Читать книгу Karate Technique & Spirit - Tadashi Nakamura - Страница 12

1

FOUNDATIONS OF KARATE

Historical Background

Origins in China

Bodhidarma, whom the Japanese call Daruma, was an Indian patriarch, the twenty-eighth in the line of succession from Shakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. Bodhidarma left India for China, arriving there in 520 A.D., and he established himself at Shaolin Monastery, which had been founded by the Indian monk Batuo some three decades earlier. Shaolin Monastery is nestled on the barren slopes of Song Mountain in the Henan Province of central China.

Bodhidarma left India in order to plant Buddhism in the new soil of Chinese culture. In India, Buddhism had evolved into a complex philosophical system, and the core of its practice was eroding. Bodhidarma sat in silent meditation (zazen) in a cave on Song Mountain for nine years. Through this solitary, ascetic practice, he reached enlightenment. However, he did not feel that the training of the body was to be neglected. While doing zazen, he practiced a series of physical movements, both for exercise and for defense against wild animals.

Bodhidarma passed on his physical training techniques to the monks at Shaolin, who integrated them into their spiritual training. These techniques were also used to defend the monastery against bandits who roamed the desolate Chinese countryside. As word spread about the effective selfdefense techniques used by the monks, it was inevitable that the monastery would be drawn into local politics. At the peak of Shaolin’s fortunes, during the T’ang Dynasty some 13 centuries ago, the monastery had several hundred fighting monks and a thousand lay residents who tilled several thousand acres of communal farm land that had come under the monastery’s control. Shaolin’s fortunes rose and fell during the struggles among various Chinese warlords, reaching the low point in 1928, when the monastery was burned to the ground. The techniques that Bodhidarma had developed were formalized into an indigenous martial art called Wushu. This art has withered over the years, being replaced by kempo, or “temple boxing.” After 1928, the practice of the martial arts was banned, as part of the effort to destroy the temple’s power and influence.

The martial arts were born in China out of Bodhidarma’s search for spiritual enlightenment. It was not long, however, before the secular world became interested in them for very non-spiritual reasons. The martial arts spread beyond the monastery walls, and they became intimately involved with the world of courtly politics and economics.

The very practical nature of Chinese culture and thought had revivified the Buddhism that Bodhidarma brought from India. Buddhism lost the unworldly, ascetic bent it developed in India. In China, it was practiced widely in temples, which were intimately involved in local activity; Buddhism became perhaps too worldly, and again the core of the practice was being lost. It was necessary that the seed be carried to fresh ground. This was to be Japan.

The Middle Way Comes To Japan

Buddhism arrived in Japan in the middle of the sixth century from Korea. At that time, there was tremendous rivalry among the various clans competing for the favor of the Japanese Emperor. The Soga clan championed the cause of Buddhism, and it successfully influenced the royal family. Toward the end of the sixth century, Prince Shotoku Taishi, an intellectual and philosopher, threw his support to Buddhism. He became a prominent Buddhist scholar, writing commentaries on the sutras, or scriptures.

In the early part of the seventh century, the T’ang Dynasty (618-906) began its ascendancy in China. Remember that Shaolin’s influence was at its height under the T’angs. Japanese culture and administration patterned themselves after the T’ang Dynasty. The city of Nara, for example, the imperial city of Japan, was built on the model of Ch’ang-an in China.

On the political front in Japan, as the clans struggled for influence with the Emperor, his own real power started waning. The Emperor eventually became a figurehead, with the Fujiwara family becoming the real civil power in Japan. With the Emperor weakened and no central system of taxation or administration, Japan fell into an extended feudal period. The Fujiwaras, meanwhile, divided into warring factions, each one allying itself with a military house for support and protection. Eventually, the military class wrested power from the dominant families, and, in 1192, Yoritomo was made the first Shogun, or “Generalissimo.”

Buddhism had been planted firmly in the Japanese soil under the patronage of Prince Shotoku Taishi. In Japan, however, it was radically transformed into something unique, namely, Zen. Dogen, a Japanese Buddhist monk, went to China to study and learn first-hand the deeper teachings of Buddhism. In China, he went from temple to temple, inquiring and observing the practice. He was unsatisfied with what he saw and heard, and he decided to go back home to Japan. Before returning, he stopped at a temple and observed a very old monk kneeling on the ground, drying mushrooms in the sun.

