Dojo and The Way
by Nick Lowry DOJO is the way place. All the stuff we practice in a DO-jo — the aiki do and ju do and jo do and karate do and ken do and iai do and all the rest, are … Read More
Three Circles of Training
by Nick Lowry Been thinking lately about a three tier curriculum for our dojo– at first was considering the the standard beginner, intermediate, and advanced idea but that seemed a little clumsy, linear and hierarchical — and would probably lead … Read More
Rank is in the Eye of the Beholder
by Nick Lowry Rank is in the eye of the beholder Where do high ranks come from?what makes a high dan rank in budo, a high dan rank? Is it technical ability? teaching ability? contribution to the art? What does … Read More
Principles and Preferences
by Nick Lowry A wise old sensei once pointed out that if you take a whole variety of different hard stylists and watch their kata, an educated eye can tell them apart , but when you take that same lot … Read More
Transmission by Feel
by Nick Lowry A student once asked a zen teacher about “Transmission” and wondered how a clear message, a clear and undiluted dharma reality, could be transmitted from person to person across time and culture, from the historical Buddha’s time … Read More
Jutsu and Do
by Nick Lowry Innumerable times over the years students have come to ask the difference in JUTSU and DO, and for the most part my answers have always been to describe the basic surface distinctions; the historical, the philosophical, technical … Read More
Karma and Practice
by Nick Lowry Karma is about what we do to and with ourselves—about action and consequence and about the shape of our lives. There is something quite mechanical about karma—it is sometime taken as a punitive or rewarding idea or … Read More
Teaching: Dependence and Empowerment
by Nick Lowry I have known teachers who over teach – they are helpful and giving — serve everything up on silver platters but who consequently have built very dependent students. Such are popular teachers; their students will love them … Read More
Shobu and Shiai: Winning and Losing in Ultimate Fights
by Nick Lowry Head to head in a competition-a real “technician” will probably get beat by a real “champion”- and a real champion will probably be able to repeat that amazing feat a few times in a given day–where the … Read More
What is the Best Martial Art?
by Nick Lowry There is no such thing as a superior martial art—only superior artists. It is meaningless to say aikido is better than judo or krav maga is better that aikido or MMA is better than Gracie Jujitsu – … Read More