Japan has a wide variety of arts–praxes, really–whose names end in the character 道 (dou, or michi). “Michi” means “Way”, so all these arts are focused not merely on the result but in the way one gets to the result. Chado (tea), Kyudo (archery), Kendo (fencing), Kado (flowers), Kodo (incense), et cetera. “Shinto” is also in this group of arts.
Anyway, I was reading a sort of textbook about how to conduct Shinto rituals and naturally, it begins with the sort of spiritual mindset one should have when learning and practicing rituals. I think much of this advice is relevant not only to Shinto, but also to those other “michi” arts such as Tea ceremony and Japanese archery. So I thought I would share some of the things it says. The book, by the way, is called “The New Textbook of Shrine Ritual Events’ Etiquette” edited by NUMABE Harutomo and MOTEGI Sadasumi.
The order in which one should learn:
- Listen carefully
- Watch carefully
- Practice it yourself
- Master it, ie: Practice it until you thoroughly can do it
- Research, ie: don’t merely do the rituals by rote, but investigate their meaning and different ways
- Perform it, ie: only after all this can you truly conduct the ritual for real
Particularly, number 5 is quite interesting. Japan is often accused of lacking creativity and initiative. But I don’t think that is true and number 5 demonstrates this. To truly practice an art for real, it is important to investigate and research it yourself, not merely copy what has been taught by your teacher. I think there is creativity and a great deal of initiative in Japanese arts, but it is done with a slow carefulness that isn’t generally praised in Western culture. I think for many Western new learners of Japanese arts, number 4 is the most important. There is a tendency for Westerners to jump to innovation before truly mastering the skills they are learning.
When reviewing what we are learning, the book tells us that we should review the material until it clicks, so to speak: to practice by ourselves until the art becomes second nature to us. There has been a great deal of scientific study about the importance of practice, and that only reminds us of this.
Actually, there is another section which is titled the “relation between Mind and Form“. I will just translate it:
“After the Form has become second nature to you, do not be a slave to the Form in conducting the actual ritual. Rather, make your best effort to properly perform your responsibilities with a sincere heart. If you exert yourself in this, as time passes you will develop your own etiquette that is appropriate to you as an individual.” p3
Again, this reminds us that merely copying is not enough. I think there is some parallel in Kyudo when we are told that merely hitting the target is not enough. If we want to merely hit the target, a modern Western bow equipped with technological sights is a better choice. We should hit the target, but that shot must incorporate our whole self and be completely ours all the while maintaining the established harmonious etiquette with our classmates.
Finally, the book as gives some suggestions on when performing a ritual. A couple of them are not so relevant to the other arts (ex: Be sure the offerings are arranged firmly so they don’t fall down…). But most of them are.
- Remind yourself of the ritual’s purpose.
- Make and review a plan for the ritual.
- Work together with all the participants.
- When finished, reflect and record the ritual in order to continually improve it.
Anyway, I think this advice is good not only for the various “michi” arts, but in fact has a lot of relevance in striving to improve everyday of our lives. Nothing does it seem especially mystic to me. But then again I am pretty involved in this stuff, so I could just be used to it. What do you think?
天地間に 