Dogen was surprised that an old man, a senior monk of the temple, was doing the labor of the most junior monks.

“Why are you working in the hot sun doing the job of your younger subordinates when you are a senior monk of the temple?” asked Dogen.

“If I do not do this, if I do not work here and now, who could understand? I am not you, I am not others. Others are not me. So others cannot have the experience. I must dry these mushrooms here and now, today, at this moment. Now, go away so I may work!”’

Dogen was startled and had the experience of enlightenment (satori). He spent a year in the temple, studying with the old monk’s teacher. Dogen received the kesa of transmission from the Master and went home to Japan to introduce his practice of Zen to Japan.

In China and India, Buddhist practice came to be secondary to philosophical systems or to ethical and political norms. Dogen, as a result of his experience, and continuing in the line of succession from Shakyamuni Buddha, founded Zen based on two basic principles:

• Direct, personal experience.

• Practice of zazen (seated meditation).

What Dogen did was to strip away all the philosophical, intellectual and external superstructures of Buddhism that had been destroying the core, namely, the practice. The practice, that is zazen, now became the only thing. Everything else was secondary.

The quiet, spare simplicity of Zen appealed greatly to many elements in the Japanese character, and it quickly took root and interacted in many profound ways with Japanese history and culture. Zen became a way for the warrior, the aristocrat and the scholar. It stressed, among other things, a unity with nature. The Zen influence led to a very prolific period in Japanese landscape painting. No aspect of Japanese art and culture escaped the Zen influence. The most striking example, which remains today, is the Dai Butsu, the huge statue of Amida at Kamakura.

During the feudal period in Japan, the samurai, or warrior class, rose to positions of great influence and respect. Particularly during the Kamakura period in the thirteenth century, the samurai absorbed much from Zen. They, in turn, imbued Zen with much of their stoic attitude. The samurai reached their peak of power and influence in the Tokugawa period of the seventeenth century. In the hierarchy of social standing of that time, warriors were paramount, followed by peasants, artisans and, finally, merchants or traders. Under Tokugawa Ieyasu, the samurai cultivated intellect as well as physical skill and power in swordsmanship. The samurai combined kendo (way of the sword) with the butsudo (way of the Buddha) of Dogen; these two came into one, becoming bushido (way of the warrior). The samurai value system, incorporating Zen and a fighting spirit, is the foundation of karate’s value system.

We have seen so far that the precursors of the martial arts came not from a martial tradition, but from a monk’s quest for spiritual perfection. The Buddhist tradition went from India to China and to Japan, via Korea; along the way it was transformed, becoming Zen in the ground of Japanese culture. Along this way, the physical techniques and exercises of Bodhidarma were transformed also. The world looked on these powerful and effective techniques as useful and desirable, apart from any spiritual training. The initial and fundamental unity of Zen and the martial arts came to be broken, as it is in the twentieth century. In the samurai class, however, the Zen and martial art traditions were unified into a single way of being.

Developments in Okinawa

Parallel to these developments in Japan, martial arts techniques were being developed, for extremely practical reasons, in the Ryukyu Islands, on Okinawa. The islanders, having been forbidden to carry weapons by the ruling Japanese, developed self-defense techniques which they practiced in secret. These became known as Okinawa-te (hand techniques of Okinawa). In 1722, Sakugawa, who had studied kempo and stick-fighting techniques in China, systematized and developed the indigenous techniques to the point where the art became known as karate-no-Sakugawa (Chinese hand techniques of Sakugawa). This was the first use of the word “karate.”

In 1879, the Okinawa Islands were annexed by Japan. In 1916, a group of Okinawan masters, led by the renowned Gichin Funakoshi, gave the first official public demonstration of karate outside of Okinawa, in Kyoto, Japan. Master Funakoshi, an artist and philosopher, changed the character for kara from one meaning “Chinese,” to one which means “empty.” Karate then came to mean “empty hand.” This very significant change reflected his personal feeling for the deeper meaning of the art.

Karate: Path to the Present

Karate and Zen were inseparable elements of Bodhidarma’s search for spiritual perfection. The two were one, hence the historical basis for the old saying, “Ken Zen Ichi Nyo!” As the spirituality of the monastery mingled with the marketplace and the political arena, it was perhaps inevitable that the techniques be separated from the core of spiritual training and practice.

