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Old 09-25-2010, 06:05 PM   #19
Chris Li
 
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Dojo: Aikido Sangenkai
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Join Date: Dec 2000
Posts: 3,313
United_States
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Re: To bow or not to bow

Quote:
Brett Charvat wrote: View Post
"Well, they'll never learn better manners (if they are better) if you turn them away."

--Sure they will; they just won't learn it in the context of aikido at my dojo. And I'm not turning them away; they are turning them away through refusal to practice as the rest of us do.

"Really, in the grand scheme of things, is whether or not somebody bows really that important?"

--I guess not to some folks, and that's their business. But for me it seems to be an indication that the person in question only wants to take advantage of aikido by picking and choosing what parts of it they will do. I have trouble with that mentality. If someone really, truly wants to study aikido with me, they are welcome to come and abide by the rules of the dojo. If they do not wish to abide by the rules of the dojo, they are welcome to do something else with their time.

Of course, my opinion has probably been reinforced by my small amount of training in a koryu art. Refusing to bow there would be what might be referred to as a serious problem.
I've trained in two different koryu arts - but they aren't Aikido and the customs and purposes are different.

Best,

Chris

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