic
reality and I think it is important to respect
each countries individual standard of living. To do this, we
need to look beyond a price tag to the all of the factors
and conditions involved and appreciate the hospitality
that is being offered, not how much it costs by our standards.
Just because we might spend $2.50 for
a bottle of water where it might cost 3 cents
elsewhere does not qualify our country as being “rich.” I
think Maji should be quite proud of the fact that a bottle
of water costs 3 cents in Bangladesh!
A FATHER’S
INSIGHT
Majis family. Left:Homma
Kancho, Front center: MD Matitar Rahman Sarkar,
Front right
Shaaeekh (Maji).
Maji’s father, Mr. MD Matitar
Rahman Sakar is a retired Deputy Secretary for
the government of Bangladesh. Mr. Sakar was very
involved in Bangladesh’s
independence from Pakistan and the development
of this emerging nation during his career. During
a visit, we sat down to chat. Mr. Sarkar spoke
softly in perfect
English as he told me about the current situation
in Bangladesh. He also said, “I
am familiar with the story of the life of the
Founder of Aikido, Morihei Ueshiba, and I find
it very interesting. His life did not always
go smoothly, and his
accomplishments were not always easy to come
by. He had many successes but also he suffered
many defeats and failures as well. That, is one
of the reasons I
admire him. Today the martial art of Aikido is
practiced all over the world as a result of his
life’s efforts. I want my
son to understand the life of the Founder and
learn from Aikido. The struggles the Founder
faced in
his
life
are very much like the struggles we face here
in Bangledesh. The more my son understands the
life
and art of the Founder Ueshiba, the more prepared
he will
be to deal with life in Bangladesh both now and
in the future.
Training and mastering a martial
art is not easy. I think you understand that.” Mr.
Sakar said with a big smile. “Aikido does
not have tournaments nor does it promote fighting.
It has this teaching in common with teachings
of Islam.
For this I respect this art very much.”
For
Mr. Sakar to wish the same kind of life experience
as the Founder for his son reflected on his wisdom
and his years
of
service to
his own country.
I respected
his words and point of view very much.
A DIFFERENT
POINT OF VIEW
Martial artists I met in these developing nations
seem to seek and find something in their practice
that we
miss; and
they
practice very hard.
Supporters,
educators, even governments in the countries
I visited look to the
martial arts as a form
of education for their young people. In less
than ideal practice conditions, in less than
comfortable
living
conditions, instructors
that I met
on this journey are devoted to their art and
its teaching, and, they are
supported
by their communities.
As Maji’s father
indicated, many of the martial artists I met
in Nepal, Bangladesh and Mongolia identify
their own life struggles with the life of the
Founder Ueshiba. They identified with his spirit.
It is the Founder’s life
that is a primary inspiration. The art of Aikido
is secondary. Instinctively these martial artists
understand the opening sentence of this article, “People
create the martial arts, martial arts do not
create people.” In their understanding,
it is the character of the man first, then
his work. If the Founder’s
work had been something else than Aikido it
would be of less consequence, it is how
he dealt with his life that is important to
them. They study the way of the life of Morihei
Ueshiba
to understand Aikido. They do not take his
art of Aikido
and
try to dissect it to find its meaning and the
man behind it.
Nain
Sensei and his wonderful students.
For three
mornings in Bangladesh, I visited a private school in Dhaka
named the Paris International
School.
The name
infers a school
that
is quite
well off,
but even the Principal Mr. Hossan described
his
school as “a very poor
school indeed.”
Principal Hossan opened the Paris International
School in 1970, and has been providing morning
and afternoon
classes daily
ever since.
The Paris
International
School has about 300 students that range
in age from two and a half to ten years of
age.
There
are twelve
teachers
at the
school,
and
monthly tuition
for students
is $8.00. “I do not receive any financial
assistance from the government” said
Principal Hossan with a mixture of pride
and a little sadness.