Today, martial arts are growing in popularity throughout the world. The face of karate today displays a variety of styles, teaching methods, goals and physical techniques. This variety ensures the vitality of the martial arts. However, Seido karate seeks to find the “original face” of the martial art, to take the founding tradition and apply and enrich it in a twentieth century context. Through the practice of Seido karate, every student should seek to discover what Dogen understood when he questioned the elderly Chinese monk.

Seido: History and Philosophy

Seido karate is a strict, traditional Japanese style of karate, into which I have tried to distill the essence of what I have learned about the martial arts in over 30 years of study, practice and teaching.

The World Seido Karate Organization officially opened its headquarters on October 15, 1976, in New York City. It is a worldwide organization, with thriving branches in such diverse places as Australia, New Zealand, the Republic of South Africa, England, and South America. However, within Seido, growth of the branches is not being pursued for its own sake. Quality of instruction and of the students is paramount.

The physical training in Seido is strenuous, emphasizing progressive development of strength, flexibility and aerobic capacity. One of the goals of Seido karate training is to develop strong bodies, which contributes to health and a general sense of self-confidence and well-being. In addition to developing students with the highest level of physical skills, Seido aims to develop individuals of the highest moral character, individuals who can then make significant contributions to a better life in the family, the work place, and in society at large.

This goal is achieved by the integration of Zen meditation into the practice of each and every student. Seido is unique, I feel, because it stresses the unity and inseparability of karate and Zen. This is not a new idea. Rather, it is a return to the origins of the martial arts. By returning to the roots of karate, it can be made extremely valuable for men and women in this century and the next.

Zen is not taught as a religion in Seido. It is a practice, i.e., seated meditation, which has no religious overtones or content. In my experience, however, it is an essential counterpart to hard physical training. The samurai, whose lives and values gave so much to karate, strived to develop bushido spirit. Today, our lives are much different from the samurai’s, but the bushido spirit can still be translated into our milieu. Seido seeks to develop in each student a “nonquitting” spirit. No matter what the obstacle or difficulty—emotional, physical, financial—I want my students to feel that, though they may be set back, they will never be overcome by any of these problems. The sincere practice of karate can impress this idea into the spirit. This is the modern interpretation of the bushido spirit of the samurai.

The Seido emblem is the five-petaled blossom of the Japanese plum tree, which is also my family’s emblem. It is my wish to carry over into Seido many of the things that I learned from my parents. I also wish to stress that all members of the World Seido Karate Organization are members of a family. No one in Seido trains as an isolated individual, no matter how good or skillful he or she is. Only by sharing and learning from others do we ourselves become whole and fully realize our human potential.

I founded Seido on three fundamental principles: respect, love and obedience. These are represented, incidentally, by the three circles within the center of the plum blossom of the Seido emblem. These principles represent what I have found to be essential to a healthy and productive practice of the martial arts. They also represent a way, or do, of being in everyday life.

If we truly have respect for others, it is inevitable that we treat them with courtesy and equanimity. It is when we do not have respect for others that we become angry with them, that we disparage them, that we find no value in what they say, and that we engage in destructive action. This lack of respect for others, oddly enough, is related to a lack of respect for ourselves. Karate, through the practice of zazen, makes us look at ourselves. If we do this sincerely, we inevitably find our beautiful, truly human core. To find this, however, we will have to wipe away many layers of dust and dirt, which cloud the bright surface of what the Zen masters call our “mirror mind” or “Buddha nature.” When we see ourselves clearly, not with a vain love or callous self-indulgence, but with a healthy respect, we shall inevitably see others the same way. The Zen master says we shall see no separation—there is no self, and no other.

It is easy to do violence to another if you see that person as separate and distinct from you. Our society encourages us to think in terms of the “other” country, the “other” system. When we think this way, it is easy to deny to others the respect they are due. In Zen, when you bow, you bring your palms together in gassho. This means “two into one.” There is no self and no other. Respect yourself and respect others.

Early morning training with Black Belt students.

Karate offers a means of building the principle of respect into a cornerstone of our lives. This is achieved through the strict, ritual courtesy and etiquette that all students practice every moment in the dojo. How we wear our uniforms, how we move, how we speak to senior students, how we bow—these are carefully prescribed and followed by all, regardless of rank. In one sense, this refines our manners and makes us more civilized people. In a deeper sense, it serves to ingrain respect into our characters.

