During my last visit to Okinawa in 2003 I was invited to lunch with Yasuda Tetsunosuke Sensei, and was fortunate to discuss many things with him during this meeting.
One of the things that came up in conversation was Miyagi Sensei’s attitude to self defence.
Yasuda Sensei told me that he had heard how Miyagi Chojun Sensei would never allow himself to be drawn into conflict. He would always apologise and admit to being at fault if it meant being able to avoid a fight.
Yasuda Sensei said that he admiredthis quality in Miyagi very much, and that this was the correct behaviour of a budoka.
A lot conflicts can be avoided, I think, if we are able to have this attitude and have enough confidence in ourselves, not be driven by the need to protect our ego’s.
If we are victims of crime or an unprovoked attack then we have no choice but to do everything within our power to defend ourselves and ensure that we come to no harm. However, allowing an argument over a trivial matter to escalate into violence is not the way of budo.
The old cliche about how ‘it takes a bigger man to walk away’ is not something that’s always easy to apply, especially in front of an audience when you stand to lose face in front of others. Young men especially, seem to have this pre-programmed need to prove themselves, especially when it comes to matters of violence.
When choosing not to fight you need to be aware of the fact that the ‘demons of self doubt’ will come back to haunt you, and have you doubting yourself and your abilities. This is perfectly normal and you need to have the courage and conviction in yourself and your actions to know that you did the right thing, as the potential consequences of being drawn into a needless fight far outweigh the consequences of walking away.
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