Iaido is at the first and at the surface sword technique. As eishin ryu is apparently simple, it presents a considerable never ending challenge to attain and maintain ones ability and technique. That is Waza. - yet waza in it self is of no meaning other then in its relation to the self of the practitioner. The difficulty it represents allows us to experience and observe our reaction to adversity. That reaction can then be modified to improve our strategies in attaining and maintaining our technique. Those strategies are our emotional responses, our problem solving approach. This is also true for the social structure a practitioner functions in within the social setting of his dojo, and the bigger structures the art is placed in. Here social and personal relation strategies, are center of improvement and exploration. The long time, changing relationship to the teacher, the sempai and kohai in relationship to ones own progress, provide the material for a ever growing and deepening experiences. Since a dojo allows for the risk-free application of ethical values, the dojo also serves as a social/society sandbox. We can experiment and experience the results from an attempt to live ethical values, on the community of the dojo and the art. Given that we live in a world where ethical and moral standards are all to often lip service or as cover for monetary gain, having a place where values can be exercised and trained is of deep value for society. The dojo provides a social meeting point for all walks of life, counteracting the social and class separations our society’s suffer from.
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