Love is another fundamental principle of Seido. It is the most overused and misused word in the English language. Love grows out of respect. In fact, the two go hand in hand. People are very apt to express a sentimental love for another, yet they will show that same person much disrespect. With true love, this cannot be.

We must love our parents, who are our first and most important teachers. Our love for them can grow out of a real respect and appreciation for the sacrifice and suffering they have endured for our comfort. We can then give love to our families in the same way that it was given to us.

Shakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, spent his whole life trying to find the cause of human suffering. After doing zazen under the banyan tree in India, he was enlightened. After his experience, he felt compassion for the suffering of humanity. Compassion means a moving of the insides; we feel so much for someone’s pain and suffering that our insides hurt and are moved. Love, founded on a genuine compassion for others, is something that we should train ourselves to extend freely.

New York at twilight, with the Brooklyn Bridge and twin towers of the World Trade Center in the background.

Practicing kata at sunrise. Awosting Falls spillway, Upstate New York.

When we love freely, we can give and share everything. We need hold on to nothing. Our hands can be empty. Karate means “empty hand.”

The samurai loved rectitude, or right action. We should feel the same way. Morally and ethically, in all situations, we should train ourselves to love the just and honorable way of acting. Obedience is the final pillar in the foundation of Seido karate. In the basic sense, of course, it signifies being obedient to the rules and regulations of the dojo and of the organization. This is not out of some blind, military mind-set. Obedience goes with commitment. Students of Seido karate make a commitment to train as hard as they can to develop mind, body and spirit into harmony and balance.

Obedience means obeying one’s parents. Besides being an obligation in which I have a firm belief, it is a way of teaching humility and keeping the ego in check. No matter how old we are, we are still our parents’ children.

We should also be obedient to the laws of our community and society. A good karate-ka is always a good citizen. There can be no duality in this regard. The highest obedience is to the moral and spiritual principles of our conscience, to which our parents have contributed much. I hope that every student of Seido Karate will be able to develop these highest individual principles and better understand him or herself.

Seido karate is growing, both here in the United States and overseas. The future growth of the system will depend on the successful transmission of the Seido principles of respect, love, and obedience through my senior students, in turn, to their students. I have been fortunate in my own training to have had the opportunity to instruct others. Over the years, I have had many outstanding students, of which I am very proud. Many senior black belts have been extremely successful in major open tournaments throughout the world, winning in kata, kumite and breaking. However, each and every one of my students contributes to the Seido organization in his or her individual way. Without the strong support of all my students, throughout the world, Seido could not have grown and developed as it is today.

At Seido, I want to create a secure place for anyone of any age or physical ability to train and learn. This is true at any Seido dojo, no matter where it is located. At Seido, we all train as a family. Cooperation, not competition, is the key word. Those who have more should share with others, giving advice and encouragement. The real competition is with yourself. The only requirement is that you give your absolute best effort at all times.

Ethical and Moral Values of Karate

The ethical and moral foundation of karate-do comes from the samurai. All karate students are expected to make these principles and values part of their behavior, applying them to their conduct in and out of the dojo.

Gi (rectitude)

This means making the right decision in every situation and doing it without wavering. The right decision is the moral one, the just one, the honorable one.

Yu (heroism)

Obviously, this meant something different in feudal Japan than it will in ordinary life. There are many possibilities for heroism in everyday life. Heroism and bravery mean taking risks, perhaps to our position, our status, and our self-interest.

Jin (universal love, compassion)

Compassion means, literally, a moving of the insides as a result of feeling for someone’s pain or suffering. Karate stresses action, and we should always strive to find ways to express our compassion for our family, friends, neighbors and those less fortunate than ourselves.

Rei (courtesy)

Courtesy is a quality the modern world sorely lacks. It is perhaps more relevant now than in feudal times, since courtesy signals respect and compassion for others. It is something that karate students should constantly practice.

Makoto (truthfulness)

Seido means “sincere way.” In all dealings with others, karate students should develop a sincere, honest straightforwardness. This can do much to improve modern interpersonal relations.

Chugo (devotion, loyalty)

One of the cornerstones of Seido is obedience. It refers to this value in the samurai. A student should be absolutely loyal and devoted, first and always, to parents and family. These are one’s origins, roots, and foundation. Secondly, if a student decides to pursue the way of karate, he/she should always remember the importance of loyalty to the organization and to the teachers who guide the student along the path of growth and self-improvement.

