What is a Traditional Dojo? What should one expect when entering a traditional dojo? Does attending a Traditional Dojo mean you will learn old and outdated techniques that wont work in the modern world? Is it even important to train at a Traditional Dojo? If so – why? And where does someone even find a Traditional Dojo that teaches effective Self Defense?
For the practitioners of Japanese Jujutsu, Japan is “Mecca”. A pilgrimage to the sacred land of mist covered mountains, bamboo forests, bonzai trees, and ancient, candle lit, wooden dojos is a must. For truly, that is where one will find the true secrets of the ancient martial art of Jujutsu.
After arriving at Narita Airport, you shoulder your gi bag and take a train far into the countryside of Japan. Half the people on the train are still dressed in the traditional Hakama and Uwagi. Women in flowing kimono. As you cross the verdant rice paddies, you see the ancient mountains, home of the gods looming out of the mists in the distance. After several hours you are dropped off at a small train station. From there you must walk several miles through small winding streets between old traditional Japanese houses. Their dark wood and shoji doors reflect their historic origins. “Which ones once housed Samurai?” you think to yourself. As you come to the end of the village, you are unsure of where to go next. You stop a bent old man on the street, his shoulders burdened with a yoke and two buckets of water. He speaks no English, and you speak little Japanese. But both of you understand the one phase you utter, almost in a whisper “Sensei Yamashita”. The old man looks you up and down, a gaijin. He smiles a wry smile and points to an old building high on a hill outside of town. You bow deeply and hurry on towards your goal. After climbing many steps, bent with age and the passing of hundreds of feet, you see the dojo. Its classically curved and tiled roof dripping the dew. Japanese maples and dwarf pine surround the yard. Muffled behind the gate and further behind the dojo doors, you can hear muffled kiai of Jujutsu adepts being instructed by the great sensei. Truly, here you will learn the traditional, the real, the best Jujutsu. Before you dare to knock on the door, you assume the seiza sitting position and think to yourself “is this a dream?” YES – YES IT IS!
The scenario above is the myth the movies and books have kept alive for the 100 or so years since anything like this existed in Japan. Feudal Japan essentially stopped in the 1880’s. Remnants survived until the Second World War – but little after that time. Even Jujutsu masters from the late 20th century have returned to Japan to try to find the dojo of their ancestors, and were unable to do so, as modern cities have grown over the small villages that once housed the old dojos. This is not to say that no dojo exist in Japan that at least look like the ancient ones. But, unless you happen to be in one of these dojo in Japan, it is more likely that you will find your traditional jujutsu classes held in a community gym, a social hall, a university hall, a modern office building, or even (lord forbid) in a strip mall, or upstairs over a bar.
“Now Wait a Minute,” you say – “I have seen pictures of traditional dojos, sloped roofs, bonzai trees and all! Where are they?” Well, there are still a handful in Japan. Most of the old buildings are gone and have been reconstructed over the last century. But my friend – most of them are here. Yes, right here in the Western World. The modern Western World became so fascinated with Japanese martial arts and culture, we have worked steadily over the past quarter of a century to re-create the ancient and traditional Japanese dojo here in the good old USA (and Canada and Europe and Australia to name a few others). Not only the dojo buildings themselves, but also the ancient traditions. And some of the finest Japanese gardens are also here. Even many traditional Japanese sensei are here or in other Western countries. This may have been a result of escaping Japan during WWII or simply through natural migration to America.
There are still some dojo, none more than 150 years old, where Bujutsu is still practiced. Some are pictured below. Even the most traditional schools seldom have large ornate buildings like this. Often the dojo is very small – just a few hundred square feet, and located in the countryside or simply behind the sensei’s house. This is because warriors wanted to keep their skills secret and their training private. They did not want adversaries to know what they knew. In the early days, this may have been a matter of life or death.
A traditional dojo is a state of mind more than a place. However, the look and feel of the training hall sometimes can enhance that state of mind. A traditional Jujutsu dojo has certain elements that make it “traditional”. The first, and most important is the art itself. Jujutsu is a warrior art, designed for self defense. If this is not the puporse of the art, the atmosphere of seriousness and fear are significantly lessened. Martial training would have been the original purpose of the dojo, and should remain so today.
The second most important aspect is that of shibumi. Shibumi is hard to translate as a term, but basically means “austere” or “without complication”. It does not mean “plain”, but tries to impart the feeling that things are not overdone, flamboyant, etc. Shibumi is to include just what is needed, in its simplist and most efficient form. Flashy uniforms, trophy displays, music, posters and the like are not shibumi.
Finally, besides a kamiza and perhaps technical charts and the mats, there needs to be an air of martial bearing. This comes when the instructor and the student understands the reason they are there. The student is there to learn how to control, injure, and perhaps kill an opponent. A teacher is there to pass on said tradition, develop the student’s body and mind, and to instill the awesome responsibility of the martial knowledge on the student. The traditional dojo is the place where a way of life is passed from one generation to another.
One other aspect of the Traditional Dojo that is of utmost importance is the focus on Self Defense. (See our article on Self Defense). There must be an air of warrior lifestyle, and focus on realistic combat training. Don’t be confused. There are dojo that preserve and teach a tradition. That does not mean the dojo fulfills the actual goal of a traditional dojo. The dojo may look ancient and focus on the old traditions and etiquette of old Japan – but that does not make it a Traditional Dojo – because it must have the one element that the old training halls had – Realism. The people training in the old dojos were training for combat! They knew the skills they developed in the dojo were to be used in real self defense – so they trained with that attitude! When you look for a Traditional dojo – remember that the reaslistic self defense training is a key component!
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