This Ain’t No Jabberwocky!

The photo is of my third Dan diploma (third-degree black belt) and my short sword on the wall in the bedroom. That’s right, I am certified lethal with a sword. The short sword is not the Vorpal Blade of literature, which was “swift and keen, and always ready for service,” as the Cheshire Cat said to Alice, but it will do. It is in fact swift and keen and always ready for service if needed should someone be so unwise as to invade my home.

For many years I spent at least one evening a week learning how to draw, use and sheath the long sword properly. So you are thinking Samurai movies with lots of blood, guts and swagger. Well, it ain’t so. Most traditional dojos are extremely polite and restrained places where courtesy and respect are number one. Most Senseis ( teachers) would view the casual, rude, and careless student as someone to be severely schooled or ejected. Why? The sword, especially the Japanese razor-sharp sword, is exceptionally dangerous; the dojo can be an extremely dangerous place with twenty people drawing and cutting. There is no room for casual “cut-ups”, rude behavior, or lack of proper form.

One of my sensei’s pointed out to me early in my training that practitioners of Japanese swodsmanship tended to be polite and courteous. It made sense, he said. As you ascended in rank, you learned exactly how dangerous the blade and the actions of its bearer are. After a while, the lessons learned in the dojo seep into your everyday life.

And the sword poised in the rack is a constant reminder.