Every morning before
classes, martial arts
are taught in the courtyard by A.B Z. Nain
Sensei
who has been
teaching at the
Paris International
School
for
nine years. The bricks that pave the courtyard
are uneven and in bad repair yet the
children practice diligently every morning
in bare feet. “Every child is
my child.” said Nain Sensei.
Nain Sensei’s
primary occupation is in the meat exporting
industry. He and all of the other
adults that help out with morning practice
volunteer their
time before they go to work in the mornings.
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| Paris International School. |
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School building. |
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| Sitting with mothers on the sidelines watching
morning practice. |
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School begins at the sound of the bell! |
I truly enjoyed teaching and practicing together
with the students at the Paris International
School. The
children were so innocent,
well behaved
and eager
to learn that it was a delightful experience.
After practice, I was invited to the
principal’s office for tea and steamed bread made from rice flour. It was
a simple treat, but quite enjoyable after an early morning practice. Over tea
I listened to the principal and teachers and through their words I could feel
their sense of purpose in teaching the martial arts as part of the education
they offer to the children. I thought their understanding of the importance of
the training was profound. I was also surprised to discover that they too were
familiar with the life of the Founder Ueshiba and knew a great deal about his
adventures and misadventures. They discussed what had happened in the Founder’s
life and were able to relate some of his
experiences with their own.
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| Right: Nein Sensei, Left: Principal Hossan |
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Talking in the principal’s office |
OSHIN
There is a famous TV drama in Japan called
Oshin. This drama has been translated into
scores of
different languages and
has a following
in
over fifty-nine
countries. Especially in Asia, this drama
is a big hit. The drama Oshin is set in the
Japanese countryside about 100 years ago,
much
as Japan
was during the Founder’s
lifetime. At that time in history, Japan
was a developing nation too. The heroine
of the story
is a woman named Oshin who came from very
meager beginnings. Oshin
had a very hard life filled with many struggles.
In the drama, through her own grit and determination
Oshin overcomes all obstacles to become the
owner of a
large supermarket chain.
In Asia, the heroine
of this drama is widely popular. Many people
can relate to Oshin’s experiences,
her meager beginnings, and her drive for
success. It is a story that offers hope that
anyone can make it if they try. Even the
name Oshin has become a popular cry when
doing something physically demanding to gather
strength and energy. Parents council their
children “remember
Oshin and be strong!” In towns and
villages all over Asia it is still common
for everyone to
gather around the television to watch Oshin;
even if
there is
only one television in town!
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| Homma Kancho with students. |
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Six passenger school bus rickshaw! |
The Principal Hossan and his
staff were all fans of Oshin and likened the Founder Ueshiba’s
life struggles to hers. They took direction from the Founder’s
life like the point on a compass, and it
was remarkable to me that someone like the
Founder who had been
so influential in my own life had affected
this group
of school teachers in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The understanding of the Founder’s life by
the martial artists I had met on this trip is very different
than the understanding
of the Founder and Aikido
I have heard from Aikidoka in developed
countries like the United States, Canada, England, France etc.
In many
cases Aikidoka in these developed countries seek
to find in Aikido something for their own
personal development. They practice Aikido for their heath,
for self defense, to find love and harmony. They search
to develop their ki, to become successful
in business and even to improve their golf game. The practice
of Aikido for these Aikidoka is a means to get something
else from its practice. “I want this,
I need this, and Aikido will help me get
the things I want to become successful
and profitable.” This
is the battle cry of some Aikidoka I have
heard. The needle of this compass points
in a completely different direction than
the needle on the compass that guides the
martial artists
I met in Bangladesh and Nepal.
I found that
I very much respected Nain Sensei and the
others for their respect
for the
Founder and
the purity
of their
practice spirit in
such challenging
conditions.
Quasi
Sensei pitches in as a role model for the young.
