Holiday Announcement

This is a holiday announcement – it is the thanksgiving weekend –  in the United States, and we are skipping an episode this week. We will resume our weekly podcasts again next week.

Sir Ken Robinson - Changing Paradigms in Education

Ken argues – and quite convincingly – that our current education system is hopelessly outdated, and what is the direction we need to change it to bring the best in an individual – not to conform one to the system. The animated condensed version of the talk:

And below is the complete original lecture:

#155 The Way of the Warrior, part 5 - Evolution and Approaches

We are honored and humbled to continue our conversation on the Way of the Warrior, this time with Vilaire Sensei and Sastri Sensei. Vilaire Sensei, Menkyo Kaiden is the presenter of the system in this generation, and Sastri Sensei, Menkyo Kaiden is the headmaster of the Indian Branch of KAR, and senior advisor to both the Kita Yama and Mountain View Aiki dojo.

• Think evolution, we don’t live like the samurai of the 18th century
  • Fortunate to have an instructor who was a military man first and a martial artist next
  • Like the bootcamp, you are going to hate me
  • Not here to make Kaze Arashi Ryu popular, warfare is complicated, it can make you crazy
  • Warfare is not based on weight categories and/or sport, being a warrior is about taking on whoever shows up in front of you
  • True warrior is all about “surviving when the odds are against you”
  • Reality of warfare, most people who practice sword do not even think about decapitation, they hide the real use so much they forget what and why they practice the sword
  • I don’t want to own a school or operate anything, I just want to teach
  • I wish I did not lose money teaching it, but that’s the way it works
• Military is voluntary, and they make many promises
  • You show up through the door I will teach you, no promises made
  • Any idiot can kill, we teach how not to be killed and learn other things along the way
  • Opening up other avenues – your inner selves
• Distintions between different school
  • Warrior schools, mixed martial arts and mcdonalds studios in malls
  • I don’t want to talk about other schools, I will stick to what I do
  • You cannot compare classical to jazz to rock and roll, each one has its place
  • Different schools/traditions exist because people have different tastes
  • Mixed martial arts is like having warfare without having warfare
  • Kaze fits best where “real violence exists”
  • I don’t take Kaze to avoid a mugging, but there is something greater emerges in the process of learning
  • We go as close to true jutsu as possible
• Experts are not born by watching, you need to be engaged
  • Critics are easy to find, practioneers are hard to find
  • When you fight there is no pity
  • When you are in war, you cant say I will just shoot this guy in the leg, you are fighting for life
  • We teach our students to be kind, compassionate, being true to yourself
  • Our students are always looking to help another person, save animals etc
  • Live in both worlds – where cruelty and softness exist
  • The art made me, the praise should go to the art, when my students praise me I give the credit to the art
  • Don’t be someones vomit, you want to learn come and get on the mat
  • Its about becoming a balanced human being, and the instructors impart knowledge of martial arts and the philosophy of life

#154 The Way of the Warrior, part 4 - Tradition and Teacher

We are honored and humbled to continue our conversation on the Way of the Warrior, this time with Vilaire Sensei and Sastri Sensei. Vilaire Sensei, Menkyo Kaiden is the presenter of the system in this generation, and Sastri Sensei, Menkyo Kaiden is the headmaster of the Indian Branch of KAR, and senior advisor to both the Kita Yama and Mountain View Aiki dojo.

• What is tradition
  • Does not have to be old to be tradition
  • Knowledge passed on from one person to another
  • Tradition is based on principles not time
  • Name does not matter, what you do/execute matters
  • Don’t let famous names guide/misguide you
  • Art is only as good as its presenter, and for this generation I am the presenter (Vilaire Shihan)
  • Whatever I have done I have done from my heart, soul and spirit
  • Fame is almost inverse of the art I do
  • A small tradition, less than 188 students worldwide, and this is by choosing
  • The knowledge we have been passing down is so special, and its not easy to duplicate at all – one can try and are free to do so if people please
  • There is nothing to defend the system, it can stand on its own
  • Is my samurai greater than your samurai ??
  • Whose fame or skill is carrying the system/art
  • The question should be “have I started where my teachers have stopped and are my students ready to surpass me”
• True teacher
  • Must expect your students to be better than you
  • This art does require a certain amount intelligence
  • I hope and pray my students are better than me
  • I am NOT important, the art and expression is the important thing
  • Don’t memorize, but analyze the techniques – its not monkey see, monkey do
  • Don’t be bogged down by tradition or history – what is important is who are you and what can you do
  • Its not how good your teacher is, the question is how good a student are you to learn
  • A relationship based on respect is important to really learn
  • Pay attention to what your heart tells you abut your teacher, not what the world says he is
  • You are free to go and learn anywhere, if you find something better than what I have to offer, you can please leave and leave me alone