When we stand in the dojo (training hall) we have some rules.  But the purpose of these rules is not to make everyone the same, but to allow each to express their own self more freely.

We must own our own physical bodies… We must exist right here, right now… When we have our body and mind in order, everything else will exist in the right place, in the right way.

But usually, without being aware of it, we try to change something other than ourselves, we try to order things outside us.  But it is impossible to organise things if you yourself are not in order.

Studying books on karate is a kind of food for your brain.  Of course it is necessary to take some food for your brain, but it is more important to be yourself by practicing the right way of life (karate).

Referring back to the story of the hole in the ground (majority of people will say the hole is too deep, never their arm is too short) you must practice coming back to ourselves.  Not blaming the external world without 1st looking at the internal.  Time spent training is time away from your everyday life, what happens before you train is forgotten, what will happen after you finish training is forgotten.  This time is your time, to focus on the now, to focus on you now.  A timeout from the worries of your world.  Train the correct mind set, to be focused, to be strong, to be determined, to be confident, to be self aware, to be present in the here and now.  Practice the correct form, practice the correct mindset.  Practice become habit and habit become a way of life, if the practice is right…