Budo Questions

I stood across from my training partner in the dojo as there was movement all around us.

They slowly stepped closer and closer before leading with a fast punch aimed at my head.

I stepped off the line of the attack, brought my right leg up and around in an arc, and kicked his punch away.

Returning to awareness, we both reset as it was not his turn to practice the technique. 

There were some elements in the dojo that made complete sense, as in one did not even need to be initiated into the arts or practice martial arts to understand what was happening. 

A punch or a kick being a perfect example. 

Other elements took some explaining and context. Sometimes a specific situation might arise based on the unique interaction between two people. 

Elements beyond that never made any sense, like kicking a punch.

Yet the dojo is not a democracy, and there is a reason for everything in an 800 year old art. 

One could ask a question about it, but you might not get the answer you understand or want.  

Could you deal with a “just keep training” response?

Questions and answers were a test of perseverance and determination of self in the dojo. 

Often what would happen, over time is that one day in the dojo, the reason *why* would just click. 

Or you would hear the teacher explain something to you, followed by a remark by the student along the lines of: why didn’t you tell me this years ago…

…followed by the teacher smiling with the response that they did. 

In budo one doesn’t need the answers, as they are all there in the movement.