In the evenings
I went to visit Kazi M. Quasi Sensei’s dojo in a wealthier
area of Bangladesh. Quasi Sensei was
educated in the United States and is a successful businessman
in the Dhaka garment industry. His property houses the dojo
he opened
for young people in the area to come
and practice the martial arts. Quasi Sensei trained in Wado
Karate in the United States and teaches Karate to his students
at his dojo. He is not a member of
any
local martial arts association or organization as he is not
interested in position, honors or the regulations that accompany
them. Quasi Sensei is busy with his
own
practice and the teaching of his students. This dojo is also
open to the practice of Aikido. In the Bangladesh community
he is one person who understands and
supports its practice. Quasi Sensei said, “I
opened this dojo for the young people
and their future in Bangladesh.”
After the first evening
practice, as we left the dojo, I was surprised to
see a
fleet
of luxury cars (complete
with
drivers)
lined up
outside. They
were
all there to take the students home
after practice. After the students had left
Maji and I hopped into a bicycle
rickshaw. I
turned to Maji and said, “Wow
the students were all picked up in
such nice cars and with chauffeurs
no less!” Maji
replied, “We have a chauffeur
too!” nodding
toward our rickshaw driver. This
made me laugh as we headed toward
the crowded
main
street leading
back into
the heart of Dhaka.
Maji continued
quietly in a matter of fact tone
during the ride, “The people
that are rich here hire people to
work for them which allows for many
people to be able to take care of
their own families. In this way they
are helping people
too.” As we rode, I remembered
that I had heard this said before
in Brazil, Nicaragua,
Mexico
and other countries. It made sense.
Those with wealth supported
their community and their local economies
by hiring chefs, gardeners, house
keepers, drivers, mechanics,
etc. Those that are hired can in
turn help support others.
In this way, the hiring of every
person brings goodness not only to
those hired
but also to the ones who are able
to do the hiring. There are of course
inherent problems
in all countries
where there is a vast distance between
the rich and
the poor, but in a country like Bangladesh
where the government is still incapable
of supporting
the problems of the indigent, this
kind of hiring system is a
way for a community to care for its
own.
AHAN IN BANGLADESH
Children
lined up waiting for lunch. Right:
Ven. Suddhananda
Mahathero
Maji took me to visit
the Dharmarajika Buddhist Temple. This was our first
step in doing
research for the
beginnings of
AHAN (Aikido
Humanitarian
Active Network)
Bangladesh. At the Dharmarajika
Buddist temple over 500 orphaned
boys are
clothed, housed and fed. Taking
care of this many children on
a daily
basis is
a daunting
task. We were told that it took
160 kilos of rice alone to keep
the orphans
fed.
Without the help
of many people
in
the Dhaka
community this would
be an impossible
task.
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| Temple kitchen facility. |
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Volunteers in the kitchen. |
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| Children waiting for lunch to be served. |
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A mound of rice with sliced daikon (radish)
salted curry soup. |
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| Mealtime is a favorite with the kids! |
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Homma Kancho in the children’s living
quarters. |
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| Young boy teaching himself. |
Maji and I also visited the Tara
Majsid Madrasah Islamic Mosque,
which also
cares for about
150 orphaned boys.
At the Dharmarajika
Buddhist
Temple and
the Tara
Mosque the support of individuals
in the community is vital to
the survival
of these
children.
At both facilities
I
saw many
people that were volunteering
their
time to help. I watched with
my own eyes as volunteers cooked,
cleaned,
washed and taught the children
under their care. It touched
my
heart to
see
how
rich the hearts of the Bangladesh
people are, manifest in the way
they care
for and help each other.
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| Boys studying at the Tara Mosque orphanage
facility. |
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Homma Kancho with their teachers. |
When I first sat down to write
this article, I found it difficult
to
describe the
experiences I had in
Bangladesh. I “hit the
wall” as
they say. I did not want to write
anything about my
experiences in this country I
had been invited to visit that
might
give the wrong impression or
cause a misunderstanding.
