I recently watched the movie “Whiplash”. Here’s a scene that reminds me of some kendo sensei I’ve met.
Note: this is a NSFW clip due to coarse language and violence.
When I say this reminds me of sensei I’ve met, I mean it. There are some sensei who will push you, relentlessly, in ways you never thought possible – or reasonable – so that you will pick up your game and improve. At least, that’s what I think they’re thinking. If you’re the person on the receiving end, it will probably feel like they just want to make you feel stupid, that you don’t know anything and that you should just get out of kendo.
Those sensei (and sempai) do exist. You may never meet one, but they exist. You should know that they do because when you have keiko with one, you’ll question whether kendo is right for you. You will likely feel you were treated unfairly, harshly, humiliated. You may feel sensei demolished you, on purpose, in front of the entire class. And if you do, you’ll not be the first one to think this way about your experience. Onlookers may be as equally stunned as you are.
I am not a fan of this style of teaching, to constantly push people as far as they can go so that they will improve. That being said, I understand the approach. A good instructor should challenge their students, but there is a line between a hard, challenging practice designed to spur a student forward and abuse.
I believe sensei have a great responsibility to their students to help them grow and develop as kendoka and human beings. It’s imperative sensei and sempai do their best to be the best kendoka and people they can be while still appropriately challenging their students.
I welcome your thoughts and comments.
I have encountered this. One person comes to mind in particular. I won’t mention names, but I practiced with this sensei once and that will be enough for my lifetime. I loved the movie whiplash and it’s core question is fully applicable to kendo training of this kind: does the end justify the means? Again, as with the movie: is it worth the destructive cultivation to numerous kendoka if you find and hone a Miyazaki?
I understand the method of this kind of training, and I think from time to time it has benefits….***if done correctly***. There is a fine line between pushing and challenging someone to their limits and just beating them up. I have met a number of sensei who gave me very challenging and harsh keiko. But after the dust settled I came away with some very important insights.
The other person, sensei “X”, still to this day from that one keiko I have come away with absolutely nothing of value. To me that ought to raise a few question marks.
Kendo is about growth. If you liken this to a tree, growth takes time, and a good caretaker. Periodically, the caretaker has to prune certain parts, tie off or restrict certain branches, or cut off dead limbs to help the core of the tree grow strong. Prune away too much, too often, you get a tree with stunted growth at best.
The tree analogy is spot on in my opinion. Thanks Steve!