Karate: Moving Zen

A famous Zen master, Taisen Deshimaru, has said, “Only two things matter, energy and action.” What does he mean? The practice of zazen, seated meditation, can free us from our small “selves” and from our small “minds” and help us to realize our original natures. In a tangible way, it does energize us, by helping to regulate the autonomic nervous system, by increasing our vital capacity and the efficiency of oxygen exchange, and by calming the mind. But, if we were to sit like monks and become concentrated and focused, what of it? If we withdraw from the frenetic chaos of life to the monastery, is this not delusion also? It is, if there is no action.

Zazen creates energy, or it helps us tap our innate wellspring of energy. Karate trains us in applying that energy to action. Karate is action and movement: slow and fast, soft and hard, small and large, solitary and with others. These are all the types of action that we experience in our daily lives. In karate, we practice them with the energy of Zen. When we walk, it is Zen. When we run and jump, it is Zen. Karate Zen links energy and action. This is what we are practicing over and over, day by day.

When we leave the dojo and go back out into the market place of life, we take our practice and give it to others. Karate means “empty hand.” An empty hand clings to nothing. It does not hold on to preconceptions, prejudice, or the status quo. An empty hand can give and be of service to others. As we move about in our daily lives, we are practicing moving zen, total involvement and absorption in the present moment.

When someone watches a karate master do a kata, one is absolutely riveted by the beauty and power of the movements. They do not have to be explained, and they do not appear to be learned, but seem to come from within. If this experience were possible only in the dojo, then karate would be of limited value. However, it is possible for students to have the same experience in their everyday lives: a teacher giving a lecture; a stockbroker working in the chaos of the trading floor; a nurse in the charged atmosphere of a hospital. We study karate Zen to get in touch with our “original self” and to take that “big self” and put it to work to alleviate the suffering of others.

In the martial arts, there are many “ways,” e.g., judo, kendo, kyudo, karate-do. Zen gives them a single common ground.

“... if one practices and realizes the Buddha way, when one gains one dharma, one penetrates one dharma. When one encounters one action, one practices one action.” Genjokoan

If every movement and every action in our lives were infused with this ideal, how much richer, more enjoyable and more productive our lives would be.

Seido Black Belts, assembled for 1985 annual clinic. (Battery Park, at entrance to New York Harbor, lower Manhattan).

Annual Black Belt beach training. Sunrise at Rockaway Beach, New York.

Chi Gyo Ichi Nyo

The word chi means knowledge. Gyo means doing or action. Ichi nyo means inseparable. Acting without adequate knowledge or understanding is a constant source of consternation and problems. We are often busy and active, without really understanding the basis of our actions or their full impact. Some people study karate without knowing why they are really studying. In class they do the techniques without understanding their purpose, and so they lose much of the benefit. They do push-ups without understanding their purpose. Is the purpose just pain or just building strong arms? Or do they understand that they are building a stronger spirit, a nonquitting attitude? Do children come to class because their parents want them to, or for themselves? For what reasons do the students seek a black belt? For self-satisfaction? To impress others? Without real knowledge and understanding of why we do such things, we fail to get the full benefits and to realize our potential.

Karate in Everyday Life

At the office, a student must deal with many different demands on her time.

Work is finished, it’s time to train.

A true karate-ka takes the physical skills, discipline and power of concentration developed at the dojo and applies them to work, family and social life. In this way, karate is integrated into the fabric of our lives; it is not something separate. The way of karate is the way of everyday life.

An executive can still be a student, practicing weapons and basic kicks.

A Floor broker on the stock exchange, subject to lots of pressure and stress.

B Time to forget work, and train.

C Concentrate on only one thing.

A An advanced student practices weapons with intense concentration.

B Bow when you come to train.

C Junior students watch and learn from seniors.

D, E The same concentration practiced at the dojo is brought to the job.

A, C Students training in class.

B Time to kiai!

All students in a karate dojo, whatever their rank, are governed by the same rules of courtesy and respect. If you respect yourself, for example, you always want to practice in a clean dojo. You show your respect for others by undertaking to clean the dojo floor with a damp rag after class. Since we are all united by the same values in Seido karate, we all clean the floor together. Symbolically, this practice, which comes from Zen, represents the wiping away of delusion from our minds.

