The Essence of Budo A Practitioner's Guide to Understanding the Japanese Martial Ways

by LOWRY, DAVE

• ISBN13: 9781590308462
• ISBN10: 1590308468
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-10-12
• Publisher: Shambhala

Summary

The study of budo, or the Japanese martial arts for self-cultivation, is a lifelong path toward perfection of charac­ter. Here, Dave Lowry, a sword master who has practised and taught budo for over forty years, addresses the myriad issues, vagaries, and inconsistencies that arise for students of karate-do, judo, kendo, kenjutsu, aikido, and iaido as their training de­velops. He examines such questions as: ? What is the relationship between the student and teacher, and what should one expect from the other? ? What does rank really mean? ? How do you correctly and sensitively practise with someone less experienced than you? ? What does practice look like as one ages? ? Why do budo arts put such an emphasis on etiquette? ? And many others Lowry also gives practical advice for beginning and ad­vanced students on improving structural integrity in posture and movement, focusing under stress, stances and preparatory actions before engaging with an opponent, and recognizing a good teacher from a bad one.

Author Biography

<p class="MsoNormal">Dave Lowry is an accomplished martial artist, calligrapher, and writer. He is the restaurant critic for St. Louis Magazine and writes regularly for a number of magazines on a wide variety of subjects, many of them related to Japan and the Japanese martial arts. He is the author of numerous books including  Autumn Lightning: The Education of an American Samurai, Sword & Brush: The Spirit of the Martial Arts, Clouds in the West: Lessons from the Martial Arts of Japan, and The Connoisseur's Guide to Sushi. <o:p />

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. vii
Refining Training
Letting Me Win	p. 3
Bashing About	p. 9
Baking a Cake	p. 15
Demonstrations	p. 21
Stamina	p. 27
Answering Your Sensei	p. 31
Balance	p. 35
Fighting a Crippled Opponent	p. 39
Focus	p. 43
I'm Ready	p. 47
Martial Arts Etiquette (Budo Saho)	p. 51
Contemplating Tradition
Tradition and Personal Interpretation (Dento-Kosho)	p. 67
Reinventing the Wheel	p. 73
Takabakari and Taking Measurement the Old Fashioned Way	p. 77
Secrets	p. 81
How Come They Fought Differently in the Old Days?	p. 85
The Importance of a Good Teacher	p. 89
Teachers and Students	p. 93
Soul Budo	p. 97
Licensed to Kill-or Something	p. 101
The "Martial" in a Martial Arts Dojo	p. 107
Daily Life for the Samurai	p. 111
Reflecting on the Way
Okay, Now What?	p. 125
Choosing a Sensei	p. 129
What If?	p. 133
Daddy Hits Me Because He Loves Me	p. 137
A Little Common Sense	p. 141
"I Don't Need to Train Anymore"	p. 145
Following the Way	p. 149
Does It Do What It Says?	p. 153
A Master of Masters?	p. 157
Why Not?	p. 161
Try This at Home	p. 165
What's Wrong with the Japanese?	p. 169
Glossary	p. 179
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