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The philosophy of seiryoku zenyo is twofold:
For being a 'stable' judoka, he must mentally and morally put well together. That's what ethics is for. Physically he must also be 'stable'. That's what judo doctrine is for. Ethics and philosophy are part of the same way to perfection (jika no kansei).
The applications in the menu on the left can be classified as follows:
Distinction between purpose and means
What we find on this page about seiryoku zenyo?
What is seiryoku (势力)? The Japanese word means: physical energy. The physical energy is driven by spiritual energy, and comes physiologically from the food-intake by the body. Someone who is in balance for combat, will have his mind and body in harmony, so the flows of mental and physical energy are optimally exploited.
Seiryoku is comparable with the energy as we learn about during physics class - expressed in 'so many joules'. But it's not the same as physical strength (tairyoku (体力) or muscle-power. You won't get seiryoku in the gym. There you will lose your energy, along with the body fat. Nor is seiryoku the same as your condition - seiryoku has nothing to do with the capacity of heart and lungs, or stamina.
Seiryoku is the raw material, the content, the means by which the judoka is performing. It is the fuel in the vehicle.
The principle of ki and seiryoku.
Those who want to understand the spiritual essence of judo, may not skip the following. It is for Mitesco the basis for a deeper analysis of common terms seiryoku zenyo and jita kyoei. Furthermore, we will come on the trail of the deeper spiritual motive that made Jigoro Kano and Kyuzo Mifune finding the inner harmony and the use of ki in seiryoku, at the service of the world.
Weak becomes strong
Although modern competition judo is divided into weight categories, weight originally meant nothing special. Jigoro Kano became after years of study and training at a certain moment in the position to easily beat someone twice as heavy as he was. Physical power without spirit apparently meant nothing. That is literally and figuratively 'dumb power'. So there was something else. What was this' spirit 'of Jigoro Kano? What was the energy that made him apply the physical laws in the sense of a new 'law', seiryoku zenyo? Was that just the tactics of kuzushi? Was that, as Andeas Niehaus claims in his excellent biography of Jigoro Kano, only the force of intellect and will?
Kiai - Aiki
Jigoro Kano began with training in the various jujutsu schools, but even better he analyzed the underlying principles. He 'discovered' laws that deal with the energy flows in and out of man. Muscle power is not the only thing, there is also other power. For him the most important thing was: the harmony of body and mind. That is an invincible power source.
The spirit is according to the Oriental philosophy fed by a spiritual energy, in Japanese 'ki' (or 'qi') ( 'chi' in Chinese, 'prana' in India). Ki is everywhere, should be of cosmic origin and is also the spirit of earth, water, the elements, and humans. It is the archetype of 'breath', which is for Christians 'the Spirit/the Breath of God', we could say the Holy Spirit affecting the soul. Ki flows through the body and provides the energy, all electrical impulses from the brains and the nerves. Ki must be optimally balanced by the freedom given to the physical functions. Tension, fear, fatigue and stress, but also laziness (weakness in the will), will upset the flow of ki in the body, and brings the spirit out of balance.
For Japanese people, the concept of ki is closely linked with the idea of the 'center', the hara (often tanden) Hara literally means the abdomen. In Chinese and Japanese traditions, the hara is considered to be the seat of a person's spiritual energy. The hara is about three fingers under and two fingers behind the navel. Haragei (Japanese:腹芸, literally: "abdomen-art") is a Japanese word that means: someone is in a position to meet his personal energy (ki). Zen teachers learn their students to concentrate their mind on their hara and to seek their balance, physically and emotionally. Haragei and the idea of concentration / balance have been always very important in the martial arts. In Aikido, Judo and Jujutsu for example, a lot of time is spent on breathing techniques, physical exercises to make the practitioners in balance. The balance or imbalance in kuzushi has therefore also to do with the balance between mental/spiritual and physical energy. Haragei is also in the everyday Japanese life, the image of harmony in a group.
