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Old 01-24-2012, 09:16 AM   #9
dave9nine
Dojo: Aikido Institute - Oakland
Location: Oakland
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 80
United_States
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Re: Skin care and hygiene tips I wish I had known before I started training...

the first dojo i trained at was an independent dojo, and the sensei had written a handbook for new students; one of the items in the handbook was a quick section about hygiene, and it asked students to refrain from using deodorants, perfumes, colognes, etc. Part of this was so that these smells did not distract people while training. the other part, though, was actually towards encouraging students to let the concept of 'harmony with nature' help one to rethink or loosen the social constructions of what our bodies should smell like. the message there was 'our bodies smell the way they do --let them' ... that blurb in that handbook always stuck with me..

as Robert Nadeau Sensei likes to say, 'let the body body'

-dave
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