York Academy of Martial Arts, Toronto

“Those who have a 'why' to live, can bear with almost any 'how'.”
– Victor Frankl

Like many of the extraordinarily dedicated students who have continued training in local parks, parking lots, and online over the past three and a half years, I am ecstatic about the prospect of getting back to training on a proper floor. Thinking of all the terrific ‘what’, conditioning and drills, we will finally be able to do again has really helped me deal with the stress of what has been the glacial creep towards our final confirmation of the ‘where’ and ‘when’ of it all.

More than the ‘what’ though, it’s the ‘who’, returning students and new, and the ‘why’, the opportunity to share the essence of Karate, that really gets me excited, because that’s where lives can change.
The essence of Karate is found in the attitude of the true practitioner, in particular their approach towards stress, strain, or threat. Where a whiff of stress is enough to set most people in today's convenience-centric world off in a cascade of neurotic defensive maneuvers, the Karate practitioner learns over time to embrace stress as a necessary, if not enjoyable part of life.

Our natural human reaction to stress involves changes in heart rate, respiration, vision, and hearing that tighten our focus, and prevent distraction from critical needs. While this tight focus can have certain benefits, the true practitioner recognizes that this kind of automated reaction can also hinder ones ability to see other options or the bigger picture, and so trains themselves to widen their scope, remain open, and to learn to receive well what is coming. In Okinawa they call this attitude “Uke” and it’s just as beneficial for dealing with a physical confrontation as it is for handling the more pervasive micro-aggressions we face daily.

Under the stress of daily life, a prolonged tight focus locked on to the basics of water, food, shelter, and predators or competitors effectively cuts us off from people, cycles, rhythms, and movements around us and leaves us feeling anxious, disconnected, and alone. Through Karate training one learns a practice that is the embodiment of an approach toward the concept of Uke, which when understood can support us in bringing about a more peaceful and useful state of mind, and eventually allow us to see ourselves as part of a greater whole and improve the quality of our life.

Karate training is tough, but the tougher it is, the easier your daily life seems. This happens not just because you are gaining in fitness and confidence, it happens because along with forms and physical techniques, you are learning an approach towards stress itself that allows you to turn “problems” into challenges and “crises” into opportunities. For the true practitioner learning to expand their awareness and remain open to the ‘what’ of training allows them to seek out challenges and move closer to living in a state that is continually open to ‘what is’ in daily life. This state of connection is a ‘why’ that more than outweighs the ‘what’ of regular Karate practice.

Helping others to improve the quality of their lives through learning the practice of Karate has been the ‘why’ that has kept the dojo going for almost thirty-four years now, and I look forward to confirming where and when that will happen for you all soon. Until then, I want to wish you all a safe and happy Holiday season, and hope that whatever you have faced or are facing now, you can find a way to use it in such a way that you become stronger, wiser, and more peaceful.

Sensei Richard Verlaan

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York Academy of Martial Arts

Hello YAMA followers!
We hope that all of you have stayed safe and sane through these challenging times, and wanted to share some great news with you all.
As those who have stuck with their training online or in person with us know, finding a location and affordable insurance that will let us get back on our feet has been an extraordinary journey. The great news is that it's a journey which seems to be nearing its end!!!
We are in the process of securing a new space and, as will be partnering with Karate Ontario, we will be able to offer a number of other benefits, not the least of which is accident insurance for all members.
Our goal is to reopen with the new year, and more details will follow as things are confirmed. In the meantime we will try to rekindle your passion for Karate as a practice as Sensei presents it by sharing a series of videos, as well as notes Sensei has promised to write for us.
Enjoy, and please drop a comment with your thoughts on getting back into training!
Video #1: Spiritual Explorers - Okinawan Karate - the heart of propriety.

Karate: The Heart of Propriety - Spiritual Explorers [Skip Intro] 0:32Learn more about Japanese culture on NHK WORLD-JAPAN!https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/ondemand/category/20/?cid=wohk-yt-2311-se022-hpMore ...

Happy advanced Canada day!!!
Enjoy some time with your families. Zoom class on Thursday will be cancelled. See you all next week!