So strange is the concept for us Westerners not: we pay attention to a quiet and balanced breathing concerning all processes in the body, including in judo, sports and medical disorders. Could we also call ki 'oxygen' ? It's a bit short-by-the-curve and not so spiritual, but it is a way to understand a difficult oriental concept - even if there is nothing for us Westerners from the underbelly ... The modern Japanese, they are not entirely sure for themselves either. The kanji-word ki (気) means commonly "air, gas, breath, atmosphere" and in ordinary formations used as 蒸気力: joukiryoku: (steam), but even more frequently in spiritual / psychological meanings as気性kishou: character, spirit , temperament, or more physical energy as磁気: jiki: magnet. Someone who is ill, misses his ki and is 病気: byouki. We can therefore make it so difficult as we want. We don't. In ordinary English (and Latin), you can also say: anima sane in corpore sane. A healthy mind in a healthy body - it was already a part of Greek philosophy and it is even the motto of a sports brand. Although someone will not get this spirit by buying clothing and shoes from Asics ...
The opinion of Andreas Niehaus, Kano actually did nothing with ki, seems a little too western and narrow. Although Kano was heavily influenced by the philosophy of utilitarianism, to say that the translation of spiritual/mental energy only means' intellect and will' limits Kano too much to be a moralist. (Cf. A. Niehaus, Leben und Werk Kano Jigoros, p. 169-171)
What is very interesting, are the two different meanings of harmony in the fighting spirit of the Japanese.
The technique of judo, the harmony (the kiai and aiki) has to reinforce and represent itself in optimal utilization of physical seiryoku. Who can fulfill this principle, is the perfect judoka. (For more details about aiki, click here.)
Ki and seiryoku zenyo
The first principle of Kano, the optimal efficient use of energy (seiryoku zenyo) is based on this inner harmony. Waste of energy, pointless acts that do not contribute to the building of inner harmony, make precious energy to get lost to the earth, the people and the partner in combat, will cause your own kuzushi and let you eventually lose the fight if the other knows how to exploit the ki in harmony with seiryoku and can express it in a more perfect technique.
An important question in this context is: What is according to Jigoro Kano the difference between the concepts seiryoku and ki?
Jigoro Kano will not talk about the optimum utilization of ki alone, something like 'ki zenyo'. Spiritual energy (ki) is still important, but when you work with your body in judo, seiryoku-energy is transmitted through the food chain. Without the primary spiritual/mental energy the physical energy is not generated: the spirit reigns according to the Oriental the body and not vice versa. It should be clear that Kano never means with seiryoku physical or muscle power (that is tairyoku). In physics it is something like "so many newton", and energy "so many joules." For Kano is seiryoku so - if we want to formulate it according exact science - more something like "so many joules."
The effectiveness of each judo technique is more than a simple act. In the concept of Kano, every move is an expression of spiritual ki with physical seiryoku, which should be treated with respect (rei). Exercise and practice are the unifying expression of a deep spirituality (awase, ai) of mind and body. A lifelong way, a continuous journey of self-discovery, harmonizing, growing and improving. Judo technique according to seiryoku zenyo thus never exists in itself, or never has purely sporting purposes, but human perfection = the harmony between mind and body. Above all this is obvious that the world will be in peace, if everyone perfectly realizes his own harmony and balance, and serves society. That is jita kyoei.
Mitesco makes the principle of spirit and energy in ordinary English clearer. But we must bear in mind, however, that this perception is rooted in the mixing of religious systems in physics. We westerners could find that strange, but Taoists and Buddhists will not wonder about it. Because in the oriental religious systems syncretism is common, and the original martial arts in Japan each have their own sources, the ki - seiryoku principle in judo is a result of a mix of wisdom, religion and philosophy, developed for years. Kano was very intellectually, and had made the great religions and philosophies compatible with the judo principles. In addition Kano was a moralist who claimed practical goals.
Some experts believe that the official judo doctrine is silent about ki, but that's not true. Kano speaks often on the use of mental and physical energy/power. He distinguishes the two principles with the intention to learn how they should harmonize. Kano broadens the principle of "spiritual/mental energy" also when applying it educationally, and to ethics and psychology, in full compliance with the meanings of ki in kanji. However, it is true that Kano had a more classical Taoist approach: you get your knowledge from experience. Training will teach you the meaning of spiritual energy, not just instruction. Thus, the whole Kodokan was set up: study and practice. Therefore, among Japanese martial arts, judo is the most spiritual art, with the most inner principles. Kano taught these principles into practice, without forgetting the underlying theoretical basis - what jujitsu schools in Kano's time often forgot ...
