Hi all,
If I may be so bold as to address several different threads here with one post, please pardon me for perhaps taking a momentary tangent or two.
Mark F. wrote: "It seems Tokimune had similar explanations for his father's rantings when Sokaku was in his eighties. The usual reason was "Please forgive my father. He is in his eighties" which would imply some kind of dememtia and does not seem so unlikely."
Here is where a valid argument for studying koryu in Japan can be made. Not that I'm saying it can't be learned outside of it's cultural context with the right teacher, but Diane Skoss has a valid point in her controversial article. Try to follow as I attempt to explain what I see happening here:
This thread was about Stanley Pranin (rightfully IMO) challenging the claims of a certain group of Tokimune's students who've formed their own organisation, and acted quite disrespectfully, or shamefully as some have put it. Stanley respectfully raised the raised the right questions for these folks, and has publically called them on the carpet.
But now there has been added a new, I think less respectful take on the situation (regardless of whether it is valid or not). And that is regarding the state of Tokimune sensei's health and the possible effects it may have had on his mental faculties towards the end of his life, particularly with regard to the issue of sucession in Daito-ryu.
I think that the question of legitimate sucession of Tokimune's mainline is clearly answered with regard to the dates that Kondo sensei received the designation of "soke dairi", and the fact that he possesses the menkyo kaiden from Tokimune sensei. So while the Seishinkan in question, may quibble over the legitimacy of Kondo sensei, and people everywhere can speculate about Tokimune's mental health, it accomplishes nothing, IMO. Nor does this sort of speculation prove anything. Rather it is, in my opinion only denigrating to Tokimune sensei's memory and therefore is not very respectful. Now what does this have to do with Mark's comment, and studying koryu in Japan?
While we actually know very little about Tokimune sensei's health towards the end of his life, we’ve read tidbits published here and there and therefore it may SEEM reasonable to speculate about it, but I don’t think it serves any positive purpose. I certainly think it’s stretching it too far to include Tokimune's father, Sokaku into this speculation simply based on Tokimune's statements about his father's behaviour. Why? Because here is where I think living and training in Japan, and understanding Japanese people and cultures will provide a different perspective, and interpretation of Tokimune's comments quoted above.
The Japanese are always self-depreciating and apologetic for their behavior and the behavior of their "group", whether it be their family or associates. But Sokaku was known (even when he was younger) for his frank and straightforward, if not blunt mannerisms. Nor did he become a martial art's genius and master without developing exceptional perception skills. Tokimune was raised primarily by his mother, and was no doubt, a more polite and proper Japanese (even Sokaku felt Tokimune was perhaps too nice a guy). Naturally, Tokimune would feel somewhat embarrassed by his father's loud or brash behavior and would be overly apologetic on his behalf. I would argue that from a Japanese perspective, Tokimune's comments about his father, demonstrate his good manners (ettiquette) much more than they actually say or imply anything about Sokaku's mental health. Given the Japanese cultural context, it’s much safer to say that Tokimune was more concerned about not offending anyone than really telling it like it is. Living and training in the culture of Japan can help give us much valuable insight into interpreting both the foreign manners and words of the Japanese, in this case especially koryu masters.
For example, if I go to my friend's house in Kodaira, and she spends all day making her family's best traditional meal for me, her specialty. She will say, "It was nothing". Instead of proudly saying, "It's my number one recipe", she'll say "This is my juhachiban (#18) recipe."
If I go next door and meet the neighbors, he'll introduce me not to his beautiful wife, but to his homely wife, his clumsy mother and dimwitted kids. This is not because his wife is ugly, his mother is clumsy and his kids are dumb, but because he want's me to feel much better about my own family.
Now if you remember the story in it’s Japanese context: Sokaku accused Tokimune of associating with a lady who was mentally ill. This obviously drew attention to not only the lady, but the lady’s poor husband. Sokaku recognized the lady for what she was and saw right through her husband’s “secret”. The poor fellow was so embarrased about his wife’s mental health, that he wanted no one else to know that she wasn’t normal. Socially, the couple would be ostracized if her condition ever became suspected, they would never fit in. So what does Tokimune do to salvage this poor man’s face? He jumps in and say’s in effect, "Please excuse my aging, senile father, he’s really the crazy one around here."
In Japan, everyone has to fit in. You don't want to stand out, or rock the boat by being different; either abnormal or exceptional. Sokaku was sharp, he WAS exceptional, and he tended to be rather quick to the point. He was an uncompromising old time samurai in a modern world, he didn’t beat around the bush, and he stood out like a sore thumb. I'm sure Tokimune was constantly apologizing and making escuses for his father's behavior, but in the cultural context and ettiquette of Japan, these were not likely statements of Tokimune’s actual sentiments, but rather of his good manners and humility. It is pure and unfounded speculation to call into question Sokaku's mental health by taking these comments out of their context. First of all, it accomplishes and proves nothing, and furthermore it's disrespectful, and unpolite to denigrate the memory of someone who's no longer living. Especially someone of Sokaku's great stature and genius as a martial artist. And finally, that is how false rumours are started and misunderstandings are propagated.
If we rationalize Tokimune's comments about his father's behavior being due to senility or worse, then we'll naturally start to question also the claims that Tokimune made about his father's martial and perceptional abilities as well. Anything that sounds rather phenomenal we’d take with a pinch of salt and say, "Well, you know, Tokimune sensei was getting old and he was just bragging about his father's abilities, and exaggerating a bit, blah, blah, blah..." But while a westerner would naturally boast in pride of their father’s abilities and even exaggerate them, a properly cultured Japanese would understate their father’s abilities, and play them down. At any rate, the speculative Western approach only serves to diminish Sokaku's and Tokimune's memories, by removing them from their context.
Likewise any attempt to learn the koryu outside of understanding their cultural context will also lead to the gradual misunderstanding and diminishing (watering down) of the transmission of the teachings of that tradition. That doesn’t mean that effective martial training can’t take place outside of Japan, but it does mean that certain aspects (and perhaps vital ones) could be lost, marginalized or misunderstood outside of their proper context. I might also add that the same can happen in modern day Japan too. With all the rapid changes taking place in Japan over the last 100+ years, there’s plenty of room for misunderstanding context there too. It only underscores the importance of having a knowledgable, capable and qualified instructor. It just so happens that most of the headmasters of classical traditions are still located in Japan. If you want koryu, don’t speculate about it, immerse yourself in the context and train!
Kudos to Stanley for getting right to the po