Sensei’s Note:

Be the change you want to see in the world. – Mahatma Ghandi

Why do you train?

For almost forty years now I have had the privilege to study and practice Martial Arts and Meditation with some of the most skillful and knowledgeable practitioners in the world. In as much as I have long played the role of teacher myself, after all these years I still see myself as a student first and foremost. When people interested in learning Karate come to me, I do my best to pass on to them what I have learned through instruction and also by example. To me there is no more glorious adventure than the one an individual embarks on when they take on the task of transforming their lives through the kind of spirit cultivating training one faces in Karate. The daily embracing and facing of this adventure is, to me, what elevates training from the mere study of a sometimes violent sport to the practice of an Art. To me Karate is a form of moving meditation that, if properly studied, can provide as legitimate a path to personal transformation as any other form of internal practice.

The roots of what we study go back well over a thousand years and involve physical, mental, and spiritual practices that are just as useful whether undertaken at home or in the dojo. Training regularly for even thirty minutes a day can forge an attitude and actions that lead beyond physical skill to include a number of positive health benefits such as reduced anxiety and sense of vulnerability, pain, anger, and depression as well as building a heightened level of awareness, boosting the immune system and our overall sense of well-being. However, if one wishes to derive a full and balanced life from ones practice, it is essential that one look at their training in the right way.

It would be a shame to underestimate the capacity of training in Karate to transform our lives. The human spirit has an inherent capacity for transformation, and each one of us has what it takes to face the stress of change and take on the habitual thoughts, beliefs and actions that are holding us back. Determining whether you see your training as a means of staying in shape, self-defense, personal transformation, or ultimately as a Way that will lead to liberation, will not only ensure that your results match your goals, it is also key to maintaining your motivation.

Training is hard, but when we can see ourselves making progress toward a meaningful goal, we get a sense that the juice is indeed worth all of the squeezing. What is important is to establish an interest that is deep enough, rooted in something beyond superficial desires of shape, style, or power, that will allow us to keep going in spite of the highs and lows that are inherent in any kind of training. In this way, small as that progress may seem at times, it is all we need to maintain our determination and conviction to continue on the path.

Certainly, it is not necessary for everyone to see Karate as a practice that will transform your life in a meaningful way. To become skillful all one need do is train regularly, with sufficient intensity, over the course of one’s life. Although making that kind of effort without being dedicated to a higher target may be possible, if it leads one to become violent or egocentric, then it is not Karate that you have been practicing at all.

So, why do you train?

Sensei Richard Verlaan

Sensei’s Note: Lockdown Peace-of-mind edition…

Peace is the result of retraining your mind to process life as it is, rather than as you think it should be. ----- Wayne W. Dyer

The human mind is perhaps the most complex bio-chemical instrument in existence, and comes installed in us with no instruction manual whatsoever. Your mind has developed unique abilities over thousands of years that are meant to protect you, and allow you to thrive. Our human minds easily project into the past as well as the future, which allows us to remember prior experiences and forecast future outcomes. However, as we tend to more easily retain negative experiences than positive ones, and remain more vigilante with regards to negative outcomes than positive ones, these same abilities that are meant to contribute to our peace and happiness can also sow the seeds of suffering if we don’t learn to take control of them.

Taking control of our minds sounds easy enough, but like a lot of things about ourselves, our level of peace and happiness depends partly on factors we cannot control. While the bad news may be that you are (for now) stuck with your genetic makeup, the good news is that the majority of the peace and happiness you experience in life are actually shaped more by things you can control, most notably by the choices and efforts you make, but also in your approach to it’s attainment.

Many people look for happiness in the pursuit of wealth, fame, good looks, material things, and power, but this path always leads to a dead end because peace and happiness cannot be pursued, they ensue. That is to say that, neither can be obtained because they only come as the result, or by-product of living in a way that is, or creating conditions that are, conducive to their arrival.

Psychologists suggest that the following seven habits can bring a greater sense of peace and happiness:

1. Form close relationships - The number of friends you have is less important than the quality of your relationship with regard to the sharing of feelings, mutual respect, acceptance, trust, fun and empathy.