Most judo pages and descriptions of Jigoro Kano skip ki, but also seiryoku, all because it seems so complicated. But what do we really understand about the spiritual essence of judo if we do not try to understand what seiryoku-zenyo as words and concepts mean? Judo is in every case tough to study and a judoka always tries to grasp what he doesn't know. That is true in the dojo, but also in your office. Mitesco also makes judo exercises in the study-dojo. Who perseveres, can experience that it is not that complicated. Someone once said: "Who never have read the works of Kano, understood nothing of judo." In the United States there is more attention to this subject, than in the Netherlands (and Europe). Ultimately, the personal goal of the judoka is according to Kano: what brings man to harmonious development and the perfection of human nature (jika no kansei).
From the words above, it is perhaps better to understand what these quotes of Kyuzo Mifune and Jigoro Kano signify:
Zenyo is the shape, literally the correct way in which energy is used or applied. It is according to Jigoro Kano the principle of efficiency. Seiryoku (energy) use without major doryoku (effort) is the only way to attain a goal. It's like the so-called "new driving" in the car, a Dutch concept to drive without spoiling precious oil. (Could perhaps be an opportunity for Americans, who just recently discovered the advantage of hybrid cars!) When you want to know what that is: it is nothing more than to take advantage of everything which makes you give less gas (and thus save petrol): control your pedals, use the engine instead of the brakes when you slow down, and especially anticipate situations. Seiryoku zenyo in traffic is exactly the opposite of the 'wild ride' at high rpm, with high fuel consumption. As in traffic you need a certain maturity to understand that "young, fast, wild" is no application of seiryoku zenyo - not to judo and nowhere.
Judo is the most energy conscious way of moving and life, a school for the traffic between people and effort for the good. A form seiryoku how you can use both physically and mentally and morally.
Kuzushi and the application in judo
Why is judo the most energy-conscious way of moving and life? In judo you still use a lot of energy? A judoka should be powerful to apply the techniques? Or?
Indeed. But: The fundamental discovery of Jigoro Kano in Kito Ryu was the principle of kuzushi. Who uses the imbalance of the other, is not forced to invest all energy by themselves. Moreover kuzushi makes it possible to throw judoka's much heavier than normal, using the natural laws. Therefore we can easily say: kuzushi is the application used in relation to the seiryoku-zenyo principle in judo. (See the menu: 'kuzushi')
To act like that, a judoka needs his intellect and will:
We can divide the means to achieve the goals into two elements:
The means is seiryoku or any form of energy. The way can be judo or any form of efficient use of energy in any situation whatsoever. Judo has a number of fundamental principles to be achieved in the practice of the dojo (Kuzushi).
Efficiency in energy consumption is universally applicable in all situations of life.
What jita kyoei means, can be followed in the menu. It is something like: everything that is good, true and beautiful for all people on earth. In other words, welfare, happiness, peace, freedom, harmony, respect, love, good sportsmanship, tolerance, all making people more perfect, thus realizing the harmony between mind and body in every man for the salvation to the whole world .
The resources, energy and its efficient use, are bringing this goal closer. Without proper, diligent, but also balanced and controlled application of energy, there will be no way to the goal.
Purpose and resources are closely linked.
We should all note that Jigoro Kano didn't find his inspiration for his philosophy about seiryoku zenyo and jita kyoei only in Eastern philosophy and spirituality. Kano was a well-educated man, was known in particular to the English (Western) perception of sports and the British world (cf. the idea of Commonwealth). In the English system, especially in the utilitarian philosophy of Herbert Spencer, he found a concrete breeding. In short, this system of utilitarianism is: 1) your own interest should be the public interest; 2) you need to act in the most efficient and useful way, in order to the general interest of all. Well, it is not so difficult to understand that Kano mixed this idea up with his oriental philosophy, in particular Taoism and martial arts. (Note on Herbert Spencer)
The goal should determine the application of the means. But not in the sense that everything is permitted. It is not. In these things Jigoro Kano was not a Westerner. Judo according to the founders is always corresponding with traditional principles. Individualism and unrestricted human autonomy is incompatible to Japanese mentality. The moral component of judo in the spirit of Jigoro Kano consists of a number of elements:
Therefore, the application of seiryoku zenyo with the aim of jita kyoei needs a scientifically based theory and a consistently sustained exercise in the achievement of the good. Judo is a way for all these moral principles to be achieved, for the tatami and beyond.
NOTE 1 ON THE WORD SEIRYOKU
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