Application to Modern Living

This book is about a traditional way of karate and it is hoped that the reader will be able to understand, to some extent, the real foundations of this martial art. However, it is logical to ask, “What tangible benefits does karate Zen have for twentieth century life?”

First, karate is an extremely efficient form of physical conditioning, that can be practiced by women, children and men of all ages and abilities. It develops aerobic fitness by raising the heart rate into the training zone and keeping it there for significant intervals. Strength is developed progressively through exercises using the body’s own weight. Emphasis is also placed on developing and maintaining flexibility through progressive stretching of major muscle groups. In the Seido system, every student is asked to constantly give 100% in his/her training, recognizing the individual’s own capacities and limitations. Training is done only under the supervision of certified black belt instructors.

Secondly, karate is the most efficient form of self-defense, which is very important in today’s urban society. Students learn basic kicks, punches and blocks that develop self-confidence. Beyond that, they learn specific combinations of techniques that are applied in specific situations. Seido students are also taught to develop an inner awareness for avoiding potentially threatening situations.

Finally, the study of karate develops discipline and concentration, skills that are useful for children, students, artists and men and women in all walks of life. Students usually notice subtle changes in the way they do their work or in the way they study. If one practices sincerely, in time, these benefits flow almost automatically, without conscious effort.

These are the direct, tangible benefits of studying karate, and they are all highly relevant to the needs of people today. Don’t study karate to achieve these benefits, though. If you practice in a sincere manner, these things will come along the way. They can each or together be reasons for beginning, but if they become the reason for practicing, our practice will become stale after some time.

“Now if a bird or a fish tries to reach the limit of its elements before moving in it, the bird or this fish will not find its way or its place.” Genjokoan

The main thing is to begin; once a student has begun the study of karate, the only thing is to practice, to continue. The rest will become apparent to you, and to you alone.

In the tea ceremony (Sado), the guest takes time to appreciate and enjoy a cup of green tea. In life, too, we have to take time.

Breathing Methods

Master Nakamura Practicing the Martial Art of Iai

The student of the martial arts can enhance concentration and develop a sense of peace and tranquility through the disciplined practice of the one-pointed technique.

Life is breath. Breath is life. When someone is dead, we say, “He has stopped breathing.” Breathing is a natural function. No one teaches a baby how to breathe, yet a baby breathes easily and fully, its belly rising and falling in easy rhythms. The central role of the breath is strange and mystical to the twentieth century Western mind. Indian yogis believe that we partake of the energy, or essence, of life (prana) through breathing; in fact, they feel that our lives are measured by a certain number of breaths, each one taken bringing us closer to the end of our bodily function. In the Old Testament of the Bible, when God created the earth, he “breathed” upon the waters. In the everyday world, Japanese business schools teach their students, when involved in complicated or contentious negotiations, to control their breathing and to understand the pattern of the person on the opposite side of the table.

In Zen, posture is the key. If the posture is good, then the breathing will follow. We shall begin to experience once again what we knew as babies. However, it is useful to talk about certain breathing methods, techniques and mechanics of breathing. Physicians, and sports trainers in recent times, have studied and described the physiology and mechanics of breathing.

Basically, most of us breathe too often, and the breath is too shallow. Hence, the foul air in the lower part of our lungs is never fully expelled. Conversely, on the intake cycle, our lungs are never filled up much beyond a third of their actual volume. A doctor would say that we are not using more than a fraction of our “vital capacity.” Hence, the whole process of oxygen exchange in our bloodstream is inefficient. The blood is improperly cleansed of carbon dioxide, and our brains and nervous systems are never fully oxygenated. The deleterious effects manifest themselves physically, mentally and emotionally.

An average person at rest completes 15-18 breathing cycles per minute (a cycle is one inhalation plus one exhalation). Although this feels natural and comfortable, Zen masters say this is too fast. When you sit in zazen, you must let your breath “sit” also. An experienced practitioner can breath quite normally at five cycles per minute, some even slower. Quite a difference!

The Zen concept of breathing is tied up with the concept of hara, roughly equivalent to the belly. Western people, whose behavior is dominated by the frontal lobes of the brain, have their breath centered in the upper parts of their bodies. They tend to breathe with their shoulders and necks. This shallow breathing is called “intercostal breathing.” In Zen, we are taught to center the breath in the hara; in karate, the body is centered in the tanden, a spot about four fingers directly below the navel. It is the center around which our arms, legs and bodies move.

