Inside-out View Ni

"AN INSIDE-OUT VIEW OF A PHILOSOPHICAL CONSTRUCT NI"

"THE STUDENT TEACHER RELATIONSHIP"

Every circumstance we experience may be viewed as an opportunity for learning. Our circumstances are a reflection of, and a statement about who and what we are at any given point in time. Living within the creative context of an art form is an ideal way of dealing effectively with self, and so the environment. We reflect on the particulars of our life using the guidelines that are provided by the frame work we have adopted. This frame work sets the parameter for how one relates to and views life.

A student could be influenced by those who have mastery over the art they are studying. These masters serve as models, and create the guidelines that keep the student from straying too far off the path. This interaction hardly scratches the surface of what the student-teacher relationship can be. Ideally both student and teacher give and receive, benefiting mutually.

Just as there are typical characteristics of school children at various grade levels, there are also recognizable themes that pervade the various ranks of the martial arts. The senseis (teachers) having moved through the ranks themselves, and seeing hundreds of others move through them, are given insights as to what the student is going through. The sensei can then reflect certain characteristics back to the student. The student then uses this as a tool to look within and better deal with this state of becoming.

For example, in demonstrating a technique often times sensei may demonstrate in such a way that each individual present, whatever their rank, can pick up something new, even if the student has seen that technique hundreds of times. Each student is able to perceive according to their level of mastery. Of course this all depends on the student paying close attention.

With all this profound wisdom and mastery, sensei does not play the role of the tyrannical guru. He does not lead a flock of starry-eyed, mindless soldiers. Rather he provides his students with the opportunity to experience their limits and know their own minds. In this process, the students continually provide the teacher with learning opportunities as well. It is said that the knowledge of a technique must be given away to be fully realized, "you can only get a quart in a quart jar."

Hence the true essence of martial arts is helping others. The greater the power, the less the freedom; the higher the rank, the more the servant. This is enforced purely through self-discipline, and perpetuated by the intense desire on the part of the sensei for continual growth!