Mari Berbagi ilmu dengan MR.Alvin: Saviour Wanted...No Experience Necessary!

Saviour Wanted...No Experience Necessary!

Who needs who the most...me or these guys?

Mario McKenna asked an interesting question on his blog recently..."Is the traditional dojo dying?' The topic was picked up later by Garry Lever on his Facebook page and from there the conversation developed into how new students might be enticed to start, and then stay. The two separate, but kind of related topics, got me thinking...'Does it really matter if karate dies out?'

I think every generation of karateka looks for a saviour, or saviours, to emerge from within their ranks, brilliant young masters who will stop the erosion and return karate to it's former glory. The only problem is, I'm, not sure karate was ever 'glorious'. Certainly it has been different things at different times and in different places, but glorious...well, like I said, I'm not too sure about that. Besides, even in my brief time as a karateka, I've seen enough 'brilliant' masters rise from glorious obscurity, only to become less than brilliant examples of humanity.

At 61 years old, the value of peaceful practice far out-way the din of noisy training.

If ever I asked Miyazato Eiichi sensei a question, he would return fire with a number of things, "What do you think?" and "Just do it!" being two of his favorites. I'm not sure what a younger generation would think of such instruction, not much I suspect. Still...Miyazato sensei wasn't all that interested in teaching karate, his efforts were aimed at trying to get people to develop themselves enough so that they could then go on and discover karate for themselves. For him, karate was all in the doing!

So, is karate in crises? Is it at a cross-roads...perhaps facing extinction? Naw....it's just one generation emerging from behind the previous one. It's always a noisy, smelly, messy, process; and just like puberty, it's always full of angst and "what would you know anyway!" If the traditional dojo is in trouble, then it's only because folk are too lazy, weak, or both, to conduct themselves properly in accordance with the tradition they feel they're a part of. A lesson my sensei gave me..."Fix yourself, and you fix your problem."

Too difficult..? No worries!