2. Think of others – Yes this might involve big things like volunteering or reaching out to support friends and family, but it’s also found in the small things like a sincere “thank you”, or Random Act of Kindness, that shows you understand we are all in this thing together.

3. Exercise – We get the physical benefits, but doing something that will effectively ‘get-you-out-of your-own-head’ does wonders for your mind, and has been shown to be as effective as medication in treating depression.

4. Find your FLOW – Find an activity in which you can become so interested you lose track of time. Whether you are making art, playing piano, doing Kata, or playing sports when you get lost in the activity, you are in a state of flow.

5. Live with Spirit – Living with spirit is a way of recognizing and appreciating the wonder and beauty of the human experience. You don’t need to go to a place of worship or praying, you can find it through practicing Karate, yoga, meditation, or even just going for a long walk in nature.

6. Use your strengths – Find a way to take what you are good at and turn it into something that serves the greater good, or nourishes the world around you in some way.

7. Focus on what is- Your mind expands what you focus it on. This month, rather than focus on what you wish things could be, try making a conscious effort to focus on being mindful (that is to be open to and focusing on the experiences of the present moment) , grateful (that is to let go of your expectations of what might/could/should have been and be thankful for what is), and optimistic (that is to hold in mind that both good and bad things come and go, and that life is unfolding in the way that it always does) about the way things are and see what that feels like.

Like a fertile plot of land, the mind pushes forth whatever seeds land in it. As such, cultivating a positive state of mind is no more a passive enterprise than is cultivating a fine garden; both require daily attention, and care must be taken to provide the conditions that are suitable to the crop that you wish to harvest. This month, as you ready your backyard plot or window tray, think about how you can create, with the things you can control, conditions in your life that will boost your level of peace and happiness.

Sensei Richard Verlaan

Canada Goose shows a Bald Eagle the power of the enduring Okinawan Karate spirit...

P.E.I. photographer captures defiant standoff between Canada goose and bald eagle Patrick Keefe photographed a dramatic battle between the two, and the 'great determination and courage' it took for this goose to survive.

Sensei's Note:

Worrying is like a rocking chair; it gives you something to do, but doesn't get you anywhere. - English proverb

The truth is that, if you've got the feeling that we are living in a society specifically designed to drive us to distraction and forget about what is truly important to us in life, you may not be wrong. The good news is that the power to reclaim control of your life is closer than you think.

In Canada we are brought up with the idea that we, as free-thinking, autonomous individuals, are in control of our minds, and in theory that holds true. In practice however, because our mind has the capacity to be hijacked at any moment by thoughts of greed, aggression, fear, or even just the sound of "Ba-by Shark do-do-do-do-do-do", this freedom is often experienced as a disorienting loss of focus and meaning.

The key to keeping your mind from flying off without you is to remember that you are the pilot, and that it is up to you to give your mind a target and keep it on it. Rather than numbing your mind with drugs and distractions, or letting it be swept into anguish driven consumerism by the mainstream media, try this month to keep your mind focused on the more reflective and creative path of mindfulness.

What if tomorrow morning, instead of stumbling into the kitchen, tossing back the juice and washing down your toast with your coffee while pouring over the latest trends, you stopped.

Just for a moment.

And in silence.

Observe, smell, then taste.

Your juice. Your toast. And your coffee.

Made of the sun, wind, rain, and soil of this earth, can you see that you have the entire world right in front of you?

How far have they have traveled just to be in this moment with you?

How many hands did it take just to get them to your table? Think beyond those that picked the fruits or made the bread to those that made the machines that helped, or mined the ore to make the machines that helped or…

This moment, like all moments has an inherent connection to a world larger than your own. Our gift is our ability to stop at any time, creatively engage our ability to focus and assign meaning to these moments, and thereby reclaim control of our life experience.

The present is a gift you give yourself, but one that can positively shape the world around you. It may be hard at first, but try stopping and being present throughout the day over the next month, even if for a moment. The more often you unchain yourself from the crazy train of reactive conditioned thinking, the looser the minds attachment to it becomes.

Sensei Richard Verlaan

In case you need some fresh viewing material, Japan Foundation is hosting a FREE online Japanese Film Festival this week.
Link:

jftor.org