Kurai

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[AikiSean!]

Anyone know what this means, exactly?

[Mashu]

Which kurai?

It can mean gloomy, approximately, dark, rank......

It's easy to look up on the internet or get an inexpensive dictionary at amazon.com.

[JJF]

Hi Matthew.

Can you recommend any dictionary in particular ?

[Mashu]

Certainly,

On the internet: http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/wwwjdic.html
Is one that I like best.

For a regular dictionary: Random House's Japanese-English English-Japanese dictionary by Seigo Nagao has enough to satisfy most without being too big or expensive.

For Kanji: The Nelson character dictionary should cover them nicely. I like Kodansha's Kanji Learner's Dictionary too.

There are of course many other sites and books. Maybe some other forum members can suggest some good ones as well.

[Jeremy Young]

I just want to second the "Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese dictionary" by Seigo Nagao. It seems to be a very good dictionary and gives the romanji and kanji for the word. This is the one my japanese instructor recommended to me and it has served me well. Also it has some basic phrases with the words some time. For example, look up "hajime" and beside the basic meaning of the word you may find "hajime mashite" "nice to meet you" or something like that.

[rob_liberti]

Isn't "Kurai dachi" the name of that 45 degree sword movement in Kashima between all offense and all defense. I don't know how it would translate in that situation, but out of "gloomy, approximately, dark, rank" I don't see a good fit.

Rob (who knows just enough Japanese to be a pain to the people who actually know Japanese)

[Mashu]

He said he wanted to know about this kind of kurai:

http://www.tomiki.org/glossary_general.html

Kurai Secret, consciousness, inner being.
Kurai dori To control another's consciousness

http://www.usadojo.com/Martial-Arts...ictionary-k.htm

Kurai A yielding, passive state of mind where one bends with the attacker's force and uses it against him.

http://www.takemusu-aikido.org.za/a...l_concepts.html

AIKI NO KURAI: refers to the highest consciousness of aiki, in which a person's life becomes a clear mirror without distortion and becomes one not only with their training partner but also with the laws of nature. O-Sensei explained:

"If you wish to understand aiki no kurai, study the world of nature. Think of how an eagle, flying high in the sky, is able to catch fish which swim beneath the water's surface. From the shore, where we must stand, the current of the ocean distorts our view; yet from high aloft the eagle sees the fish, indeed, the shadows of the fish, as if they were reflected in a mirror. The eagle plucks the fish from the water as easily as we might pick up a stone on an open plane. Likewise, the eagle cannot match the swift-footed rabbit on the ground, but from the sky he easily follows the rabbit's course."

"Aiki no kurai is not only a teaching of the martial arts, but a lesson of nature itself. Nature is also our dojo. The intricate variations of the seasons, the beauty of the flowers in the field are our teachers, and they lead us to the highest consciousness of aiki. Any serious student of Aikido must observe the phenomena of the universe in motion to find the meaning of their study. As you come to understand these phenomena, you must apply your understanding to your practice of budo. This is my teaching."


Sounded almost like mushin to me but I haven't been able to figured it out yet.

The kurai in Kurai Dachi is this one:

位 which ordinarily means rank, grade, nobility, throne, crown......

But this isn't ordinary.

But Mr. Liberti's suggestion seems like a good answer. If in that case kurai means something like a man standing unmoved(his mind at least) by his opponent's attack.

Maybe..... :)

Best,

Matthew (shooting arrows into the clouds today)