In the martial arts training hall, students are encouraged to develop themselves whilst surrounded by a culture of respect and discipline. They are allowed to grow in both skill and character in a safe and stable setting. Because of this, the dojang is the ideal place for individuals to develop confidence and self-respect.
It takes the mastery of many skills and qualities to progress in the martial arts. It is not enough to simply develop our speed, agility and strength in isolation. Our training is more dynamic than that; more diverse and integrated that it moves beyond the physical.
It is how we learn the ‘art’ to compliment the ‘martial’. It is how we progress beyond the physical barriers and the established limits of our training. We expand the reach of our studies to develop life-long discipline, heighten our mental clarity and evolve the understanding of our spirit.
There are many lessons to learn in the martial-arts, from which we develop the qualities of our warrior lives. Some creep up on us slowly and take years for us to realise, others hit us very suddenly and simply teach us how to block better. Some lessons we learn on the very first day of our training and end up becoming the fundamental building blocks of a new way of life.
Learning respect is one of those first lessons. Initially, it comes in the form of the respect we have for our instructors, our training partners and the training hall. We are taught how to bow and are inspired to reverence by the example of the higher ranks. Like all aspects of our training at this stage, it is integral but often superficial.
As our training evolves, and so too our outlook and understanding, we learn to take that respect deeper. We discover a respect for the elders of our art, for the history and philosophy behind what we practice. We develop a respect for all those who have walked the path before us.
It is something unique to the martial arts that we place so much emphasis on respect in all aspects of our training. It leads us to remove our egos and see beyond our more primitive characteristics. As a result of a deeper level of thinking, we begin to make choices that lead us away from the trappings of modern life.
Those choices guide us towards a different way of living; a way embedded and integrated in the practice of respect. What begins in the training hall settles inside the soul and becomes the very strength of us. We suddenly find we’re living a life worthy of respect in itself.
Having an honest and grounded self-respect empowers us to take responsibility for our own actions, behaviours and personality traits. It allows us to identify, face and overcome our innermost character defects and to stand fast against negative influence and temptation.
In the traditional dojang, respect is a way of existence; as important and integral to the martial art as learning how to throw a punch. New students have no need to be told how to behave respectfully, they simply imbibe it from the environment around them.
The aura of respect in such a dojang allows students to learn in a controlled, structured and disciplined environment. This style of constructive and holistic development creates a positive pattern that ends up influencing every part of a student’s life. It guides how they treat the people around them and ultimately, how they treat themselves.
Progressively, the respect that is required in the dojang creates respect for the self. As a student develops, they start to realise the duty they have to take care of their own body; to eat right and train wise. So too, do they start to avoid environments that are devoid of respect, recognising that they are not constructive to their goals and aspirations.
A perpetual change is taking place and a journey of self improvement has been born. A deepening sense of respect is changing what the student both believes in and aspires to stand for.
The martial-artists journey to self-respect balances the mind, removes self doubt and creates functional thought and behavioural patterns. At its best, it empowers us to follow our beliefs and to trust in ourselves both inside and outside the dojang.
As traditional warriors in a modern world, it is understood that we face challenges to our alternative way of life. Those of us who are true to our beliefs and to the ideal of fulfilling a warriors lifestyle will be not always be understood by the uninitiated around us. Nor will we ever really fit in to the modern culture we left behind. We will be tested often as to the value of our lifestyle and to the strength of our resolve. But those of us who have a strong grounding in the lessons of respect will be unmoved.
Developing a balanced respect for ourselves is not just a tool for use in our training, it is the cornerstone to having a healthy and productive personality. It allows us to act with confidence in everything we do, to withstand negative influence and to stand up for that which is right.
At certain times in our lives we are all called upon to make decisions between what is easy and what is right. As martial-artists who have learnt respect on the mats, we know the benefit of taking the harder, less understood, path.
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