Of
course, everything I saw in Bangladesh
was not completely
positive. I met
people who told
me about
terrorists
who operated in their
country and
others
that complained bitterly about
the caste system that still bound
people
to generations
of servitude
or
worse. Poverty
and misery
were prevalent
in some
places and were
specifically pointed out to me
at times. One question that still
remains
for
me is; what
happened to
the orphaned little girls?
I did not see
any in the
orphanages I had visited…
A
scene remains in my memory of
a five-year-old boy with no
arms
or
legs sitting in
a cart in the street.
He was
begging loudly
for anything
that
might come his
way from those passing by. That
little boy affected me greatly.
Because I saw these things I know that this is
part of life here,
but to judge
Bangladesh
using
my life
experience
as
the measure,
I feel
is unjust.
I think
it is better to focus on the
good of the people of this country
that
are
working for the future
of their
people.
Energy is
better spent
to support
and confirm
their convictions and their actions.
Some
of the images in my mind I will
keep forever, and some
day I hope
we can look
back
and marvel
at
how far
things have
come. The people of Bangladesh
like Oshin and
the Founder Ueshiba struggle
against many obstacles to reach
their
goals. We stand
in support of
their efforts and
hope to be able to help in any
way we can.
ZEN NO AIKIDO
I feel I have an obligation to
the Aikidoka I have met who
pursue their
art in less
than ideal
conditions
with
dignity.
My obligation
I believe
is to
practice
and teach Zen no Aikido. I
am not referring to Zen Buddhism
here.
Zen, in this
instance translates
as
being virtuous
and respectable
or pure.
For me, becoming sidetracked
by some of the trappings of
Aikido like designer
keiko
gi and hakama, $300.00 bokken
and jo sets,
designer
bags and expensive
retreats are not part of Zen
no
Aikido. To grow lazy in one’s
practice, to forget to study
or face new challenges is not
Zen no Aikido either. To just
punch the clock when teaching
Aikido or teach Aikido by capitalizing
on flowery
phrases or movies of violent
Aikido fiction is not the kind
of Aikido I wish to share with
the martial artists I have
met on the “front
lines.”
If you believe
that Aikido is the martial
art of love
and harmony
in the world,
yet practice
this
concept
by sitting
in front
of the dojo
altar
and praying
for peace, it will forever
be illusive.
We must as individuals stand
up, turn around and look to
the Aikidoka
who
practice without
all these trappings of our “civilized” world,
to the Aikidoka that practice
sometimes even without a mat
available within
their means.
This summer instead of signing
up for another expensive seminar-retreat,
think about
what you might be
able to share with our fellow
Aikidoka in developing nations.
Discuss
ideas with your dojo friends;
there are things
that you
can
do. By taking even a small
step, there
is so much we can learn about
Zen no Aikido in our
own lives.
Where
you used
to pay
to be given
bananas, you can find the
bananas yourself.
As a small
independent organization, Nippon Kan General Headquarters
is involved humanitarian
projects in
many parts of the world.
We have developed
these
projects to help us understand
the meaning of
Zen no Aikido, and we have
made many friends along the
way. For
a dojo
to grow and be
happy, I think it is more important
to think about
what you
can share
and give
to
others
than what you might
want for yourself.
*****
To the martial artists in Nepal,
India, Bangladesh and Mongolia,
this is only
a small part of
what I learned from all of
you on this journey.
I
sincerely thank
everyone for sharing with
me, and I hope to see all of
you again very soon.
*Permission
was granted for the use of all the photos
in this
article, especially
the
photos
taken at the
orphanage facilities
in Bangladesh.
,
March 20th, 2006
Gaku Homma, Nippon Kan
Kancho
ARTICLE II
Martial Artists in Kathmandu,
Nepal
In the pre-dawn
hours in Kathmandu, the streets
are lit by methane
torches. Yak
butter candles
shed frail
light
in the
internal
darkness of the shops
and temples
that line the awakening
streets. As shopkeepers
and homemakers
begin to
stir, five hundred
to one thousand
young people
gather at the
Rangasala Soccer
Stadium each day. These
young people are not
gathering
there as the
sun begins to
rise
to play the game of soccer.