IBUKI

A Student has filled his lungs with air, starting with lower abdomen. Now he begins the exhalation.

B With mouth open, and abdomen tensed, exhale forcibly as the arms uncross.

C Exhale all the air from the lungs, using a small cough to clear out the last residue. Note how the abdominal muscles are active.

ZEN EXHALATION

D Exhaling in zazen. The mouth is slightly open and the tongue is between the lips.

E Squeeze the lower abdomen as the body leans forward at the waist.

F Finishing position.

Karate

Exhalation Using Ibuki Breathing

• Hold abdominal muscles tight.

• Keep the lower abdomen tensed, with awareness of the muscles gripped tight.

• Open mouth wide, throat open and relaxed, windpipe free, tongue relaxed, held in lower palate.

• Squeeze from the hara, forcibly and audibly exhaling until lungs are completely emptied of air.

• Expel last trace of air with small cough.

Zen

Exhalation

• Let belly fall back in and breathe out slowly, at twice the count of the inhalation. This is the active phase of the breath in Zen. When exhalation is complete, feel a squeezing down in the hara.

In order to bring the breath down to the hara, we must first have good posture, which means the spine erect and long, and the abdominal area free. The diaphragm, a thick, membrane-like muscle that is stretched across the body, is pulled down when we inhale. If we are relaxed, when the diaphragm pulls down, the belly just naturally pushes outward. When we exhale, we are forcing the diaphragm upward, compressing the volume of the chest cavity like a piston and forcing air from our lungs. When we do this naturally, the belly falls in. Thus, when we watch our own breath, we see our belly moving in and out gently, like waves moving in and retreating from the seashore.

Basically, the chest should be relatively stationary when we breathe. Everything is directed to moving the breath down to the hara, or tanden. In karate, the tanden is the source of power. When an experienced karate-ka is going to break a brick or a stone (tameshiwari), you may see him reaching inside to clutch at his hara, or tanden, to see that it is firm and full of breath and spirit. This is where real power, mental and physical, comes from. This is one of the unique features of the martial arts as opposed to other physical systems of exercise.

Eugen Herrigel, the author of Zen and The Art of Archery, was a German professor who went to Japan to study Zen. He was told, “It is very difficult. If you want to study Zen, you should practice a martial art first.” Herrigel was very good with a rifle, so he took up kyudo (archery). But it took him six years before he understood how to breathe. He understood about “pushing down with the intestines,” and he realized that the arrow was released at the end of the outward breath. When you are breathing out, you are strong—you can break a board, you can throw an opponent in judo, you can absorb a blow and not be hurt. When you are inhaling, you are weak. In karate, you may often hear a student give a loud shout (kiai) as he/ she is executing a kick or a punch. The student is training to time the execution of the technique with the exhalation. This maximizes the power applied. The shout encourages and facilitates the forceful and complete exhalation of air. So this is just the application of the Zen principles of breathing in action.

Breathing

Nogare (Short Wave/Long Wave)

• Breathe only using the nose.

• Fill up the lungs from bottom to top (long wave), letting belly rise first, then the stomach. Holding these stationary, fill up lungs below shoulders by letting upper chest rise up also.

• Holding abdominal wall taut, take quick inhalation, letting belly move out rapidly (short wave).

Breathing

Inhalation

• Breathe only using the nose.

• Center the breathing in the belly, letting the breath out naturally without using the abdominal or chest areas at all.

In karate and Zen, therefore, the principles underlying the breath are the same. The mechanics of some breathing techniques are slightly different, but they arise largely from the setting, i.e., zazen versus moving Zen.

As with all phases of karate, experience is the key to understanding. Experience is gained through individual practice. An experienced teacher and the atmosphere of a zendo or dojo are important in creating the atmosphere for serious study and for giving the student the proper grounding so he/she may learn correct techniques. If you want to learn how to breathe, just sit shikantaza.

NOGARE

A The hands, starting at your sides, come up, as you inhale through the nose.

B Fill the lungs with air, starting from low stomach.

C Finishing position.

ZEN INHALATION

D Beginning inhalation cycle, using the nose.

E Inhale as the trunk comes up.

F Finish erect in zazen. Make the exhalation cycle twice as long as the inhalation cycle.

Postures