Dear Students, Teachers and Friends,

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving break and didn't eat too
much turkey.

There will be a 2-hour special about modern martial arts on the
Discovery Channel tonight for those interested. It will be geared
towards modern sport karate but should be interesting.

Quotes of the Week
ALBERT EINSTEIN:
The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil,
but because of those who look on and do nothing.
HASIDIC SAYING:
Everyone should carefully observe which way his heart draws him, and
then choose that way with all his strength.
JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER JR.:
Think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege.

Lesson of the Week
Giri - Duty

The concept of "Giri" contains elements from words like loyalty,
duty, responsibility and obligation. The Japanese kanji that make up
giri translate as loyalty, reason. Or in other words, duty is the
reason for loyalty. In America this is a hard concept to explain
because most of our citizens are brought up very individualistic and
not taught the concept of duty or obligation in depth. Dr. Glen
Morris explains Giri in this way:

Giri is a Japanese word for obligation and it is often translated as
duty or respect, but in the martial arts the concept becomes more
honor-tied and feudal. What is it worth to you when a technique
saves your life? Usually a lot more than the cost of whatever you
have paid for your training. What do we owe to a teacher who reveals
our true nature? A Zen master would say nothing since we are all
immortal and being enlightened is just being yourself. A guru of the
Krishna consciousness would say you must give all your worldly goods
to the sangha (training group) and start working in the bean sprout
cave. A Christian tithes ten percent. A Buddhist supports the
dharma, offers charity to teachers and seeks rightness. One has to
use religious examples because the spirit of budo and chivalry are
not easily modeled in these gentile times. However, masters of the
warrior ways that are indeed avatars, not those who wear the mantle
and quote the talk, are truly rare. If they are willing to sacrifice
their time to better your life, then the rules of giri require you
to assume the same generosity toward them.

It has been my experience that the martial community in the West has
become sorely ignorant of these teachings even to the point of
denial and attacking real teachers. Real teachers are not obvious to
the unenlightened eye. What is it worth to have the blinder's
removed? In such a case, giri is endless as your life has been
changed by the words and actions of the "master."

There are three basic archetypes of teaching in the Martial Arts and
giri accrues to each. 1) The Technician teaches skills, usually by
rote, and seeks perfection of techniques in self and student as
standardized by the lineage. 2.) The Artist teaches techniques by
feeling, but has the technical expertise to make it work. S/he
customizes the lineage techniques to fit the student. 3.) The Sage
teaches the techniques, art, principles, philosophy, history, and
strategy. Essentially, the sage teaches a way of life.

Examples of giri can be the senior student who disciplines a
beginner after warning him three times to address the instructor by
his title, not his first name; the dojo maintainers who take care of
the training hall for the master; the student who anticipates the
unspoken needs of the master; and those who understand that their
own actions reflect on the teacher and act accordingly in all
situations.

Giri is a debt that is owed to those whom you follow (including the
ancestral lineage, your teachers, etc.), and to those who follow you
(now or in the future, including those who read your words or watch
your videos). Giri not only flows up channel and down channel, but
laterally as well, to your fellow Senpai and Kohai , or all,
depending on your personal viewpoint).
Respectfully,
Terry Bryan