The space underneath the stadium, where concessions
and restrooms
would be,
is divided into small
individual spaces that
happen not to be fitted
with
the luxury
of electricity or plumbing.
These spaces are home
to
over twenty
different martial
art organizations
and
dojos
which
hold martial
art practice
simultaneously each
morning. Sometimes there
are more students than
room
in
these spaces
and classes
spill out onto
the grounds
or
are held
outside near
the pool training
area.
In all of my travels
I have never seen so
many
different
martial
art groups
practice together
at the same
time. The soccer stadium
and all
of the activities
housed
there (including soccer
by the way) fall under
the umbrella
of supervision
of
the National
Sports Council
of the
Nepalese government.
The Nepalese
government is very wise
in my
opinion to recognize
the value of this
training in
the
development
of their countries youth.
Homma
Kancho teaching.
It was
a wonderful discovery to find how hard all
of these students
practiced,
and
how well
mannered
they
all seemed
to be. Most
of the dojos that were
housed at the stadium
were Karate dojos that
focus
on punching
and kicking
skills. You
would think that having
so many different types
of dojos
in such
close proximity
to each other
would
make for
the beginnings
of
a riot! It
was rewarding to
find that they practiced
very respectively of
one another.
I was
to find out that these
martial artists
practice so early in
the
morning because
most students worked
or went
to school
during the day
or evenings,
so the most popular
time for practice is
in the
morning
before work
or school begins.
These dojos did not
operate to make a profit,
students
practiced
to practice,
and they
practiced hard.
I had
been invited to teach Aikido by
the Kyokushin
Karate dojo
on this trip.
When
we arrived for
practice at the
stadium the
sun was
not yet
up, and the
dressing rooms were
lit be candlelight
as we
changed
for class. Finally
the sun rose
high
enough in the sky
to light the dojo better
for training.
All
of the students
attending
were
sincere and open
to learning something
new. After practice
all ten of us from
Nippon Kan were invited
to have
breakfast
with
them. It was
a breakfast of toast,
boiled eggs and chai;
simple but
quite delicious
after
two
hours of training.
We all were very
appreciative of
our host’s
gracious hospitality.
The future of any
country is based
on the education
and
strength of
its young
people.
The Nepalese
government is aware
of this, and does
its
part to help
create a good foundation
of support for
the young people
of Nepal.
The National
Sports
Council supports
and protects martial
art
education in
Nepal as a positive
educational tool.
Not only the government,
many civilian
sponsors support
the martial arts
and offer their
professional talents in
assistance.
Domestically
we found Nepal
is
a state
of political
unrest during
our visit.
In fact,
the day before
we arrived,
Kathmandu had
been under
a twenty-four
hour curfew enforced
by
the national
military. We were
a little nervous
before our
arrival, but
with the communication
we had
with the Nepalese
martial art community,
our fears
were put
to rest. Despite
any political
unrest, we
found that the
young people
in Nepal traditionally
respect their
elders, and that the relationship
between
generations is
strong.
Watching these
young people
in their practice
in Kathmandu
made
my heart swell
with pride.
About
the time the
sun had fully
lit
the dojo,
it was
time to
end practice.
As we
made our
way back
through
the narrow
crowded
streets
we watched
as locals
paused briefly
at the countless
Hindu
and
Buddhist shrines
to give their
daily offerings.
There
was a holiness
in all of the
hustle
and bustle
of the daily
lives of the
people that
was very,
very real.
I
hope that
the political
climate
in Nepal
resolves
itself quickly and
that the
Himalayan gods that
live in the
Kathmandu
valley continue to
shine down
as they
have for
thousands of years. Peace,
we
hope
will remain
with the
Nation of Nepal.
March 12,
2006
Gaku Homma
Nippon
Kan Kancho
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