Doorstep Zen

This is my Dojo (place of learning the ‘way’) doorstep, as you enter you bow, as you bow you look down and this is what you see.

‘Shi’ means ‘warrior’ but more in the sense of ‘cultivated person’.

‘Kon’ means ‘spirit/heart’.

‘Budo’ means ‘to stop the spear’ or peacemaker.

‘Kan’ means ‘place/clubhouse’.

So, ‘the place of the peacemaker with a warrior spirit’….

As you enter the Dojo the doorstep reminds you to leave the past and and future behind and become fully immersed and engaged in the present. The bow is an act of  mental cleansing, reminding you to respect yourself, your Dojo, your fellow students and coaches.

The self ceases to exist as you work on your emotional intelligence to develop patience, kindness, tolerance, compassion, resolve, courage and determination working as a team with coaches and fellow students to bring conflict to harmony.

Peace is earned. In this chaotic world it requires a warrior’s spirit and skill to ‘stop the spear’ without making violence worse.

That’s why we have reminders everywhere in the Dojo beginning as you enter the ‘place of learning way’….