March 25, 2012

Way to Master the Art

武道芸道の修行方法は,まずもって師を真似ることから始まる。ただ受動的に教えてもらうのではなく,自ら能動的に見て真似るのである。盗むと言っても良い。師の存在そのものが教えである。その師の教えに従い,ひたすらに真似る。師の技に近づくために,自己の身体と対話しながら,工夫と努力を重ねる。安易な自己流は工夫とは言わない。あくまで師を真似る。ひたすらに真似る。気がつけばいずれ,師の技が我が身のものになる。そしてそれはすでに師の技ではなく,自己の技である。それは結果的に師を越えているかもしれないし,越えていないかもしれない。しかし,そんなことはどうでもよい。

The first step to learn martial and performing arts is to start copying one's own master. It is not to be given a lesson passively, but to see and copy the master spontaneously. It can be said that it is to steal the arts of the master. That is, the existence of the master itself is a lesson. A disciple entirely copy his or her master, according to what the master does and says. He or she makes efforts and devices while dialoguing with his or her own body in order to approach the master's art. It is not said to be a device that a facile self-taught manner is. Disciples should insistently fit themselves into the master. They should entirely continue to do that. Sometime they happen to find that the master's art becomes their own one. In other words, that has not been the master's but their own art. Consequently, it may get superior to the master's art, or may not. But, that is not significant.

March 03, 2012

Existence of One's Own Master

本物の武芸者である師に出会うことこそ,武道家にとって最大の幸福である。なぜなら,歩む道が死ぬまで永遠に続く可能性が高いからである。武道芸道には「守・破・離」という言葉があるが,そもそも,早々に破り離れることができるような師についてしまうのは,武道家にとして不幸である。早々に越えられる師は,本物の師ではない。

The happiest thing for martial artists is to meet a master as a genuine marital artist. It is because there is a high possibility that they might have an eternal way to the state of their master till the last. There is a phrase "syu-ha-ri" (three stages of learning mastery) used in martial and performance arts of Japan. But, at first, it is unhappy for martial artists to follow a master who they can top early and easily. The master who they can top easily is not a genuine one.

Way to One's Own Master's State

武道は身体技芸なので,師が本物の武芸者であればなおのこと,弟子が師をしのぐ才能を持ち得ていない限り,その極意を体得・会得するためには,天文学的な時間と努力が必要となる。それほどに身体技芸の伝承には手間暇がかかる。したがって多くの場合,師の到達している境地に向かって,死ぬまでひたすら歩み続けることになる。

Budo is physical arts. Then, if a master is a genuine martial artist, It takes an astronomical time and effort to learn the secrets of the arts, insofar as the disciple has no latent ability or talent to top the master. Transmission of physical arts requires such a lot of time and effort. Therefore, in most cases, disciples have a long way to go to the state of their master to the last extremity.

Transmission

武道や芸道における師から弟子への技芸の伝承は本来,身体から身体へ,個から個への一対一の伝達でしかなしえない。必然的に,師の技や術を会得するには相当に長い年月を要する。歌舞伎や能楽はその例である。彼らは幼少の頃から途方もない時間を要して師(親)の技芸を体得する。「一子相伝」とは,広辞苑によれば「学問・技芸などの奥義・秘法を自分の子の中の一人だけに伝えること」とある。これは家元や宗家の特権的地位を維持するための装置としての神秘主義・秘密主義ではなく,身体技芸の伝承にはそれだけ手間と時間が掛かる,ということを暗示しているのかもしれない。

The transmission of skills in martial and performance arts from teachers to students is essentially conducted only by one-to-one communication from a body to a body, or from a person to a person. Inevitably, it takes an extremely long time to master the arts and skills of one's teacher. The examples are kabuki and nohgaku. The actors spend an extraordinary time on learning their teacher (their own father) from their infancy."Isshi-soden" (transmission to one child) means "the transmission of mysteries and secrets of an art or learning from father the teacher to only one child the student" stated in the most famous dictionary of Japanese, Kojien. This may not mean a kind of mysticism or secretiveness as a system for maintaining the privileged state of the head of a school, iemoto or soke, but imply that it costs so much work and time to transmit a physical art.

Dialogue through the Body

身体技芸の本質は,身体でしか理解できない。師が身体で語り,弟子が身体で聴く。身体を通した対話である。

The essence of physical arts is not possible to understand without the body. A master speaks by his/her body, and the disciple listens by his/her body. This is a dialogue through the body.