Dojo rules
Five lines, in Isao Tengan's words
They hang by the door and are said together at the end of every class. Each one is short, and each one is meant to be used.
- 01
Step 1: Bow when you come in and when you leave.
A bow at the doorway says you are here for the class and nothing else. If you forget, bow and carry on.
- 02
Step 2: Leave your shoes and your hurry at the door.
Shoes stay off the mat. Whatever was waiting in the car or on the phone can wait for an hour.
- 03
Step 3: Train at your own pace, and let your partner train at theirs.
A new student and an old one work side by side. Nobody is measured against the person next to them.
- 04
Step 4: Ask when you don't understand, and say so when something is too much.
Questions are welcome between drills. A sore knee or a hard day is a reason to slow down, and nobody will mind.
- 05
Step 5: Leave the room as you found it.
The line sweeps the mat and straightens the shoes at the door before it goes home.
Why they are short
A rule you can say on one breath
Okinawan dojos have long kept a few plain lines on the wall, to be read before and after practice. Ours are in English, in Isao Tengan's own words, and they change only when he thinks of a better way to say them.
They are not a test, and they are not a list of things to be afraid of. They are what the room asks of anyone who steps onto the mat.
Hear them in the room
Come to a class and stay for the last bow.